EVANS: Look out for women's team in 2012
Kaihla Szunko only needed two rebounds and she grabbed 11.
It was her final game as a Chippewa and she went out in a way no other player in Mid-American Conference has before.
During CMU’s 72-59 loss at Illinois State in the first round of the Women's National Invitational Tournament, the senior forward became the first player in conference history to have 1,000 rebounds, 1,000 points and 200 steals in a career.
What impresses me is that only two other active players have accomplished this feat: Maya Moore from Connecticut and Victoria Dunlap from Texas.
Szunko would have loved to win some more games, but when she looks back she will realize there were no regrets and that she had an illustrious career. The loss to the Redbirds last Thursday ended the careers of Szunko, Shonda Long, Laura Baker and Camille Ramsey.
Both Szunko and Long finish their careers in the top 10 in program history for scoring, and Long holds the record for most three pointers made in a career in CMU history.
These seniors will be missed, but not forgotten. They are all part of some of the biggest single-season turnarounds in conference history during their respective careers.
But the loss of these seniors dawns a new era of women’s college basketball for the Central Michigan Chippewas.
With a nationally-recognized top 50 recruiting class coming in next season, the future is more than bright. Freshmen Taylor Johnson and Niki DiGuilio, MAC Freshman of the Year and Sixth Player of the Year, respectively, were two of the best in the league and will have this team rolling on all cylinders next season.
Sophomore Brandie Baker should be completely healthy next season after tearing her ACL in 2009. She missed an entire season and took a medical redshirt after being named MAC Freshman of the Year in 2008.
Sophomore Jalisa Olive is a fast and exciting player that can really pour in points when she is feeling it.
The Chippewas will return three starters next year, including junior Skylar Miller, who started in every game this season.
This team is going to be good — I mean, possibly top 25 ranked good.
This program has improved every season under head coach Sue Guevara. She is the type of determined, persistent and emotional coach that every player desires at some point in their athletic career.
There will, and should, be a buzz around campus about this team in the coming years.
For the seniors, it has been a privilege. They have left a legacy that not many senior classes have been able to. They helped CMU reach just its third postseason in program history, and the first since 1984.
Watch out for the CMU women’s basketball team in 2012.
