Women's Basketball Picked Fifth in South

(10/28/10)


  RICHARDSON, TEXAS – The Texas A&M-Kingsville women’s basketball team was picked fifth in the Lone Star Conference South Division preseason poll on Thursday for the second straight season.
    The Javelinas finished 18-10 last year and advanced to the LSC Playoffs for the first time since 2001-02.  Unfortunately, the team lost six seniors to graduation and they took with them 78.1 percent of the team’s points and 61.6 percent of the rebounds from 2009-10.
    The good news for the Javelinas is that they have an outstanding class of newcomers that should have an impact right away.  Red-shirt freshman Novella Thomas (Corpus Christi/West Oso HS) leads the group of newcomers that includes four freshmen and two transfers.  Heading up the returnees are senior Rochelle Ikeni (Fresno, CA/Roosevelt HS) and sophomore Victoria Gonzalez (Hidalgo/Hidalgo HS).  Ikeni averaged 8.1 points and a team high 5.8 rebounds per game while Gonzalez added 3.6 points and 2.3 rebounds in just 7.4 minutes of play per game.
    Defending conference champion West Texas A&M was picked to finish first with 175 points and 15 first place votes.  Tarleton State was tabbed for the second position with 166 points and seven first place votes while Angelo State was picked third with 107 points and one first place vote.  Abilene Christian (99), Texas A&M-Kingsville (96), Incarnate Word (65), Midwestern State (63) and Eastern New Mexico (57) round out the poll.
    The top four teams in each division advance to the LSC Playoffs in Bartlesville, OK.
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