2008 Woodie Awards
Mules will be challenged for their 5th straight Scotty Wood Title
Josh Goldstein
Issue date: 11/15/07 Section: Sports
You have seen the signs and the t-shirts. You have heard the raving and you know that Wood is coming. But what exactly is Wood? Wood refers to the Scotty Wood Tournament. The Women's Basketball Team has been participating in the Tournament since 1993. The Women's Team has won the Tournament 7 times in its 14 year existence, including winning the last 4 Tournaments. However, it could be a difficult task for a five-peat as the Mules play three teams with winning records from a year ago. They lead off Friday night at 6:00 p.m. against Villa Julie, who was 19-10 last year. The Mustangs have an interesting mix of age and youth with 8 seniors and juniors and 7 freshmen on this year's squad. Last year's team was a defensive force holding teams to 53.2 points per game on only 36% shooting. If that defensive trend continues it will be a very interesting and tough matchup for the Mules who are looking to go up tempo and keep the scoring high. The Mules will also have to keep an eye out for senior Tanisha Foster, the Mustangs' leading scorer, rebounder, and shot blocker last year. The forward/center averaged 14.3 points per game, 10 rebounds per game and had 67 blocked shots. If the Mules can contain Foster and get the tempo of the game at high speed they should be able to move on to the Championship round.
The other first round match-up starts at 1:00 p.m. on Friday between New Paltz and Scranton. Last year, New Paltz went 17-11, losing in the semifinals of their Conference Tournament and losing in the first round of the ECAC Tournament. Last year's team had a well balanced scoring attack with 6 players averaging over 6 points per game and no one averaging over 10 points per game. This year's team may be looking for a little more offense, but knows that any one of its players can give them offense on any given night. However, they have the daunting task of playing Scranton, who was ranked 25th in the preseason. Last year's team went 27-3, won the MAC, and lost in the third round of the NCAA Tournament. The team did lose its top two scorers from last year. With New Paltz returning more players than Scranton, look for the 1:00 game to be a tight contest. However, Scranton should pull it out and should face the Mules in the Championship game on Saturday night at 6:00 p.m.
The Mules should have a chance to beat Scranton if they can force a good deal of turnovers. The home crowd should help out and make Saturday night's game one for the ages. An early season victory against a ranked opponent could go a long way in building the Mules confidence and help them on their way to another run at the NCAA tournament. Hopefully everyone will come out Friday and Saturday night to watch the Mules tip-off and go for their fifth straight Scotty WoodTournament title.
The other first round match-up starts at 1:00 p.m. on Friday between New Paltz and Scranton. Last year, New Paltz went 17-11, losing in the semifinals of their Conference Tournament and losing in the first round of the ECAC Tournament. Last year's team had a well balanced scoring attack with 6 players averaging over 6 points per game and no one averaging over 10 points per game. This year's team may be looking for a little more offense, but knows that any one of its players can give them offense on any given night. However, they have the daunting task of playing Scranton, who was ranked 25th in the preseason. Last year's team went 27-3, won the MAC, and lost in the third round of the NCAA Tournament. The team did lose its top two scorers from last year. With New Paltz returning more players than Scranton, look for the 1:00 game to be a tight contest. However, Scranton should pull it out and should face the Mules in the Championship game on Saturday night at 6:00 p.m.
The Mules should have a chance to beat Scranton if they can force a good deal of turnovers. The home crowd should help out and make Saturday night's game one for the ages. An early season victory against a ranked opponent could go a long way in building the Mules confidence and help them on their way to another run at the NCAA tournament. Hopefully everyone will come out Friday and Saturday night to watch the Mules tip-off and go for their fifth straight Scotty WoodTournament title.