Grace Women’s Hoops Aiming High
WINONA LAKE – The Grace Lady Lancers’ basketball team will embark on life after graduating All-American Juaneice “JJ” Jackson last year, the program’s all-time leading scorer. Head coach Scott Blum is confident his team can meet the challenge thanks to balanced production from a number of players.
Leading the Lady Lancers in 2014-15 are senior captains Allison Kauffman and Lindsey Schaefer. The pair is responsible for 56 wins over their first three seasons.
Kauffman was honorable mention for NAIA and NCCAA All-American recognition as a junior with averages of 16.8 points and 7.5 rebounds per game. She enters the season No. 8 in career rebounds and No. 9 in career points. Schaefer provided 5.6 points and 5.2 rebounds per game and was the team’s top interior defender.
Grace finished with a program-best 12-6 record in the Crossroads League last year and will hope to better that mark this winter. Blum is hoping this squad can place third in the ever-competitive CL and clinch a berth into the NAIA National Championships for the first time.
“We lost a great player in JJ. Her shot-making ability and scoring will definitely be missed. This year we hope to have four or five players score in double figures for us each night to make us harder to defend,” Blum said. “We want to have a team mindset on both ends of the floor, and we’ll be up for the challenge of the Crossroads League. We’re going to push to break more records and make more history for this program.”
A major area of improvement for the Lady Lancers is on the defensive end. Much of preseason has been dedicated to fine-tuning Grace’s defense in hopes that opponents will be hard-pressed to score 60 points each game. Blum remarked that an improved defense would be required to make it to NAIA Nationals.
Grace returns the majority of players from last year’s roster, including starters Kauffman, Schaefer, point guard Gabby Bryant and wing Darian Patton. Bryant will be boosted by a healthy Micah Pollard as the backup point guard to provide a spark off the bench. Patton will be backed up by sharpshooting junior Kelsey Sule, who hit 39 percent on 3-pointers last year.
The shooting guard position will be filled by freshman Kelsie Peterson and senior Heather House. Peterson was a Hoosier Basketball Magazine Top 60 workout participant as a senior, ranking 24th in the state in scoring (19.8 ppg) and third in steals (5.7 spg) at West Noble High School. House has been asked to be more aggressive in attack this year and has stepped up to the challenge.
Freshmen Jenna Kieper (Fairfield HS) and Hannah Boal (Point Ridge HS, Texas) will add depth, intelligence and energy to the guard rotation.
The Lady Lancers’ have traditionally had a strong interior presence, and this season will be no different. Kauffman and Schaefer will be supported by a diversified collection of post players. JoEllen Fickel and Tiffany Petro can score with the ball in their hands, Chloe Pridgen and Jesse Feitz are hard-nosed defenders and rebounders, and Sarah Feasby and Hannah Adams add speed and agility to the frontcourt.
Already in preseason, Blum has noticed a prevailing sense of unity within the group. The Lady Lancers’ mission of being rooted together and rooted with Christ will be put to the test during the ups and downs of a long season, but Blum is hoping the team’s togetherness will stand firm.
“This team enjoys being around each other and loving each other. I see it every day in practice with how they pray for and care for each other, and even with how they care for other teams on our campus,” Blum said. “We may have bumps in the road during the season, but our focus is to stay strong and to stay rooted together with Christ as the focus.”
The Lady Lancers kick off the season Saturday 1 p.m. at home against Holy Cross.