Previewing the Golden Knights

The College of Saint Rose set a standard for excellence in 2006-07 by winning 21 games, earning its second consecutive bid to the NCAA Tournament and climbing to as high as #20 in the USA Today/ESPN Division II Poll for the first time in head coach Karen Haag’s tenure. Haag, who was the 2007 Russell Athletic/WBCA Region 1 Coach of the Year, returns for her seventh season at the helm of the Golden Knights with a less seasoned group of individuals that have been waiting their turn to step into the spotlight.

Saint Rose returns its top offensive threat from a squad that led the Northeast-10 Conference in scoring offense (70.6), and was among the top-six clubs in offensive rebounding (12.63), field goal percentage (.405), assists (14.17) and steals (8.70).

The Golden Knights have averaged 18 victories over the past three seasons and were one of two squads in the country to defeat eventual national champion Southern Connecticut State in 2006-07.

Letterwinners Lost (6)
It is very difficult to replace the talent and reliability of those lost to graduation. The group of six letterwinners gone from the Golden Knights roster accounted for 56.1 percent of an offense that was the most prolific scoring team in the NE-10. Saint Rose will also be without the services of three formidable starters in Mary Lewis, Linsey Onishuk and Courtney Ludwig. Lewis and Onishuk were All-Conference performers a year ago while Ludwig went down as one of the most potent 3-point shooters in program history.

Also, the presence of Ariel Davis in the paint and the leadership responsibilities bestowed upon Ashley DuRoss and Julie Reilly must be replaced. Davis was tied for 12th in the NE-10 in blocks (0.71) and Reilly’s court smarts explained her selection to the NE-10 Commissioner’s Honor Roll at season’s end.

Letterwinners Returning (7)
A large group of upperclassmen have been waiting their turn to make an impression on the Saint Rose program and will get their chance to do so right away. Two starters return from last year’s NCAA Tournament squad behind senior center Lauren Revesz (Clifton Park, NY/Chartiers Valley-PA) and senior forward Emily Gottstein (Albany, NY/Holy Names). Meanwhile, junior guard Dana Brown (Elmont, NY/Elmont Memorial) and junior forward Ashley Anderson (Portland, ME/Portland) have been in the system for the past two years and are expected to find themselves playing major roles in this year’s success.

Revesz is extremely difficult to defend with her ability to score inside, shoot the "three" and get to the free throw line. She earned second-team All-Conference honors last year after averaging a team-best 15.0 points to go with 5.2 rebounds. She also finished with the seventh highest free throw percentage (.810) in the league.

Gottstein has proven to be one of the top rebounders in the NE-10 after finishing seventh in the league with 7.3 boards. She was also 10th in offensive and defensive rebounds while generating 7.7 points on the offensive end.

Brown averaged 5.5 points in 17.9 minutes of action having played in all 30 contests. She will be relied upon to take over the ball handling duties and has the ability to play the wing and get to the rim. Anderson, who was a member of the NE-10 All-Rookie Team as a freshman, looks to be at full strength after contributing 3.0 points and 3.3 rebounds a year ago when she was still recovering from an off-season injury following her rookie year.

Also back in the fold are senior guard Suzana Sormaz (Kovin, Serbia), senior center Ivana Stojadinov (Centa, Serbia) and sophomore guard Elizabeth Buckley (East Lyme, CT/East Lyme). Sormaz represents one of the top long distance shooters in the league after connecting on 27-of-77 from beyond the arc last season for a. She averaged 3.3 points in 11.2 minutes of reserve action. Stojadinov, a quad-captain, will provide a valuable presence in the paint with her length and shot blocking ability.

Buckley gained invaluable experience last season having seen action in 25 games. She can catch fire from downtown and will find herself contributing significantly in only her second season in a Saint Rose uniform.

Newcomers (6)
Joining the returning cast are five freshmen and one sophomore transfer who will look to make an impending impact on the program. Sophomore guard Jenna Hughes (Averill Park, NY/Averill Park) arrives via Hudson Valley Community College where she led the Vikings to their first NJCAA Region III Tournament in two years last season. She was the team’s second leading scorer with 15.4 points and is a formidable threat from beyond the arc having connected on 34.8 percent (54-for-155) of her shots.

