Nov. 11, 2009

Jacksonville Game Notes
The Sideline Stretch: Petersen reviews Mars Hill, previews Jacksonville

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - The Wake Forest women's basketball team will kickoff the 2009-10 season with Jacksonville on Friday, November 13 at 5 p.m. at the Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum.

Wake Forest enters the contest following an exhibition game on November 9, where the Demon Deacons ran past Mars Hill with a 109-65 victory. Freshman center Sandra Garcia scored the game-high 22 points and junior Brittany Waters came in just shy of a double-double with 17 points and nine rebounds.

Jacksonville played two preseason matchups, defeating St. Leo 89-47 and Tampa 57-39 in Jacksonville.

This is the first meeting between the two teams but they have similar stories heading into the 2009-10 season. Both teams earned bids to the 2009 Women's National Invitation Tournament, recording 19 wins a piece. Both teams also lost their two leading scorers to graduation in May.

In Jacksonville's two exhibition games, senior forward Desarea Johnson and junior center Lynsey Paschal have been the Dolphins' primary forces in the frontcourt, leading the team in scoring and rebounding. Guard Courtney Jackson has been the veteran leader in the backcourt, scoring in double-figures during the opening matchup with St. Leo.

Wake Forest will continue play at home at November 18, hosting South Florida at 5 p.m.

2009-10 Women's Basketball Season Outlook

The 2008-09 season was a breakthrough year for the Wake Forest women's basketball team. In his fifth season as head coach at Wake Forest and first season guiding players that were all recruited by his staff, head coach Mike Petersen led the Demon Deacons to their third postseason appearance since 1988 with a berth in the 2009 Women's National Invitation Tournament.

The tournament was the culmination of one of the strongest seasons in Demon Deacon history. The squad started out 12-0 and earned their first ranking in the national polls since the 1987-88 season. During its undefeated streak, Wake Forest defeated South Carolina and Mississippi, took the UCF Holiday Classic Tournament title and became the last division I school standing to hold undefeated records for both the men's and women's basketball teams.

But that was last year. The 2009-10 Demon Deacons have the task of carrying on what was started last season and with four seniors, four true freshmen and six players that fall somewhere in between, it will certainly be exciting to watch this squad develop.

"Last season was just an opening chapter. I think that's a pretty good place to start from," said Wake Forest head coach Mike Petersen.

"But what matters is what you do with it. That's the beauty of sport, putting all the pieces together, everyone being a part of the team. Everyone brings their own skill set and their own abilities. That's the part that has to be worked over the course of the season."

The Point
Wake Forest has some versatility at the point this season. Through the first half of 2008-09, Tiffany Roulhac (Fayetteville, N.C.) and Brooke Thomas (Orlando, Fla.) split nearly equal time at the point. In December, Roulhac tore her ACL and was sidelined for the remainder of the season. Thomas, then a freshman, had to grow up fast. But after a little bit of trial and error and a lot of sideline talks with the coaching staff, Brooke Thomas proved that she could hang with the ACC's best. During the ACC Tournament semifinals Thomas netted a career-high 15 points against top-seeded Maryland, playing the full 40 minutes.

Roulhac has fully recovered from her December injury and will be back in action this fall. In addition, newcomer Lakevia Boykin (Raleigh, N.C.), a three-time MVP at Southeast Raleigh High School, will be competing for time at the point guard position but also has the potential to play in the 2-guard slot.

"Lakevia Boykin has had a great fall. She's a very quick learner and a very good athlete that can play either guard spot. She shoots the ball extremely well, she's a very good defender and she's extremely strong. She'll play both guard spots, some one and some two. She has proved herself to be pretty ready to compete physically."

Shooting Guard
Junior Camille Collier (Washington, D.C.) and senior Courteney Morris (Riverdale, Md.) both have starting experience at the 2-guard position. Collier, who netted an incredible 21 first half points against 15th-ranked Virginia last season, has demonstrated her ability as a sharp-shooter but will be looking to find more consistency from game to game this season. Morris' shines in her defensive game, her aggressive spark fits right in with some of the ACC's top players. Morris leads all returning Demon Deacon players in steals (70) and set a new program assist-to-turnover ratio record with 65 assists and just 30 turnovers in 2008-09.

Redshirt freshman Patrice Johnson (Washington, D.C.) joined the Demon Deacons in January 2009 and had valuable practice experience with the team during the spring semester. During her last year at H.D. Woodson high school Johnson was named the area's 2008 Gatorade Player of the Year and was a McDonald's All-American nominee. She will make her collegiate debut this fall, likely playing the second guard position.

"Patrice is a very good athlete who is a good defender and can shoot the ball but she's athletic enough to create opportunities on her own. She's been out a year so she'll have some rust to shake off. But once she does that I see her being able to come in and help us."

Freshman Patrice Baptista (Hickory, N.C.), who became the 2009 Conference Player of the Year with Hickory High School, has had prep experience at the point as well as the off guard slot and may see time in both positions as well as classmate Boykin.

Wings
This season Wake Forest has the most depth at the wings. Junior Brittany Waters (Orlando, Fla.) leads all returning players in field goal percentage, inside and outside the arc. Close behind is sophomore Secily Ray (Thomasville, N.C.), who earned a starting position by the end of the 2008-09 season, in addition to picking up two ACC Freshman of the Week awards. Ray leads returning players in rebounding with a 6.4 per game average.

Courteney Morris also has wing experience, in addition to junior Kem Wilson (Frederick, Md.). This year, Wake Forest will also have two freshmen who will be competing for time in the frontcourt. Asia Williams (Durham, N.C.) was the 2009 North Carolina Gatorade Player of the Year and Mykala Walker (Duluth, Ga.) was schooled in the ultra-competitive Atlanta-area (Gwinnett County) where she helped take her team to Georgia's Final Four.

"You've got a really good group of players there and you put any two of them on the floor at the same time. You can have two players who can shoot it, two that are great defenders, you can really mix and match them and it gives us great versatility," Petersen said.

Center/Low Post
The low post is the area where Wake Forest lacks the most experience. In 2009 Wake Forest said goodbye to senior Corinne Groves, who became one of the most talented post players in Demon Deacons history, starting all four years of her career. This season, the Deacons will look for seniors Jessie Cain (Cincinnati, Ohio) and Jessica Bryant (Supply, N.C.) to help fill the void left by Groves. Freshman Sandra Garcia (Hollywood, Fla.) is a true center who has experience playing for the Columbia National Team. At 6-3, Garcia is the tallest of the freshman class and her size will certainly be an asset for the Deacons during the intense ACC season.

"Someone is going to have to prove themselves in that spot. They all bring very different things and they are all on a fairly even playing field now," Petersen said.

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