Women's Basketball

Women's Basketball 2011 Season Outlook

The Lady Wildcats look to rebound from last year’s season as they open the year at Division I Delaware State University on November 12th. Head Coach Nate Ware hopes his ten new faces will provide the spark to bring Wilmington back to its winning ways.

Candace Phrance the team’s lone senior, returns along with junoir Amanda Walters, sophomores Lauren Brown, Courtney Coleman, Tianna Wagner, and Katie Franklin. All will be counted on to guide the group of newcomers through the long season.

Red-shirt freshman Joune Reed (Upper Darby HS/ Upper Darby, PA) joins the group of exiting freshmen and transfers who will look to be a dominant force in the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference. Among the incoming class is a mixture of All-State, All-Area, and All-Conference players. Janasie Simpkins, an All-American guard at Lackawanna Community College (New Brunswick HS/New Brunswick, NJ), brings a wealth of talent and leadership to the young team. Kim Walton (Garfield Senior HS/Woodbridge, VA), an All-Conference forward at Northern Virginia Community College, brings her leaping and athletic ability.

While they don’t have any college experience yet, this year’s freshmen class has enough talent to stick with any opponent. Samantha Retas, an All-State forward from Bishop Kearney (Brooklyn, NY), was a scoring machine the past two seasons, and looks to bring that offensive threat to the Wildcats. Her high school teammate, Jackie Grasso (Brooklyn, NY), also joins the ‘Cats for a powerful one-two punch. Local player, Cari Callaway (Newark, DE), an All-State guard from Christiana HS, is a lefty sharp shooter who looks to continue her high scoring ways in college. She is also joined by a high school teammate, Cindy Leeuwen (Newark, DE), who will add size and a physical presence in the middle.

Coach Ware is adding a group of talented players from New Jersey. Erin Moore, an All-Area guard from Hackensack High School (Lodi, NJ), was the leading scorer in North Jersey last year. Bria Smith, an All-Conference forward from St. Dominic Academy (Bayonne, NJ) averaged a double-double last season. Megan Fox, an All-South Jersey guard from Woodbury High (Woodbury, NJ) played multiple positions in high school and will look to bring that versatility to the Wildcats.

Last but not least is Candace DeShields, a point guard from Dunbar High School (Baltimore, MD), who led her team to the state championship.

In addition to starting the year against Delaware State, the Lady Wildcats will be traveling to Florida and Hawaii four Holiday Tournaments to gain experience against new opponents. The overall outlook of this young team is that they need to develop confidence, chemistry, and experience, which will translate into a successful season ahead, both offensively and defensively.