2007-08 Women's Basketball Season Review

Overall:  23-12 (TranSouth 12-6, 4th of 10) NAIA Tournament Finalist TranSouth Tournament:  Def. Bethel, Lost Union (Semifinal) NAIA Tournament:  Def. Southern Nazarene, Def. Langston, Def. Loyola, Def. Freed-Hardeman, Lost Vanguard (Finals)

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Coming off the program's third consecutive Elite Eight run, the Trevecca women's basketball team entered the 2007-08 season refocused and eager to take the next step. Losing just three seniors, and bringing in five freshmen (three who had red-shirted in 2006-07), the Trojans appeared in position for another great season.

For the second consecutive season, the Trojans opened with a resounding Homecoming win, taking a 110-19 decision from Temple Baptist College in a game which saw every Trojan score and six score in double-figures.

Trevecca's next six official games were all played as part of tournaments, with four of the six against teams receiving votes or ranked in the preseason top-25. The Trojans were upset in the first of these three games by Olivet Nazarene University 112-102 before rebounding to defeat the Brescia Bearcats the following day 94-65. After an exhibition win over the Nashville All-Stars, Trevecca closed out the first semester by winning four of their final five games, taking a 6-2 record into the semester break.

During the break the Trojans headed west, flying out to Los Angeles to take part in the Golden State Athletic Conference (GSAC) Challenge at The Master's College just before the New Year's holiday. The tournament saw the Trojans take on two of the toughest teams in the country in Azuza Pacific and The Master's in one of the NAIA's more prestigious tournaments. Trevecca fought hard in both games, hanging within one possession of the lead in both games in the final seconds, but the Trojans couldn't seal the deal either time, and they headed into TranSouth play with a 6-4 mark, their worst pre-conference record since 2003-04.

The TranSouth schedule did not open favorably for the Trojans; Trevecca had to face the 3rd-ranked Freed-Hardeman Lady Lions and top-ranked Union Lady Bulldogs back-to-back to open the conference season. Freed took a 90-80 decision from the Trojans, and despite forcing the Lady Bulldogs to overtime, Trevecca fell to Union 84-79, dropping to 6-6 overall and 0-2 in the TranSouth. Head Coach Gary Van Atta was able to rally the troops, however, and the Trojans won six of their next seven games to close the first half of the TranSouth season at 12-7 overall and 6-3 in the TranSouth.

Freed-Hardeman squeaked out a two-point win over the Trojans to begin the second half of the conference schedule, but Trevecca bounced back, taking four of the next five games, including a double-overtime thriller against Martin Methodist in Moore Gym. After Union ended the Trojans' winning streak, Trevecca wrapped up the regular season with convincing wins at Mid-Continent and at home against Cumberland on Senior Day, finishing the season fourth in the TranSouth and earning a first round matchup with Bethel College in the TranSouth Tournament.

The Trojans got double-digit efforts from four girls in the contest with Bethel, taking a 69-53 win and earning their third date of the season with the Union Lady Bulldogs in the TranSouth Semifinals. Despite playing well defensively in the game, the Trojans could not get past Union, and the Lady Bulldogs emerged victorious 82-74 en route to the TranSouth title.

Trevecca earned an at-large berth into the NAIA National Tournament in Jackson, Tennessee, drawing one of the four #6 seeds and squaring off against sister Nazarene school Southern Nazarene in the tournament's opening round. Five Trojans scored in double figures in the game, and Trevecca did not allow a single SNU player to score in double figures, holding the Lady Storm to just 24.2% shooting their way to their fourth consecutive first round win, 85-56. Next up was NAIA #6 Langston University, and again the Trojans controlled the game, allowing Langston to shoot only 31.6% from the floor and earning another double-digit win 78-66.

The confidence just kept building for Trevecca in the Elite Eight, and again their defense was stellar. The Trojans allowed the Loyola Wolfpack only 15 made field goals in the game, and they won the rebounding battle 52-36 on their way to a 68-50 win over Loyola. The win earned Trevecca it's first-ever trip to the NAIA's Fab Four, and a rematch with the Freed-Hardeman Lady Lions. After having lost the two regular season games to Freed, the Trojans came out on a mission in the National Semifinal. Trevecca shot 45% from three-point land in the game, led by freshman K.C. Van Atta's 5-for-9 performance from long distance, and for the first time in any sport, Trevecca earned a spot in the national title game with a 69-59 win. Awaiting the Trojans were the Vanguard Lions, the same team that had knocked the Trojans out a year ago in the Elite Eight. The Trojans battled fiercely in the game, but they could not overcome Vanguard's quick start, falling to the Lions 72-59.

Mariska Reed and Abby Lawson were named All-TranSouth First Team, and Kristin Archie was named to the All-TranSouth Second Team. All three were named Honorable Mention All-American and to the All-NAIA Tournament team.

NAIA All-Tournament Team:  First Team:  Mariska Reed - Second Team:  Kristin Archie, Abby Lawson

NAIA All-American:  Honorable Mention: Kristin Archie, Mariska Reed, Abby Lawson

NAIA Scholar-Athlete:  Mariska Reed, Kristin Archie, Casey Attebery

TranSouth All-Tournament Team:  Mariska Reed

All-TranSouth: First Team:  Mariska Reed, Abby Lawson - Second Team:  Kristin Archie

TranSouth All-Freshman Team:  K.C. Van Atta

TranSouth Scholar-Athlete:  Mariska Reed, Kristin Archie, Casey Attebery, Jennifer Bognar, Paige McFarlin, Jessica Spencer, Angelica Sails, Casey Pigue

 

No. 3 in Scoring Offense per Game (83.371)

No. 5 in Assist/Turnover Ratio (1.117)

No. 5 in Blocks per Game (4.514)

No. 6 in Free Throw Pct (0.753)

No. 7 in Turnover Margin (6.771)

No. 8 in Assists per Game (17.171)

No. 13 in Scoring Margin (15.343)

No. 14 in Field Goal Pct (0.444)

No. 17 in Defensive Rebounds per Game (26.686)

NAIA Individual Rankings

Christian Gibson Ranked No. 13 in Assist/Turnover Ratio (2.041)

Mariska Reed Ranked No. 17 in Free Throw Pct (0.832)

Jennifer Bognar Ranked No. 23 in Offensive Rebounds per Game (3.200)