Springfield College Women’s Basketball: Pride Loses Core Four But Youth and Game Plan Offers Plenty of Hope

 

Via Springfield College Athletics

 

One of the greatest classes in Springfield College women’s basketball history took its final bow at Blake Arena just under three weeks ago, after a crushing 65-54 first round NEWMAC defeat at the hands of the Clark University Cougars. It was a cruel way for the careers of Ava Adamopoulos, Lexi Windwer, Danielle Racette, and Molly McCausland to end. Going into the 2017 playoffs, the goal was to have one last shot at a NEWMAC title and a possible NCAA bid after helping snatch the conference crown as underdogs in their freshmen year.

The season officially ended for Springfield on Saturday after a 79-50 loss in the ECAC semi-finals at Carnegie Mellon to Waynesburg.

Despite the end-of-the-season gloom, however, the future is still bright for the Pride, and the seniors, when looking at their careers, do not have to despair. The combination of Adamopoulos, Windwer, Racette, and McCausland was a truly formidable core. Springfield’s overall record during their time on the team was over 20 games above .500. With the four, the Pride had a floor general in Racette (who led NEWMAC point guards in assist/turnover ratio), two sharpshooters in Windwer and McCausland, with Windwer finishing as the program’s all-time three point leader, and one of the best centers in the NEWMAC in Adamopoulos, who under head coach Naomi Graves, became a player who was capable of posting double doubles in each game played.

Normally, it could be difficult for a team to fill the voids of an above-average ball handler, two sharpshooters, and a bona fide center. This is not to say it won’t be for the Pride. But there is a good chance that the team will be okay, even if a 20 win follow-up next season seems far-fetched.

Springfield is returning only one senior. The good news is, that senior will be Heather King. King’s a 5’ll forward who posted a career high in points (9.8) while doing so with a field goal percentage just under 50 percent (43.7). She passed the ball better this year (1.2 assists per game, and as the early favorite to play the five for the ’17-’18 squad, rebounds will come naturally. This all goes without mentioning that King is deadly from mid-range, and can finish at the rim.

If King does play the five, then her frontcourt teammate as of now will likely be Gracie Restituyo. As a sophomore this year, Restituyo was quietly one of Springfield’s best players. The second year player out of Barrington, R.I. consistently played aggressive defense in the post, and followed that up with performing tenaciously on the boards. Offensively she was near automatic in the paint. After averaging six points and six rebounds on the year as a sophomore, Restituyo may be well on her way towards averaging a double-double at some point in her career – possibly next season.

Chelsea McAllister is arguably the best pure shooter returning to the team next winter. McAllister dropped 24 points on WPI in the showdown with the Engineers, which willed an under-the-weather offense to victory. Much like Windwer, McAllister is a player who can bury an opposition with consecutive threes when her confidence is high.

As of now, beside McAllister, at the point, will likely be Alex Goslin, who at 5’0, has the potential to be the Pride’s best all-around player. Goslin uses her quickness to get to the rim, and has made getting through post (against opponents who have almost a foot on her) look easy. Throughout covering Goslin in high school, she always had a knack for burrowing through the defense with deceptive strength. Very Marshawn Lynch-esque (I know, two completely different sports – sue me). Her shooting percentages at 50/37/80 (field goal/three-point/free throw) suggests that she can grow into a pure scorer. Defensively, Goslin’s a nightmare on the wing, an aggressive perimeter defender whose stance is ideal for dodging picks, and can succeed Racette as the player for Springfield who presses all the way up the floor. While averaging 18 minutes each game, she’s shown to be able to rack up stats everywhere else on the sheet. 2.2 assists, 2.0 rebounds, 1.1 steals. Keep an eye on Beastess Mode.

When looking beyond these four players, Graves also preached the importance of depth throughout the season. There’s still quite a bit of that. Early in the season, freshman Emily Jacques at 6’0 showed promise of being an effective defender both inside and outside of the paint. Graves was very pleased with the production of Taylor Hall off the pine this season, as Hall was able to average 3.3 rebounds and post a 39.7 field goal percentage in 16 minutes per game. Then finally there’s Rachel Menze at 6’2, the identical height to Adamopoulos. Graves played in college as a post player, and turned Adamopoulos into a 984 point/644 rebound center. It will be interesting to see how Menze evolves under her.

When looking at the bigger picture for the women’s team, there’s plenty of positives on the table, and the incoming freshmen have not even arrived yet. Graves is an intense and competitive coach, and although her talent is young, she likely has enough of it to construct an effective defensive scheme. Relax. They’ll be fine.

