Nov. 3, 2006

The University of Texas-Pan American women's basketball team will have a new look during the 2006-07 season and along with a new look will come a new pulse.

With the departure of key players Devin Reed, Dominique Montague and Tynesha Pierce, the Lady Broncs will use their youth and athleticism to find their rhythm and will look to better their 7-21 record from a year ago.

In her fourth season, head women's basketball coach DeAnn Craft believes this years' team is one of the most athletic teams she has ever coached, but knows that discipline will be the key to success.

"They seem to have a real desire to want to improve daily. The one thing that has impressed me most about this team is they seem to understand that you get better one rep at a time, one drill at a time and one practice at a time. They don't seem to look down the road, and for a young team, the only way we are going to have success is to stay right here in the present," said Craft.

Despite having seven new players on the team, Craft believes that the chemistry of the team is great, and their aggressive attitude on the court should translate into more wins this season. The loss of key players at the guard position opens the door for the new class of ball-handlers whose speed and scoring ability matches that of last season's team.

The Lady Broncs are strong at the forward position, which features a variety of versatile players whose combination of strengths makes them a force in the post. The question for the team this year will be at the center position, and while the Lady Broncs have two returning players at the position, they are young.

While the squad may be searching for answers, they have one simple goal. "We need to get better everyday. We must not squander an opportunity, a practice, a minute, or a drill. Everyday we have a mission to improve, and we believe that we can have a say in the outcomes of games if we continue to stay focused. We like our rebounding ability, we like the tempo we can play this game at and we like our chemistry. This team is coachable, and this team is beginning to understand the level of competitiveness needed to be successful. We have a long way to go, but we are enjoying every minute together," commented Craft. Below is a look at the 2006-07 UTPA women's basketball team.

Guards
Leading the way at the guard position are returning players Teshay Winfrey (Eisenhower H.S./Houston, TX) and newcomer LeKeisha Gray (Butler County C.C./Muskogee, OK).

Winfrey played injured last season, but managed to put together a successful freshman campaign. As All-Independent Newcomer team member last season, she ranked sixth among all Division I Independent players at the free throw line where she shot 80.8 percent from the line. Winfrey played in all 28 games last season and posted nine games in which she scored 10 or more points.

"Teshay has a chance to be truly one of the best to play at this institution, but she has to continue to work hard. Everyday she shows a glimpse of another level that she can go with her game, and it's our job to get her to that level," said Craft.

Gray is one of the newest additions to the squad and comes from Butler County Community College where she averaged 12.6 points, 4.3 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 1.9 steals per game. She is an excellent fundamental basketball player that should be a legitimate scoring threat when on the floor.

"LeKeisha's court prowess is unlike any I have coached, and she has a great understanding of the game on both sides of the ball," said Craft.

La'Shae Woodard (Blinn College/Houston, TX) and Tamara Vaughn (Blinn College/Houston, TX) come to UTPA by way of Houston where they were teammates at Blinn College. The duo helped lead the team to a record-tying 24-win season during 2005-06 and finished as runner-ups in the NJCAA Region XIV Tournament, which was the Buccaneers' best finish in over a decade.

While at Blinn College, Woodard averaged 6.9 points, 3.6 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 1.4 steals per game, and her experience at the collegiate level should help alleviate the loss of Reed and Montague at the guard position. Woodard has great north and south speed which will be crucial to the success of the fast-paced play of the Lady Broncs.

"La'Shae is a solid open-court player with explosive ability around the rim. When she understands how to play at this level, on each and every possession, she will become an impact player," said Craft.

Vaughn excelled in her two years at Blinn College where she was selected as All-Region XIV Athletic Conference and All-Region XIV performer during her sophomore season. While at Blinn College, Vaughn averaged 8.9 points and 4.1 rebounds per game while shooting 39.4 percent from the field and 30.4 percent from behind the three-point line.

"Tamara is a proficient scorer, and we're very confident in her skill ability. She has played at this level before so she's used to the Division I-environment," added Craft.

Returning for her third season with the Lady Broncs, Cinthia Ramirez (Nolan Catholic H.S./Guadalajara, Mexico) is a versatile athlete that can score from the two or three position. During her sophomore season, she recorded career-highs in 12 statistical categories, including games played, games started, field goals made, field goal attempts, three-point field goals made and three-point field goal attempts.

"Cinthia has a calming presence on the court and has great knowledge of the game. She is an experienced international player and has a great basketball IQ," Craft commented.

Rachel Jones (Little Rock Central H.S./Little Rock, AR) is coming off a successful freshman campaign where she played in 27 games and started 11 at the point guard position. Jones scored a career-high 13 points against Schreiner last season and had six games with five rebounds or more. The lessons learned and experience gained during her freshman season will prepare her for the 2006-07season.

"Rachel had to play the toughest position on the court her freshman year. She has matured and has been through the fire. Rachel is continuing to learn how to be a leader for our basketball team. She has improved her lane game and is distributing the ball with greater consistency. A real sparkplug for our program," said Craft.

Freshman Hadley Freeman (Shawnee H.S./Shawnee, OK) will be competing for playing time at the guard position, and her biggest asset is her three-point range. Freeman was a standout at Shawnee High School where she earned All-Suburban Conference honors during her junior campaign.

"Hadley will keep teams from zoning us up because of her three-point shot. She understands the game and how it's to be played, and understands angles. She is very deceiving because she may not be the fastest player, but always seems to be in the right position all the time. She has been a pleasant surprise in the preseason for us," said Craft.

Junior Tiona Wilson (Southeast H.S./Bradenton, FL) looks to rebound from an injury-plagued sophomore season in which she appeared in 16 games and averaged 2.8 points and 1.5 assist per game while notching 22 steals on the season.

