ANGOLA, Ind. - In their first year under former NBA All-Star Steve Mix, the Trine University women’s basketball will have a lot to prove after they were picked to finish eighth in the preseason MIAA coaches’ poll.
Defending MIAA co-champion Calvin received eight of the nine first-place votes. The other co-champion Hope was picked to finish second in the poll with a single first-place vote with Albion third.
The Thunder return three starters and 10 total players from team a season ago that finished seventh in the conference despite an overall record of 11-14 and was third in the MIAA in defensive average. The squad also knocked off then #15 Hope in their final home game of the season.
The team expects big things for the upcoming season, but must replace four-year starting point guard Danielle Senf. Trine will look to a pair of young players in sophomores Kayla Dunn (Larwill, Ind./Columbia City) and Kelsey Henselmeier (Martinsville, Ind./Martinsville) to step up and lead the team at the position.
Mix will look to the trio of senior returning starters Sydney Spragg (Reading, Mich./Reading), Megan Loveberry (Quincy, Mich./Quincy) and Haley Killingbeck (Poneto, Ind./Southern Wells) to lead Trine to their first winning season since 2002-2003. The three combined to average 27.2 points per game for the Thunder last season. Spragg led the squad in points and rebounds per game while Loveberry was second on the team in points and Killingbeck led the Thunder in blocks.
The Thunder will also look to junior Megan Engle (Parker City, Ind./Monroe Central) and sophomore Amy Newell (Three Rivers, Mich./Three Rivers), a transfer from Division I University of Toledo, to help the Thunder improve their 50.6 point per game from a season ago, which was the lowest in the conference. Senior Aleesha Bullock (Indianapolis, Ind./Ritter) and juniors Hannah Hewes (Fremont, Ind./Fremont) and Lauren Tait (Syracuse, Ind./Wawasee) will also look to contribute off the bench for the Thunder.
The Thunder will begin their season with an exhibition game at Division I Western Michigan on November 7 before opening their regular-season on the road at Buffalo State for a tournament beginning November 16. Trine will open their home schedule on November 20 when they host Franklin College.
Women's Poll Results (First-place votes in parenthesis): 1. Calvin (8) 8 pts. 2. Hope (1) 15 pts. 3. Albion 26. 4. Adrian 34. 5. Olivet 37. 6. Saint Mary’s 43. 7. Alma 46. 8. Trine 51. 9. Kalamazoo 64.