Author: Henry Meier
While Occidental’s Women’s Basketball team finished their season with a tough loss to La Verne in the final game of the inaugural SCIAC Tournament in Rush Gymnasium on Saturday night, the Tigers finished knowing that their names will be in the history books.
The 2007-08 team was the first team since 1980 to win a SCIAC regular season championship and finished the season with the best record in school history.
Had it not been for the SCIAC tournament, implemented for the first time this year, the women’s basketball team would currently be in the NCAA tournament. However, this year the automatic bid for the NCAA tournament was determined by the SCIAC tournament, and unfortunately for the Tigers, La Verne upset them 79-51 in the tournament final to gain that bid.
The hard work, determination and effort the Tigers displayed this year was what truly defined their team. While getting a chance to go to the NCAA tournament would have been a plus, the fact that they fell just short of doing so does not worry them.
“We don’t feel at a loss because we know we left everything out there on the court, and we appreciate everything we accomplished as a team,” Captain Stacie Roshon (senior) said. “Even though it would have been nice to go to the NCAA tournament, we have complete closure in the milestones we have exceeded as a team and program.
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For this Tiger team, it seemed as though the journey was just as important as the destination. “The most satisfying experience of this season has been continually overcoming situations that would normally tear teams apart, like injuries and illnesses,” Natalie Kolodinski (sophomore) said. “Instead, these challenges really motivated us to do well, and we did.”
Brianne Brown (junior), the SCIAC Player of the Year, also had complimentary things to say about the team’s accomplishments.
“I know I haven’t been here very long as a transfer student, but everyone made it very clear how big not only a 20-plus win season would be, but also how long it has been since Oxy has had a SCIAC championship on the women’s side,” she said. “So for me personally, I feel like we have made a huge accomplishment this season and I hope it draws a little more attention to the women’s basketball program.”
Looking back on the season, it did not always seem like the Tigers were destined to be SCIAC champions. After an up-and-down preseason, the Women’s Basketball Team suffered a heartbreaking loss to Redlands at home. They found themselves in third place in the SCIAC standing going into the second round of their schedule. However, after this mini-slump, the Tigers rebounded with a win over the then-conference leader, La Verne.
“We were given glimpses of [our potential] in preseason and conference games, but it was never a known fact among my teammates and myself until we beat La Verne in the second round of conference,” Roshon said. “I don’t think anyone had a real idea of the possibilities.”
The win rejuvenated the team and the Tigers used that momentum to forge an 11-game winning streak that carried them into the final of the conference tournament.
The experience of having two head coaches was also beneficial for the Tigers. Jaime Hoffman, the women’s coach for the past three years, brought Avi Meyerson (a former Oxy Men’s Basketball player and coach) on board as co-head coach at the beginning of the year becauses Meyerson had been tapped to be Oxy’s new athletic director after the retirement of Dixon Farmer last year. This combination of coaches seemed to work wonders for the Tigers as the season went on.
“With our unique coaching dynamic, our players made the transformation from individuals to teammates, really stepping up to support one another on and off the court,” Kolodinski said. While it might have been an unorthodox system, it certainly seems to have worked for Oxy this year.
Looking ahead to next season, Oxy’s women’s team finds itself with a promising future as they might be considered an early favorite to win another SCIAC championship. Hoffman’s take on the future looks bright.
“We lose Stacie Roshon, a four-year all-SCIAC player,” Hoffman said. “She will be missed. We gain injured Dior Williams, all SCIAC in her first year. We return everyone else. Avi Meyerson has done a tremendous job in recruiting as well. He has yielded three early-decision prospects and has a number of recruits remaining in the applicant pool. On top of that, while losing Stacie is significant, we lose perhaps the least of the top SCIAC teams.”
If they can stay healthy and play together like they did this year, another championship run could be in the making for 2009.
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