A Look Ahead/Back at JMU Women's Basketball Thus Far

By all accounts, the JMU women’s basketball team should win the 2011 Colonial Athletic Association title.

         The Dukes are the reigning champions with four out of five starters returning, including nationally recognized senior guard Dawn Evans. But JMU head coach Kenny Brooks feels everyone else will be out to spoil JMU’s chances to repeat.

            “We play with a little bit of a target on our backs,” Brooks said. “Now with the preseason ranking, it’s just amplified. With the national exposure we’ve gotten, teams want to play us and I have a feeling we are going to get everyone’s A-game.”

             

          Perhaps all the preseason media hype is too much. While the Dukes were picked by the CAA coaches to take the title for the second season in a row, the team has gotten off to a rocky start so far in non-conference play, currently 3-3 on the season. Evans specifically feels preseason predictions add an unwarranted amount of pressure for her and the team as a whole.

            “People are going to look for us and prepare for us every game,” Evans said. “It can make it hard sometimes.”

            Looking to bounce back from a disappointing home opener 69-64 loss to Hampton University, the Dukes spent their Thanksgiving break in Cancun, Mexico, participating in the Caribbean Challenge. There, they went 1-1, their loss coutesy of the No. 20 University of Iowa Hawkeyes 67-61 in overtime.

Despite the loss, Evans was able to notch her 2,000^th career point, only the second player in school history to do so. Tamera Young (2004-08), who currently plays for the Chicago Sky, was the first.  Evans now stands fourth in the CAA record books.

Senior center Lauren Jimenez, who is recovering from a broken toe, was a dominant force underneath in her return, pouring in 18 points against the University of Montana Grizzlies. Also, senior guard Courtney Hamner had a career-high five trey’s against the Grizzlies, who the Dukes defeated 76-69 in the first of the two games.

Sophomores Nikki Newman, a forward, and guard Tarik Hislop are also major contributors, with Newman achieving career-high 14 rebounds against Montana and Hislop consistently ranking second on the team in scoring. Hislop was also a preseason CAA Second-Team selection.

            While the final score against Iowa was close, the Dukes managed to give up a 10-point second-half lead. Brooks emphasized in press conferences last season how the team continuously failed to put together a cohesive 60-minute game. So far this season, the trend is continuing.

            JMU fell to No. 5 Duke University Tuesday night, 75-58. While the Dukes came out strong, staying within one to two points for the first 10 minutes of the game, it was their shooting trouble that became their downfall. JMU would only make 29 percent of their second half shots.

            “I see those kids make those shots every day,” Brooks said. “They were all on target, just in-and-out. They just didn’t fall for us.”

Duke was able to hold Evans to a mere 11 points in the first half. Evans finished with 20, while Jimenez had a season-high 19. Duke’s head coach Joanne McCallie explained how it was always in their game plan to consistently pressure and eventually frustrate Evans.

“I thought Jasmine Thomas was extremely strong in defending her [Evans] and making her work for her shots,” McCallie said.

JMU has six more games before conference play begins on Jan. 2, when JMU hosts Northeastern University. The Huskies finished 13-18 overall, with a 7-11 record in the CAA.  Northeastern specifically might not pose much of a threat, but multiple teams in the CAA are looking to, and have the talent, capable of stripping the Dukes of their title.

            The most talked about player outside of Evans is the University of Delaware’s sophomore guard/forward Elena Delle Donne. Both shared the title of Co-Preseason Players of the Year and both are on every national watch-list, from the Naismith Player of the Year Award to the Wade Trophy.

 Delle Donne has a leg up on Evans, however, as she is the reigning CAA Player of the Year and currently leads the nation in scoring with 27.4 points per game. Evans is right on her heels in second with 26.6.

            The Blue Hens are 5-0 so far for the first time since the 1992-93 season and were picked to finish third in the conference. JMU will travel to Newark on Feb. 20 to face the Blue Hens on their home turf.

            “You go up there with a chip on your shoulder,” Evans said. “I’ve been runner-up for Player of the Year going on two, three years now. I have to go and prove that what I do for my team is good enough to get an award like that.”

