OCT. 16, 2008

DES MOINES, IOWA ? Two-hundred and seven days have passed since the Drake women's basketball team has competed. In those past 4,968 hours the Bulldogs have been waiting, patiently -- lifting weights, running, practicing on their own ? to come together as a team again.

That day is finally on the horizon as the Blue and White officially commence preseason practice Friday (Oct. 17) with a 5 p.m. workout planned in the Bell Center.

Drake, under sixth-year head coach Amy Stephens, will practice once daily (with one day off) leading up to its intersquad scrimmage Oct. 26 at 1:30 p.m. The Bulldogs cap their preseason with exhibition games versus Quincy (Nov. 1 at 1:05 p.m.) and Minnesota-Duluth (Nov. 6 at 7:05 p.m.). The clock starts on the 2008-2009 season at 7:05 p.m. Friday, Nov. 14 as the Bulldogs play host to Texas State.

In preparation for the upcoming 2008-09 campaign fans will get an inside look at this year's Bulldog squad with part one of two in the 2008-09 Drake women's basketball season preview.

Drake enters the 2008-09 season looking to become the first Bulldog squad to earn back-to-back regular season Missouri Valley Conference titles since the 1999-2000 and 2000-01 teams accomplished that feat.

On paper that might seem like a tall order since graduation claimed Brandy Dahir, Jill Martin and Lindsay Whorton, who combined to score 4,570 points during their careers while leading the Bulldogs to four postseason appearances

Martin led the MVC in scoring (16.8 avg.) and ranked second in rebounding (9.1), while earning first team all-league honors for the third straight year.

Whorton, who averaged 13.6 points and 4.0 rebounds, also was a first team all-conference performer.

“It is definitely a year of changing of the guard,” said Amy Stephens, who enters her sixth year as head coach at Drake. “It is very difficult to replace dominant players, but at the same time we feel we have a nice core of experience coming back. I think balance will be our greatest strength.”

The return of eight letterwinners from last year's squad which posted a 23-11 record, including six players with previous starting experience, will form the nucleus.

“This year will be a great test to the foundation of what we have tried to build over the last five years because we have lost key players and now we get to find out if we are reloading,” Stephens added. “Everyone will have to do a little more. We will rely heavily on a balanced attack from a variety of players and some freshmen.”

In 2007 the Drake women's basketball team earned a ticket to the Big Dance the hard way by winning four games in four days in the MVC Tournament to earn an automatic berth to the NCAA Tournament.

Last season, the Bulldogs were rewarded for consistent play by earning a share of the MVC regular season league title with Evansville and Illinois State, while advancing to the second round of the WNIT.

Selected for the second straight year as the preseason favorite to win the MVC, Drake surpassed the 20-win plateau for the first time since registering 25 victories during the 2001-02 campaign.

The Bulldogs won six of their last seven league games to claim their first regular season MVC title since the 2000-01 campaign. They also advanced to the title game of the MVC Tournament for the second consecutive season before falling to Illinois State, 70-62. Drake garnered its initial postseason tournament victory in six years with a 65-56 victory over Green Bay in the opening round of the Women's NIT.

Despite the holes to fill on offense, the staple for Drake's success will remain on defense.

The Bulldogs led the MVC in three key defensive categories last season: scoring defense (60.0 ppg), field goal defense (.395) and three-point field goal percentage defense (.266).

“We hope that defense is consistently the backbone of our program,” said Stephens. “We are a great man-to-man defensive team and it is really what carried us down the stretch last year.”

“As a staff we have preached and preached how important defense and rebounding is to our program and how that can overcome some offensive deficiencies.”

Junior forward Monique' Jones helped set the tone for the Bulldogs while establishing herself as one of the premier defenders in the MVC.

Jones, who started in 33 games last year, was named Drake's best defensive player for the second straight year, while averaging 6.3 points, 4.3 rebounds and 1.2 steals.

She saved the best for last being named to the 2008 MVC All-Tournament team after averaging 12.3 points and 6.3 rebounds.