 

 

 

 

 

Can Springfield Men’s Basketball Vanquish the No. 1 Babson Beavers and Advance to the NEWMAC Finals?

Not long ago, were ready to dub Feb. 22, 2017 as one of the worst nights in Springfield College basketball history. And it all would have occurred on James Naismith Court within the heart of Blake Arena.

Women’s basketball’s season met a bitter end, falling to the Clark University Cougars 65-54 in the NEWMAC quarterfinals. Fast forward exactly two hours and eighteen minutes. Same court, same scenario (NEWMAC quarterfinals), similar feeling. Wheaton was up against Springfield 67-61 with 43 seconds left to play in the game. Dejection was seeping back onto the hardwood. It was coming for the men this time.

The Lyons were home free.  All that was needed to advance to the semis was converted free throws. But Wheaton couldn’t strike the net. With less than two minutes to play in the contest, 10 freebies clanked off the rim. With each miss, the rumble of 790 spectators spiked in decibels. The door swung open one last time for Springfield to save its season, and the Pride jumped at the chance. 11 straight points from junior guard Andy McNulty, and a made floater over three Wheaton defenders from freshman forward Jake Ross, with 0.6 seconds remaining sent the tilt into overtime. The Lyons could not recover in post-regulation, and the Pride salted the game away at the line, before Ross erased Tim Berry’s buzzer beating prayer from the air with his one block in the game. Springfield emerged victorious 85-82. Winter sports were still alive on Alden Street.

After channeling its “Birthplace Magic,” Springfield now finds itself on its way to Wellesley. For a third time this season, they are primed to meet face-to-face with the No. 1 Division III team in the country – the Babson Beavers, in the NEWMAC semis (Saturday, 5pm) who are yet to lose on their home court.

Back in November, the narrative of the men’s basketball team was significantly different. Impressions were mixed. Ross, who went for 29 points and 11 rebounds in his collegiate debut against Western New England, was an intriguing addition to the roster. The first year player out of Northampton captured the imagination of campus with his opening performance. Ross came in as an athlete who received offers from Division II institutions to play basketball, yet opted to play for Springfield after fulfilling his desire to compete in both basketball and lacrosse.

A 2-0 record to start the season was met with significant intrigue. But then the Pride dropped three straight to close out November, which put the year into perspective in the early stages. With zero seniors, three juniors, and nine underclassmen, it was – at the beginning – unreasonable to set the expectations for Springfield at the level of a Babson or an MIT.

As the season progressed however, Coach Charlie Brock’s rotations began to click on all cylinders. Ross and McNulty have averaged 30 points per game combined, and the Pride has boasted a significant amount of depth since its pivotal home win against Coast Guard in January. The duo of Keegan McDonough and Stan Davis have complimented the scoring of Ross and McNulty well. As a freshman, McDonough has proven to be a Swiss army knife for Springfield, scoring key baskets for the Pride, while also proving to be a tenacious rebounder as a 6’2 guard. Davis has picked up where he left off his rookie season, as the second year point has put forth the stingy defensive effort that earned him a roster spot as a walk-on, and anchors the Pride’s perimeter defense. In recent games, the frontcourt trio of Brandon Eckles, Heath Post, and Kevin Durkin has proven to be a game changer on the glass. With the three big men sharing minutes, Springfield has averaged 42.6 rebounds in its last five contests.

So how does Springfield stack up against Babson? The last time the Pride paid the Beavers a visit they were blown out, finishing on the wrong end of a 95-77 final score. Springfield’s first look at Babson was a bit more competitive, as the Pride simply ran out of time to close the fourth quarter gap, dropping the home contest 73-68. As the away team, the Beaver’s relied heavily on triples to bury the Pride late, and benefitted from the scoring outburst of Joey Flannery, one of the most imposing players in both NEWMAC and Division III, who finished with 33 points. In the February blowout win, Flannery netted 36 points.

Corralling rebounds on Saturday will be crucial for the Pride. Opponents of Babson cannot give it second opportunities to score, as the Beavers have registered a field goal percentage of 49.4 percent. Babson rebounds at a 39.8 clip, which is lower than Springfield’s average in its last five games, however Babson has outrebounded the Pride in both of their meetings this year.

Regardless of previous matchups and results, it is very difficult to beat a team three times, unless said team is miles beneath the favored one. And judging on the Pride’s progression, there is indication that they will have a significant shot at a second monumental upset. After a thrilling double overtime victory over Wheaton that radiates vibes of the December dethroning of Amherst, the Pride heads north with terrifying momentum. Babson will not be able to afford to play in the showdown complacently. There may be some more Birthplace Magic left.