Last season, the Dukes managed to beat the Blue Hens 88-83, despite Delle Donne’s record-breaking 54 points, including a three-pointer at the buzzer to send it to overtime. The Naval Academy’s David Robinson previously held the Convocation Center scoring record with his 45-point performance on January 10, 1987.

While all eyes will be on the Feb. 20 match-up, the remaining two teams finishing out the top four are equally as threatening.

Old Dominion University, picked second, won the CAA title 17 years in a row from 1992-2008. Senior guard Jasmine Parker, who was selected to the All-CAA Second Team and CAA All-Defensive Team last season, leads the Monarchs in scoring. Parker is pacing the conference with 15 steals in three games. Currently, ODU sits at No. 2 in the CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Poll, leading all CAA teams with JMU at No. 10, Delaware at No. 12 and Virginia Commonwealth University at No. 23.

Hofstra University, the 2009 CAA champions, was picked to finish fourth in the preseason poll. The Pride are riding a three-game winning streak, led by sophomore forward Shante Evans, who shares Co-Player of the Week honors with Parker for the week of Nov. 29.

With each of the top four schools and a handful of others having a player on the All-CAA first or second team, anyone could climb to the top of the 12-team conference.  

“When we were predicted to finish first, it was flattering for 15 minutes,” Brooks said. “After that, it’s not worth the paper that it’s written on…If everyone stays healthy, I say Hofstra has a chance. You can count on Old Dominion being in there fighting. Past that, anyone has a chance. Anything could happen.”

-CH

Duke outperforms JMU, 75-58

For the ninth time in school history, a top-10 women's basketball team visited Harrisonburg to take on JMU.
Tuesday night, JMU fell to 75-58 to No. 5 Duke. JMU dropped to 3-3 with the loss and Duke advanced to 7-0.

JMU took the lead in the beginning of the game until Duke stole it at 14-13 in the 13th minute and never gave it up again. Following the lead change, Duke went on a 24-6 run.
JMU senior Lauren Jimenez scored a season-high 19 points on 7-for-8 shooting from the field. She also recorded a double-double noting a team-leading 11 rebounds.
Madison's leading scorer was senior Dawn Evans, adding 20. Other contributors included sophomore Tarik Hislop (8), seniors Jalissa Taylor (4) and Courtney Hamner (3) and junior Lauren Whitehurst (4).
As a team, JMU shot 45.8 percent from the field in the first half, but fell drastically to 29 percent in the second.
Evans, the Colonial Athletic Association's second-leading scorer shot 8-for-22 from the field and 2-for-11 from behind the arc.
The Blue Devils had four scorers in double-digits, and the team recorded 20 assists in comparison to JMU's nine. Duke's scoring was led by freshman Chelsea Gray, with 15, and seniors Karmia Christmas and Krystal Thomas, adding 14 each.
JMU will continue play at Longwood University on Thursday.

-CH

Women's basketball to host the Duke University Blue Devils

Here is a good bit of information off Duke's website. If you ask me, I think the JMU ladies are going to lose. But stranger things have happened. Here's hoping it's not a blowout. 


Duke Readies for Trip to James Madison; Tuesday, Nov. 30 at 7:00 PM...
Entering the third leg of a four-game road swing, the fifth-ranked Duke women’s basketball team (6-0) will travel to Harrisonburg, Va., for a Tuesday, Nov. 30 contest at 7:00 p.m., at James Madison (3-2).  The game will be played at the JMU Convocation Center. Following Tuesday’s matchup against JMU, the Blue Devils will travel to Wisconsin to conclude the road swing on Dec. 2.  The four-game road swing marks only the second time Duke has featured road straight road games over the last 23 years.
The Blue Devils are currently ranked No. 5 in the Associated Press and No. 6 in the ESPN/USA Today Division I Coaches Polls.

Noting Duke...
Senior Jasmine Thomas has started 66 straight games ... senior Krystal Thomas played in her 100th consecutive game at Charlotte ... Duke holds a 228-84 advantage in points in the paint ... as a team, Duke has taken 11 charges with Shay Selby and Chelsea Gray leading with three each ... the Blue Devils return three starters -- Jasmine Thomas, Karima Christmas and Krystal Thomas off a squad that posted a 30-6 overall record a year ago and advanced to the NCAA Tournament Elite Eight ... Duke has been ranked in the Associated Press for 209 straight weeks, which dates back to the 1999-2000 season ... the Blue Devils have been listed in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches poll for 257 consecutive weeks - dating back to the 1997-98 campaign.