The remaining fresh faces include guard/forward Amy Voelkel (Mohegan Lake, NY/Lakeland), guards Lynsey Timbrouck (Kingston, NY/Kingston), Rachel Coryea (Rouses Point, NY/Northeastern Clinton) and Kerri Revesz (Clifton Park, NY/Shenendehowa) while forward Elizabeth Tremblay (Merrimack, NH/Bishop Guertin) will provide additional help in the frontcourt.

Voelkel is an outstanding all-around athlete that should find her way into the rotation on a regular basis. She was tabbed Female Athlete of the Year by the North County News last spring and was a four-time All-Conference pick in basketball, field hockey and lacrosse at Lakeland. A versatile player that can handle the ball or play on the block, Voelkel averaged 13.0 points, 8.8 boards and 3.0 assists as a senior.

Timbrouck likes to push the ball and can score in a variety of different ways. The section IX Player of the Year, Timbrouck graduated from Kingston as the school’s all-time leader in scoring (1,450) and steals (334). A class “AA” selection to the All-State team, Timbrouck has the ability to create havoc on the defensive end.

Coryea is another 1,000-point scorer in high school that can knock down the deep ball. She was part of four sectional titles at Northeastern Clinton and brings a tremendous basketball IQ to the program. Revesz adds yet another option to a deep, athletic backcourt that has the ability to score from many different angles. Despite taking a year off from basketball after playing at nearby Shenendehowa as a senior in 2005, Revesz comes from a basketball family and has proven she can hit the open jumper.

Tremblay possesses a strong, physical game that will be counted on to provide a dominant presence in the post. She was an honorable-mention selection by the Nashua Telegraph in her final three years at Bishop Guertin where she was also a two-time team captain.

Schedule
The day in and day out clashes between NE-10 opponents is something that provides the Golden Knights with challenging endeavors to uphold. The schedule features 22 conference meetings as well as a non-league schedule against five teams that finished nine games over .500 collectively. Saint Rose opens its season with an exhibition game at Division I Binghamton on Tuesday, November 6 before opening the regular season with a non-conference match-up at C.W. Post on Saturday, November 17 in a 2:00 pm tip-off in Brookville, NY.

The league schedule is comprised of home and home series against Le Moyne, American International, Southern New Hampshire, Pace, Franklin Pierce, Southern Connecticut State, Saint Michael’s and Saint Anselm. Furthermore, the Golden Knights will host Stonehill, Bryant and Assumption and also head to Merrimack, Bentley and UMass Lowell.

The non-conference slate sends Saint Rose to the American International Classic for meetings against Wilmington and Bloomfield on Saturday, December 29 and Sunday, December 30. The Golden Knights will also host Adelphi and Bloomfield after traveling to C.W. Post in the aforementioned season-opener.

The NE-10 portion of the schedule will get under way on Tuesday, November 20 when Le Moyne arrives at the Daniel P. Nolan Gymnasium for a 5:30 pm start, while the first league road game is set for Sunday, November 25 at American International in a 1:30 pm tip-off.

Quoting Head Coach Karen Haag
“The thing that I love about our team is that the players we have coming back are ready to step up and fill the shoes of those that graduated. We are not going to sit back and rest on our laurels. We bring back a tremendous All-Conference threat in Lauren [Revesz] and our frontcourt meshes really well together. The big thing for us is going to be how healthy we stay and if we are able to bring it night in and night out. The league is wide open and our obvious goal is to be in that top-third, which is often a difficult thing to accomplish.”

Summation
Despite the departure of key pieces in a prolific scoring attack, the Golden Knights still have the ability to put up points in a hurry. It will be crucial for this year’s club to focus on defense, protect the ball and take care of business on the road. Saint Rose strung together a 12-1 record on its home floor last season, outscored the opposition by 8.2 points per-game and caused visiting teams to turn the ball over 20.7 times on average.

The frontcourt tandem of Revesz and Gottstein, both of whom are seniors, will create match-up problems throughout the season. With so much of an opposing team’s attention being drawn down low; Brown, Buckley and Sormaz have the potential to stretch a defense with their ability to catch fire from beyond the 3-point arc. How the squad reacts to pressure and the high level of play in the NE-10 will likely decide where the Golden Knights stand at season’s end.