Women's Basketball: Season-in-Review
UNIVERSITY PARK, IL—A five-month season came down to the final day for the Governors State women's basketball program, which entered its season finale battling for a postseason berth in the Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference.
Beating Roosevelt on Senior Day, the Jaguars just missed the playoffs, finishing 10-19 overall and 9-13 in the CCAC, tied for eighth place. Losing a tie-breaker for the final playoff spot was a lesson learned, according to Head Coach Tonishea Mack.
"Our team now knows that November and December games matter, and if you don't show up for those games, it can bite you in February. We had a lot of new moving pieces and with the loss of two of our best players in Tabetha Jones and Aaliyah Hull to injuries, we didn't have a lot of time to find our identity."
GSU dove into CCAC play in mid-November after just two nonconference games, which included a win over Bethel from the ultra-competitive Crossroads League. Three-straight conference wins put the Jaguars at 4-2 before they dropped 10 of 11. GSU recovered to produce some memorable performances. The Orange and Black scored a season-high 85 points in an impressive 14-point over Olivet Nazarene and held Judson to 34 points in a 32-point victory at University Park. In that game GSU jumped out to a 24-5 first-quarter lead.
The Jaguars lost a key player in newcomer Justice Crooks at midseason but were fortunate to bring in freshman Cashay Dixon and regain the services of veteran Kaitlin Adams. A transfer from Howard, Dixon finished with a team-best 15.9 scoring average in 14 games played. She scored a team season-high 30 points (22 in the first half) at Calumet St. Joseph and received All-CCAC Honorable Mention. Adams, who appeared in 17 games, completed her career standing fourth in 3-point field goals (59) and sixth in assists (116) on GSU's all-time rankings.
"Adding Cash to what we had in place with the team is what we needed, scoring comes easy to her. And I think next year she will be even better, we're excited to have her for another three more years," said Mack.
Graduate student Sharnita Breeze also received All-CCAC Honorable Mention after becoming just the second female to score 1,000 career points at Governors State. She was chosen to a pair of all-tournament teams—the Siena Heights Thanksgiving Classic and the Jaguars New Year's Classic—while leading GSU in points (354) and rebounds (208). Often double teamed, Breeze still left her mark on the team.
"Breezy excels at every aspect of basketball, she can put the ball on the floor, post-up, and defend. I feel she can play at the next level, she set the standard for the recruits coming in and has been great for our program," stated Mack.
Injuries left GSU with four reserves on the bench but the team still managed to play solid defense, setting a program record for scoring defense by limiting opponents to 63.2 points per game. In CCAC play, GSU ranked fifth out of 15 teams in opponent scoring (62.4). Offensively, several individual milestones were accomplished.
Kennedy Weigt, a transfer from Lenoir-Rhyne, set a season record for 3-pointers, hitting 51 shots from long range. Breeze became the school's career leader in 3-pointers (94) while point guard Jordan Towery established a season mark for assists (119). Towery ranked second in the CCAC in assists and standing 5-foot-5, was the team's second-leading rebounder, averaging 5.2 boards per contest.
The 2021-22 season saw a trio of players experience career-best seasons. Forward Gaetana Davis started 26 games and hit double-figures in scoring eight times while center Trinity Sims led GSU in field goal percentage (.488) and blocks (33), producing back-to-back double-doubles while earning 15 starts. Lotte Miller finished with 80 points, 29 assists and 10 steals in her second season as a key reserve.
Angelique Cowan and Ce'niyah Hampton gave the Orange and Black depth at the guard position and will be among nine players returning for next season that gives Mack optimism for a return to postseason play.
"We had a really close-knit group this year. I take pride in the fact that we competed against the best (teams) in the conference. At the end of the day our conference is tough, we all know and understand that. We did fight till the end but It was disappointing not making playoffs. With the players we have coming back and the recruits we're bringing in, I expect us to be contenders next season."