A Look At James Madison...
James Madison enters the contest with a 3-2 overall record and is coming off a 76-69 overtime victory over Montana in the Caribbean Challenge in Puerto Aventuras, Mexico. The Dukes are coached by Kenny Brooks, who is in his ninth season with JMU. James Madison is led by All-America candidate Dawn Evans, who is averaging 26.6 points, 4.4 rebounds and leads the team with 21 assists.  Lauren Jimenez (9.0 points), Tarik Hislop (8.8 points) and Lauren Whitehurst (7.2 points) are also producing well for JMU.


Series With James Madison...
Duke and James Madison will meet for the seventh time in school history with the Blue Devils leading the overall series, 5-1.  In the series, JMU won the first game, 76-75, on Jan. 15, 1982, but Duke has won the last five in a row. Last year in Durham, the Blue Devils won 79-65


Duke Versus the CAA...
Duke holds an all-time record of 38-8 against teams from the Colonial Athletic Association -- Delaware (1-0), George Mason (3-0), Georgia State (1-1), Hofstra (2-0), James Madison (5-1), UNC Wilmington (7-2), Northeastern (2-0), Old Dominion (7-3), VCU (6-1) and William & Mary (4-0). The last loss to a CAA squad was on Dec. 7, 1996 against sixth-ranked Old Dominion, 89-77.  Duke has won 10 straight contests against the Colonial Athletic Conference, which is dating back to the 1999 East Regional Sweet 16 victory versus fifth-ranked Old Dominion.


Also, you can follow @breeze_sports for a live Twitter feed of updates and scores.


-CH

JMU Volleyball Season Over

The JMU volleyball team's improbable run came to an end Saturday night in a five set thriller to Northeastern University, 22-25, 25-21, 19-25, 25-19, 15-8 at the Colonial Athletic Association tournament in Newark, Del.

The Dukes ended one of the best seasons in their program's history at 22-8, and Northeastern season continues today in the CAA Finals against top seed, the University of Delaware.

The Dukes went down early in the first set, but were able to battle back and tie the score at 9-9. The Huskies went up 17-13 and looked in control of the set, but JMU won 11 of the next 13 points to get set point. A kill by senior Jessica Zeroual gave the Dukes an early 1-0 advantage in a tight match.

The second set saw Northeastern come out strong, taking a 5-2 advantage but like the first set, JMU clawed its way back. The Dukes tied the score at 17-17 but the Huskies went on an 8-4 run to close the set, getting four straight points on Nichole Kurz's serve.

The Dukes started to gain control of the match in the third set getting up to a 14-9 lead. Like the first two sets, the opposing team got back in it, this time with a 19-19 tie. Senior Lauren Fanelli's serve sparked a 6-0 run to close out the set and give JMU a 2-1 lead to lead the match.

JMU started out slow again in the fourth set, going down 16-10, but a 7-1 run tied the set up at 17-17. The Dukes ran out of gas in the fourth, losing 25-19, and giving the Huskies momentum it ultimately needed.

The Huskies silenced the Dukes opening the decisive fifth set up with an 8-2 lead. JMU never got any closer, losing the set 15-8 and capping off a great 2010 season.

Sophomore Danielle Erb led the Dukes with team-high 25 kills and senior Lindsay Callahan, playing her final game as a Duke, had 15 kills to go along with 16 digs.

-MO

Team looks to break 10-year title drought

The last time JMU volleyball won a Colonial Athletic Association championship was in 2000. That was former head coach Disa Garner's first season.

Ten years later, in head coach Lauren Steinbrecher's first season, the Dukes look to repeat the same pattern and earn an automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament.

"It's surreal," sophomore Danielle Erb said. "To finish in eighth place last season and have the turn around this season and be in the position where we are is unbelievable."

JMU, who was picked to finish sixth in the conference at the beginning of the season, will head into this weekend's CAA tournament at the University of Delaware as the No. 2 seed and facing the No. 3-seeded Northeastern University Saturday at 5 p.m.