The backcourt also welcomes the return of veteran guards Kaniesha Agee and Jordann Plummer, who each started in 17 games last year.

Agee, a junior, assumed the Bulldogs' starting point guard duties midway through last season and led the team with a 1.8 assist-to-turnover ratio.

Plummer, a redshirt junior, returned to Drake's lineup to appear in 34 games last season after missing nearly all of the 2006-07 campaign with an injury. She averaged 8.8 points and 3.1 rebounds, scoring in double figures in 16 games, including a career-high 20 points in the season opener against Green Bay.

The arrival of freshman point guard Brittnye McSparron could move Plummer to off guard, filling the perimeter shooting void left by the departure of Whorton, who became Drake's career three-point leader last year with 266 treys.

McSparron was a finalist for Miss Minnesota Basketball after concluding a sparkling career at Eastview High School where she led her team to a third-place finish in the 2008 Minnesota Class 4A state tournament. McSparron averaged 22.3 points and 3.0 steals en route to earning first team all-state honors.

“Jordann (Plummer) could play the point, but I think she will be better at off guard,” said Stephens. “Moving Jordann to off guard will give her the opportunity to shoot the three-point basket more. Brittnye has been a point guard during her entire career. She is a good communicator and can shoot it.”

Senior guard Ashleigh Brady and sophomore guard Kristin Turk also are expected to contribute to Drake's perimeter attack.

Brady averaged 4.9 points and 2.0 rebounds in 34 games last year. Turk averaged 4.1 points and 1.2 rebounds while connecting on a team-best 48 percent from the floor. She also is the team's top returning three-point shooter, having made 20 treys last season.

Up front Stephens will rely on returning seniors Lauren Dybing and Kelsey Keizer to increase their point production, while also providing valuable leadership.

The 6-foot 3-inch Dybing turned in a breakout campaign last season while starting all 34 games by averaging 8.4 points, 4.6 rebounds and a team-best 1.6 blocked shots. Dybing, who ranked second in the MVC in blocked shots last year, ranks fifth on the Drake career blocked shots list at 84.

Keizer, who stands 6-2, averaged 3.2 points and 3.0 rebounds last year. She sparked a come-from-behind WNIT victory past Green Bay with a season-high 12 points and eight rebounds.

Sophomore forward Morgan Herrick and redshirt sophomore Michelle Anderson also return in the frontcourt.

“I feel that we will be a much better rebounding team with Kelsey (Keizer) and Lauren (Dybing) holding key roles,” said Stephens. ?Monique' (Jones) and our recruiting class are pretty athletic and good rebounders. We also have good size in our guard play which will help our rebounding.”

Other newcomers who figure in the equation include 6-foot 2-inch freshman forward Rachael Hackbarth; 6-1 freshman forward Alex Montgomery and freshman guard Amber Wollschlager.

Hackbarth earned first team all-state honors at Wisconsin Lutheran High School as a senior after averaging 14.5 points and 7.5 rebounds.

Montgomery also earned first team Minnesota Class 2A all-state honors last year after averaging 25.3 points and 10.7 rebounds for Cannon Falls High School.

Wollschlager was a two-time first team all-state selection at Milbank (S.D.) High School.

“We have high expectations for Brittnye (McSparron) and Amber (Wollschlager) to contribute,” said Stephens. “It is important to get some minutes from those freshmen right away.

“Rachel (Hackbarth) and Alex (Montgomery) will compete for the third post position providing us some depth,” said Stephens.

Drake faces a formidable 29-game schedule with tests against nine squads that advanced to postseason play last season, including four of which qualified for the NCAA Tournament.

The 2008-09 ledger is highlighted by 14 games in the Knapp Center, where Drake went 13-3 a year ago to push its overall record in the facility to 158-45 (.778), including 56-22 (.718) under Stephens.

The Bulldogs will tip off their 35th intercollegiate season on Nov. 14 playing host to 2008 Women's National Invitation Tournament participant Texas State.