Nov. 27, 2007

How did it feel to not only score the first basket of the Binghamton game, but also help the team to a win in front of your family and friends?

It felt good to score the first two baskets because then you feel relaxed, like it's going to be a good day. It feels great to have come back and won that game because last year we lost the championship game to Buffalo and it's not fun to lose a game in front of your home crowd. It was great to have my friends and family there to see the success my team is having.

The team went 5-0 for just the second time in team history. What do you think the team still needs to improve on to continue this success?

We need to keep getting better at team defense because that's what our system is based on. We need to be able to trust each other and I think as we play more games that'll come. There are some late game situations that we can work on too because there have been games at the end where we've kind of lost focus and we really need to work on that. We just need to keep maturing because we do have a lot of young people giving us minutes.

The team is without Priscilla for the season and Ashley for an indefinite amount of time. How has the team adjusted to not having them in the lineup, and how has Tiara done in place of Snake?

I think we've made a huge step up without Ashley rebounding; everyone on the team has stepped up. I think that Tiara has done a great job coming in for Snake because that's a tough role. Snake has been our floor leader for three years now but Tiara has definitely been solid for us. She's done a great job adjusting from the Junior College level.

Armelia and Cara both have played major roles on the team so far, with Armelia showing a killer instinct as a scorer and rebounder. How surprised were you by her impact on the team?

It's always a great thing to have a freshman come in and be able to do that and with some players you don't really know and you don't see as much in practice and then in a game they come out of their shell. That's how Armelia is, she's a competitor and it has been good for us.

Dana continues to improve, but so have you and Katelyn so far this season. What adjustments have you made to your game and what do you see different in Katelyn and Dana?

For me the biggest thing is to become more confident. I know what I can do and if I can go out and play the game and not think too hard, that's when I have the most success. I think this summer I realized that. With Dana, she's got more confidence in her game as well and she knows that we really need her to score some baskets and be the leader for us in that way. Katelyn is the same way, this is her third year starting and she has grown into that role that we need her to play.

The team won only 9 games in your freshman season, but it also was one of the youngest teams in all of Division I. What benefits do you see from having a strong core of players who have had more than three years to come together as a team?

I think it has helped with our defense because we have had a lot of experience playing with one another to develop it. We play each other all the time, so that's also helpful.

The last two wins over Albany and Binghamton have been close due to the opposing teams making a run late. What goes through your mind as you see the other team gaining momentum so late in the game?

Those situations are tough because we don't have a leader like Snake there on the court. I think that I need to show some leadership and try to keep the team focused and do anything that needs to be done to get that win. Basketball is a game of runs, so they may be having a run then, but there still is some time and I have complete confidence in the team so I know that we can get the job done.

The team will hit the road again this season with ten straight games on the road. How will such a long road trip affect the team, if at all?

We like to travel and go out to other places and we see it as a challenge. To win, you have to win on the road too. We don't really see it as 10 games in a row because its just games to us, its just a chance to go out and play some place new.

Your first road game was against Bowling Green, a team you all struggled against last season. This year you put up a strong effort despite the loss. What differences did you see between the two games?

This game was a lot better and a lot closer. We came out and we were aggressive. We wanted to be the aggressors because we wanted to show that we weren't going to back down. Last year, Coach Crowley said that within the first five minutes we were beat just because we didn't come out with everything we had. We have confidence this season and we feel that we can come out and play any team with the potential to beat any team.