"We have had the opportunity to play Northeastern twice this year," Steinbrecher said. "They have a really nice right side setter combo player, Brittany Brown. She's a senior leader for them and she terminates great serves and is a great passer."

The Huskies are led by redshirt freshman middle hitter Nichole Kurz and freshman outside hitter Janelle Tucker. Tucker is top among CAA freshman with 307 kills, which is good enough for eighth overall.

This will be JMU's first CAA tournament since 2007, the first year for the Dukes' senior class. They lost in the semifinals that season to host No. 1 Delaware in four sets.

"It's really awesome," senior Lindsay Callahan said. "I feel like it's been way too long since we've been there and I'm really excited for the other girls to make it to the tournament."

Joining the Dukes and Huskies in the tournament are the Delaware Blue Hens and the Virginia Commonwealth University Rams. Delaware is the lone team in the conference that has a perfect 13-0 record at home.

"Delaware is a very strong team," Steinbrecher said. "They play very good defense and stay aggressive. We were right there with them when we played them but just didn't make key shots."

Led by senior outside hitter Mariel Frey and middle back Kelsie Chegg, VCU has had an interesting season, going 2-13 in non-conference games but flipping the script to go 9-5 in the CAA, gaining the fourth seed. VCU is making its fourth trip in the past five years.

"VCU is a very athletic team," Steinbrecher said. "They play as a team and had a good amount of talent. If we see them we will have to be ready to pursue the ball on every play."

If the Dukes can muster a third win against Northeastern, they will go into the championship game against a team they haven't defeated. The Dukes lost to Delaware on the road in three sets and VCU gave JMU its only home loss this season, losing in four sets.

"I think both times we played we weren't out of it completely," Callahan said. "It wasn't anything they were doing on their side. We would really love to play Delaware at home and take it to them on their home court."

All week the team has been focused, setting their sights on the title game and getting another shot at either Delaware or VCU.

Senior setter Lauren Fanelli, one of four JMU seniors, said getting redemption is what motivates this year's team.

"Our team wants it so bad it will just be a game of who wants it more, and I feel like it will be us," she said.

-MO

Women’s soccer falls 3-1 to University of North Carolina in NCAA second round

The Dukes certainly have nothing to be ashamed of as they ended their season losing to the defending national champions Sunday. 

Third-ranked UNC scored two goals in the second half to break the 1-1 halftime tie and defeat JMU 3-1 in the second round of the NCAA Tournament in Chapel Hill, N.C., on Sunday afternoon.

The Tarheels (19-2-2) will advance to next Saturday's round of 16 to take on the University of Notre Dame at home, while the Dukes dropped to 15-7-1 with the defeat, ending their nine-game unbeaten streak.

The Dukes' lone goal came from freshman forward Lauren Wilson after UNC goalie Hannah Daly deflected sophomore forward Amalya Clayton's shot. Wilson scored from 35 yards out, making it her eighth goal on the season.

JMU defeated the University of Texas 3-1 on Friday night in the first round to advance to Sunday's game. Goals were scored by senior forward Cate Tisinger, sophomore midfielders Kelly Germain and Katie Menzie.

Sunday's loss was the final game for four seniors   - goalie Diane Wszalek, defender Corinna Strickland, Tisinger and midfielder Teresa Rynier (shown below in Friday's game) who became JMU's all-time assist leader this season with 53.

-CH

JMU women's basketball loses home opener to Hampton....what?

Color me shocked. My favorite team at JMU, the women's basketball team, fell to Hamption University Friday night 69-64 in their home opener. I went back as far as 2005 to see when the last time the Dukes lost a home opener was and I couldn't find it. Clearly, it's been a while. While the media tends to focus on senior point guard Dawn Evans, the real problem is at the center position. Senior Lauren Jimenez has a broken toe and fellow senior Jalissa Taylor has been forced to take over the position. Normally Taylor can be relied on for some defensive pressure, but it was her offense that was suffering. Going 1 for 9 at center is not going to win games. Evans put up 25, but was only 8 for 28. Overall the Dukes shot at about 29%, which is below their average. Matthew Stoss is the Daily News-Record beat writer and he put the loss into perspective.