"Shorty has recovered well from her knee injury and is very focused this season. She has the defensive ability to level off the ball at any area on the floor. Her three-point range has become a weapon, and she is poised and ready for a breakout season," added Craft.

Freshman Rose Esther Jean (Missouri City, TX/Hightower H.S.) comes to the Lady Broncs with an outstanding high school resume, which includes two all-district selections and averaged 8.2 points, 5.5 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 2.5 steals and 2.3 blocks per game. Jean is one of the most athletic student-athletes on the roster as she was a two-sport athlete in high school competing in track and field as well.

"Rose is a great prep player with multi-dimensional skills that can jump out of the gym. She has a soft touch around the rim, and is extremely coachable. She gets better everyday and puts in the necessary time to study film and work on her game. Rose has big goals and is doing what is necessary so that in time she can be a difference maker," said Craft.

Forwards
UTPA heads into the season extremely skilled at the forward position, and the versatility of the players at this position is the heart of the offense for the Lady Broncs.

As the lone senior on the team, MaHogany Daniel (Mary Carroll H.S./Corpus Christi, TX) will look to have another successful season and end her career at UTPA on a high note. Last season, Daniel enjoyed her best campaign with the Lady Bronc as she posted career-highs in 15 statistical categories. She appeared in 28 games last season where she averaged 6.8 points and 6.9 rebounds per game.

"Mo has been here from the beginning, and she's ready to have an outstanding finish to what I believe has been an extremely brilliant career here. People can never accuse Mo of being under-sized because no matter who she lines up against she just finds a way to get the job done," said Craft.

Newcomer Aleeya Grigsby (Nacogdoches H.S./Nacogdoches, TX) was an early signee and will look to establish herself as a force in the post this season with the Lady Broncs. During her senior season of high school, Grigsby was selected to play in the Texas Association of Basketball Coaches Girls' All-Star Game and finished up her final season averaging 12.0 points, 7.8 rebounds, 4.3 steals, 2.2 assists and 1.8 blocks per game.

"Aleeya has a great work ethic and that is a reflection of the high school program she came from. She's going to come out and play relaxed and fearless. I don't think she'll ever step on the floor and be scared. She has an all-out demeanor," said Craft.

Sophomore Danielle Kostacky (Clearwater H.S./Clearwater, FL) is coming off a rookie campaign in which she saw limited action in the 21 games she appeared in. Her best game came at the UTPA Fieldhouse versus Northern Colorado when she scored six points going 3-5 from the field.

"Our tempo should favor Stacky's abilities. She rebounds well, runs the floor well and must continue to do the intangibles for our team to be successful. Danielle has a nice shooting touch, and is learning how to find her niche at this level," added Craft.

Taylor Schneider (St. Mary's H.S./Mesa, AZ) brings her up-tempo game to the Lady Broncs, and is another player whose versatility is an asset to the team. Schneider was a member of one of the top high school programs in the State of Arizona that captured the Arizona 5A State Championship her sophomore year and finished as the runner-up her junior season. As a junior she averaged a double-double in points and assists and brings a tremendous basketball IQ to the team.

"Taylor is our all-everything. She knows how to pass, when to pass, what type of pass and knows her limitations. She is an extremely good pull-up jump shooter. I expect her to be in our rotation very early in the season, and because she is multiple, she has a great chance to play a lot of minutes in different positions for us. She might be the smartest offensive player as far as reading the floor as I've seen," commented Craft.

Center
The big question mark this season is at the center position. The Lady Broncs will play a smaller line-up at times due to their youth inside.

"This is a difficult position to play at this level, and we have question marks because we are young at this position and playing heavy minutes is difficult," said Craft.

In her rookie campaign Robin Garrett (Nacogdoches H.S./Nacogdoches, TX) played in all 28 games and started 21 contests, including the final 11 games of the season. She led the team in free throw attempts while shooting 52.9 percent from the line. Garrett ranked third on the squad in field goal percentage, free throw made, rebounds, fourth in rebounding average and fifth in minutes played, field goals made, field goal attempts and points.

"Robin has great feet and great hands, and is further along than we expected. She had a great summer and was committed this preseason, but she's still just a sophomore, and it's a heavy position to have to carry the load," said Craft.

Sophomore Whitney Coulson (Lancer H.S./Bloomfield Hills, MI) is coming off a freshman campaign in which she appeared in 27 games making the start in three of them. She ranked second on the squad in blocked shots with 21 and 10th among all NCAA Division I Independent players last season.

"Whitney can alter games defensively, but the tempo is going to be a challenge for her. We are a faster team this year, and we're not going to slow down to allow her to get over in transition so we are going to challenge her physical conditioning," said Craft.

The Final View
New to the women's basketball program this season is the program's affiliation with the United Basketball Conference. The Lady Broncs join IPFW, South Dakota State, North Dakota State, New Jersey Institute of Technology and Utah Valley State to form the UBC.

"I'm excited about going into the UBC. We actually have a league now, and it gives us something to fight for and I think it's important in January and February when all across the country other schools are playing for a crown. I'm happy for Mo, and I'm happy for our young kids to be a part of this because I feel we have a legitimate chance for some success in the league," added Craft.

The pressure will rise for the Lady Broncs as they follow up their toughest schedule last season with another competitive list of games. UTPA will be competing with teams from the Sun Belt, Big 12, SEC and Southland Conferences.

"Nobody's hunting us because we haven't done anything to make people fear us. We have to be very disciplined if we want to change the mindset that UTPA is a team you have to prepare for," said Craft.

The pulse is the most straight forward way of measuring the heart rate, but for the 2006-07 Lady Broncs performance on the hardwood will rate the heart of this young team.

UTPA Sports Information