Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1044500
www.BLUEANDGOLD.com NOV. 5, 2018 51 WOMEN'S BASKETBALL Mabrey took on the role of point guard last year when no one else was available and sacrificed some scor- ing prowess to help make everyone around her more effective. McGraw is especially looking to junior Jackie Young, the team's most versatile player, and senior forward Jessica Shepard to become "glue" fig- ures in place of Westbeld and Nelson. 2. DEFENSIVE UPGRADE Using a rotation of mainly six play- ers last year, McGraw went more zone than ever, and the game plan, especially in first halves, was "don't get two fouls so we can give our- selves a chance in the second half." With two-time ACC Defensive Player of the Year Turner back in the lineup, McGraw has so many more options to employ on defense. "We have a shot blocker back, and that's so exciting for me," McGraw said. "She's great in the middle, and we will funnel everyone to her." The bonus with Turner, per Mc- Graw, is because she sat out last sea- son, her energy and enthusiasm to get back on the court with a chance to repeat has been contagious. 3. EARNING TIME Just because McGraw now has 11 scholarship players does not mean there will be an entitlement to play. A consistent rotation of eight is what McGraw is looking toward, with freshman point guard Jordan Nixon a likely prime figure to take some of the onus of Mabrey and let her play more as an off guard. "It's going to be a challenge for me on who gets into the game," Mc- Graw admitted. "It's going to be up to them to get into the rotation." 4. PLAYING WITH PRESSURE Two years ago, Notre Dame did not initially handle its preseason No. 1 ranking well because deep down there was a feeling it hadn't earned it. That is not the case this season, but there is a lot to be said about the squad playing with a nothing-to-lose attitude last year when the Irish were counted out after losing four players to ACL injuries. "That team definitely had a fight- ing spirit of coming from behind," McGraw said. "I'd rather not recreate that. If we could get ahead the whole game, it would be much better." What has made Alabama in foot- ball or New England in the NFL, or UConn in women's basketball or Golden State in the NBA special is they are expected to dominate every year — and generally do. Can the 2018-19 Fighting Irish women achieve the same? ✦ Four Irish Make Preseason All-ACC Team The Atlantic Coast Conference placed Notre Dame seniors Marina Mabrey, Arike Ogunbowale, Jessica Shepard and Brianna Turner on the 10-player Preseason All-ACC list. Ogunbowale was also tabbed with Preseason Player of the Year honors by the Blue Ribbon Panel. Interestingly, the best all-around player on the team — recog- nized by both head coach Muffet McGraw and squad members — is junior Jackie Young. Putting the entire starting five from one team, though, might seem overboard. Young did make the cut on the 20-person watch list for the Cheryl Miller Award, which is presented to the nation's top small forward. Mabrey (Nancy Lieberman Award for point guards), Ogunbowale (Ann Meyers Drysdale Award for shooting guards), Shepard (Ka- trina McClain Award for power forwards) and Turner (Lisa Leslie Award for centers) likewise were placed on the 20-person watch lists at their respective positions. • Freshman Jordan Nixon was named to the five-person ACC Newcomer watch list. • The Irish were picked to finish first in the league by both panels. Notre Dame received 59 of the 62 first-place votes by the ACC Blue Ribbon Panel to win the 15-team league. Louisville, which de- feated the Irish twice last year to win the ACC, and also advanced to the Final Four, received the other three votes. Syracuse, North Carolina State and Duke rounded out the top five. — Lou Somogyi 2018-19 NUMERICAL ROSTER No. Player Pos. Ht. Yr. Hometown (High School) 0 Jordan Nixon G 5-8 Fr. New York City (Mary Louis Academy) 2 Kaitlin Cole* G 5-10 Jr. Toledo, Ohio (Sylvania Northview) 3 Marina Mabrey G 5-11 Sr. Belmar, N.J. (Manasquan) 5 Jackie Young G 6-0 Jr. Princeton, Ind. (Princeton Community) 10 Katlyn Gilbert G 5-10 Fr. Indianapolis (Heritage Christian) 11 Brianna Turner F 6-3 5th-Sr. Pearland, Texas (Manvel) 12 Abby Prohaska G 5-10 Fr. Liberty Township, Ohio (Lakota West) 22 Danielle Cosgrove F 6-4 Fr. Holbrook, N.Y. (Sachem East) 24 Arike Ogunbowale G 5-8 Sr. Milwaukee (Divine Savior Holy Angels) 30 Mikayla Vaughn F 6-3 So. Philadelphia (Paul VI) 32 Jessica Shepard F 6-4 Sr. Fremont, Neb. (Fremont) 33 Danielle Patterson F 6-2 So. Brooklyn, N.Y. (Mary Louis Academy) 40 Maureen Butler F. 6-1 Sr. Livonia, Mich. (Dearborn Divine Child) * Will not be available this season while recovering from knee surgery Senior guard Arike Ogunbowale was named the preseason ACC Player of the Year. PHOTO BY JOE RAYMOND