Pirates Sink JMU Posted November 13, 2010 12:00 AM EST

By Matthew Stoss

HARRISONBURG - Well, at least they don't have to go to South Dakota. Hurt by inconsistent offense in the low post and big nights from Hampton's Quanneisha Perry and Jericka Jenkins, the James Madison women's basketball team lost its season opener to the Pirates 69-64 on Friday, assuring itself of no 1,300-mile trip to face South Dakota State in the second round of the preseason WNIT next week. "The difference was Hampton came out to play, and we didn't," said JMU senior point guard Dawn Evans, who scored 25 points, making six of 18 3-pointers and going 8-of-28 from the floor. "We just didn't do anything we practiced. We didn't execute. They played harder than us. We have to come out and we have to be a better team." JMU, the defending Colonial Athletic Association champion and preseason favorite, will learn its next WNIT opponent Sunday. The 16-team tournament guarantees a minimum of three games. On Friday, Madison - hampered by numerous nagging preseason injuries - shot just 26.9 percent from the floor (21-of-78), while its post players shot only 30.4 percent (7-of-23) in the absence of 6-foot-4 center Lauren Jimenez, who is out with a broken toe. The lack of production inside forced the Dukes to rely on perimeter offense. Hampton (1-0) shot 42.6 percent (26-of-61). "It's frustrating when you can draw things up and then you can get the ball where you want to get it," JMU coach Kenny Brooks said. "And then you miss some golden opportunities to capitalize on, and it kind of deflates you because then it's when you have your guards thinking, ‘OK, well, if I get there again, is it gonna end in a good result?' And then they start taking some ill-advised shots, and that's where we were tonight." For the first half of the second period, the Dukes also didn't have an answer for Perry and Jenkins, who led a rally after Hampton trailed by as many as 11 with 6:14 left in the first half. The two teams traded leads seven times in the second half before the Pirates finally took over for good on a layup by Jenkins with 10:01 left against JMU's zone defense. "We were ready for that," said Hampton coach David Six, Hampton High School's former coach who won the MEAC title last year in his first season. "We were very surprised that they went into a zone but happy at the same time because that's sort of our strength." Playing in front of 2,063 fans at the Convocation Center, JMU cut Hampton's lead to one with 1:29 and 0:59 to go, helped by a technical foul on Six at the 1:38 mark. Evans hit both ensuing free throws, seemingly giving the Dukes momentum. Perry led all scorers with 27 points, making 10 of 20 from the floor. Jenkins added 16 and five assists. When asked if he thought Madison overlooked the Pirates, Brooks said "absolutely not." "This is the type of team that gives us problems," Brooks said. "They spread the floor and they penetrate, and then they kick, and they do some things and they did it well." Sophomore guard Tarik Hislop added 14 points for JMU, while senior forward Jalissa Taylor had 15 rebounds and sophomore forward Nikki Newman had 11 to help the Dukes out-rebound Hampton 57-41 - 29-11 on the offensive glass. Unfortunately for Madison, few of those boards turned into points. HAMPTON Warner 2-8 4-4 9, Perry 10-20 7-9 27, Abercrumbia 2-4 0-0 4, Lewis 1-3 0-0 2, Jenkins 7-16 1-4 16, McMillian 3-7 0-0 9, Avant 0-0 0-0 0, Burnson 1-3 0-0 2, Henry 0-0 0-0 0, Goodman 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 26-61 12-17 69. JAMES MADISON Whitehurst 3-8 1-2 7, Newman 1-4 0-1 3, Taylor 1-9 2-2 4, Hislop 4-13 4-8 14, Evans 8-28 3-3 25, Hamner 1-7 0-0 3, Smith 0-1 0-0 0, Burkholder 0-0 0-0 0, Shepherd 1-2 1-2 3, Francisco 2-6 1-1 5. Totals 21-78, 12-19 64. Halftime-James Madison 32-28. 3-Point Goals-HU 5-16 (Warner 1-4, Lewis 0-1, Jenkins 1-4, McMillian 3-7), JMU 10-34 (Newman 1-3, Hislop 2-6, Evans  6-18, Hamner 1-6, Smith 0-1).  Fouled Out-none. Rebounds-HU 41 (Perry, McMillian 7), JMU 57 (Taylor 15). Assists-HU 10 (Jenkins 5), JMU 14 (Evans 6). Total Fouls-HU 15, JMU 16. A-2,063.