By Jonathan Sawyer
Sports Editor
The St. Bonaventure women’s basketball team brought in five freshmen this season, and three have been put into big minute roles only seven games into the season.
The Bonnies made a starting lineup change, as freshmen guards Jalisha Terry and Sarah Hart were put into the starting lineup when the Bonnies took on the Delaware Blue Hens on Nov. 19.
Terry and Hart have taken the place of senior guard Imani Outlaw and sophomore Mckenna Maycock.
Since that game, the Bonnies have continued to go with the two freshman guards. Head Coach Jesse Fleming said having Outlaw and Maycock come off the bench had nothing to do with their play, but he had to change something up.
“It wasn’t working,” Fleming said. “The way we were starting games, even when we beat Colgate. We were down four when the starters came out. We needed to mix it up. It was the same message to Maycock. It is going to be a different role but it doesn’t mean ‘Hey you’re playing awful, so you’re out.’”
Terry said her playing a lot means she has worked hard and the team has depended on her.
“Coach Fleming doesn’t really look at me as a freshman as well as the other freshmen (Sarah Hart & Danielle Migliore), and I can’t really play like one because we have a young team,” Terry said. “I have to pick up things faster and act as if I been here for a while. I feel that coach can trust me as being the freshman point guard.”
Also joining Hart and Terry is freshman guard Danielle Migliore, who comes off the bench. Fleming said Migliore has been their number one off the bench.
Fleming said Hart is the team’s most consistent player through the first three games of the season.
“I just said why are we bringing her off the bench, lets get her in there,” Fleming said.
Terry shows, at some points, that she is a freshman but Fleming said he thinks she can be an effective scorer for the Bonnies.
“Terry has a little bit more of a scoring punch, so we [inserted] her there, and she had been uneven in practices, but is a gamer,” Fleming said.
Terry said she didn’t assume she would play many minutes because nothing is easy.
“I knew I would have to work hard at practice for it. I didn’t expect that, especially from Coach Fleming. He knows what I can do but I have to show it. So I wasn’t really expecting to just play a lot,” Terry said.
Even with a loss at Delaware, Fleming said he was pleased with what he saw going forward, as they took home two victories in Florida.
“I was really happy we had a slow first half against Delaware. It was [a] low scoring game, and we had a lay-up chance to win it at the end of that game once we made the changes,” Fleming said. “Then we went down to Florida and played well. I’ve been really pleased with the changes.”
Although taking two veteran players out of the lineup, Fleming said it’s neat to see the mentorship between the older and younger players.
“It is funny to watch Terry and [graduate forward] Gabby Richmond; they really do have an age difference and yet they are two peas in a pod,” Fleming said. “Mariah [Ruff] has done a really good job mentoring with Hart and believes in Hart’s ability.”
Terry said the older players are happy she is stepping up as a freshman.
“There [are] only five upperclassmen that play and five freshmen so they need breaks or someone to come off the bench,” Terry said. “I think they depended on me and the other two freshmen that play as well. Especially being the only other point guard on the team, I know they were probably expecting some type of contribution.”
sawyerjp15@bonaventure.edu
