COLUMN: Future is bright for women’s basketball program

CLEVELAND – The season came to a close on Wednesday for the CMU women’s basketball team after it lost in the quarterfinals of the Mid-American Conference Tournament for the second consecutive season.

During the post-game press conference of the team’s 68-55 loss against Kent State, you could see the emotion on the faces of senior Britni Houghton and junior Kaihla Szunko.

Szunko’s voice was cracking, her eyes close to watering.

The team, like many other times this season, battled but came up on the short end.

“I’m proud of this team,” said coach Sue Guevara after the loss. “The two kids that are sitting next to me are warriors. Kaihla Szunko has the legs and knees to prove it.”

Rebounds, turnovers and an inability to score at key times — areas that plagued CMU all season — came back to haunt the team when it need to be mistake-free the most. It was outrebounded 47-30 and, while it forced 30 turnovers, it turned the ball over 26 times.

And despite all of that, the team hung around for more than 35 minutes of the game — like it did last time against Kent State –—once again proving that it could play with the best in the conference, despite having a fairly young and in experienced roster.

Just like it demonstrated several other times throughout the season with wins against the likes of Eastern Michigan and MAC tournament champion Bowling Green.

A team that was predicted in the pre-season to finish fourth in the MAC West Division finished third. It upset then-ranked Louisville and put together one of the best records at home — nine consecutive wins at one point — the program has ever seen.

It won its first-round MAC tournament game for the second consecutive season, while also flirting with a low seed and first-round bye.

This team was on the cusp of breaking out into something special.

Unfortunately, Houghton and fellow seniors Kendra Holman and Heidi Warczinsky will never truly get to experience the turnaround they had hoped for.

“It’s been a good ride throughout the season,” said Houghton after the game. “I just wish we could’ve ended on a better note. I’m still going to be here next year to support the team and, hopefully, we left somewhat of a legacy so that the team gets even better.”

Guevara and her staff will get 2008-09 MAC Freshman of the Year Brandie Baker back from injury next season, as well as forward Sarah Huff, who sat out the season after transferring from Marist.

CMU also welcomes in three new recruits — two forwards and a guard — that add desperately needed size and scoring.

Even with all of the team’s trials and tribulations this season and a losing record for the third time in four years, this program is headed in the right direction and is on the verge of becoming something special.

Watch for this team in the next few seasons, because Guevara and her staff have created an environment where winning is first and foremost and losing will not be tolerated.

It seems as though the players have bought it.