Wheaton, Ill. - Wheaton women's basketball coach
Kent Madsen will open his first full season as the head coach of the Thunder in 2011-12, after serving as the acting head coach last year. Madsen was thrust into the acting head coach role in late November last season when longtime head coach Beth Baker took a medical leave and he guided the team to an impressive 19-7 season, with a second-place CCIW finish. Madsen, who joined the Thunder program in 1998 as an assistant coach, was appointed the full-time head coach in May, following Baker's retirement earlier that month.
After a strong campaign last year, the Thunder has four starters returning and six players who averaged 14 or more minutes a game. With that, Wheaton is ranked 25th in the preseason Division III poll conducted by the Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA). “I am sure people have high expectations for us. Everybody knows that we have three All-Conference players returning, so I would hope that our fans and people outside the program would have high expectations for us,” notes Madsen. He continues, “That being said, I don't think our expectations have changed. Coach Baker built a strong foundation for this program and it has always been geared around trying to win a conference championship. As challenging as that task is, it still remains our goal every single year.”
When asked about what fans can expect from his team this season, Madsen notes, “I think people will see many of the same things we did last year, in terms of our style of play. We like to try and push the ball, the way we run our offense will be similar to last year and what we do defensively does not change much from year to year. I have some returning upperclassmen like
Lindsey Brenneman,
Elisabeth Potts,
Laura Karsten (PICTURED LEFT) and
Brooke Olson who are playing with greater confidence because of last year and the success we had.” He adds, “I think that we have some very strong outside shooters and I believe that we can maintain good effort over a long period of time because of the condition that a lot of our players are in.”
“My biggest concern is our health. We have two players [
Laura Karsten and Jen Lee] that are playing soccer, so we may not see them for quite some time,” notes the Thunder head coach. He mentions, “But we also have some players that are coming off some significant surgeries in
Breanna Bohlen and
Maris Hovee (PICTURED RIGHT). Maris' health is huge in the sense that she is our primary returning player in the post. One of our freshman post players is also injured at this time.”
Laura Karsten returned to the women's basketball program in 2010-11 after sitting out her sophomore season with an injury. She returned with a junior campaign that saw her earn the CCIW “Player of the Year” award and Second Team All-America recognition. Karsten led the Thunder in scoring with 13.3 points per game and was the team's leading rebounder at 6.6 boards per contest. She shot 48.6% (101-208) from the field, including 45.1% (46-102) from three-point range in the standout season. Madsen notes, “Laura is a phenomenal athlete, evidenced by her being an All-American in both basketball and soccer. She is just one of those players that is a pleasure to be around because you would never know her accolades because of her demeanor and attitude. She can shoot very well from the outside, but also has the ability to drive so she presents quite a threat.”
Guard
Lindsey Brenneman (PICTURED LEFT) returns for her senior season after earning Second Team All-CCIW honors for the second consecutive year. Last year she averaged 12.8 points per game, with 3.8 rebounds per game. Madsen says of her, “Lindsey is steady. She is just one of those players that you can count on to put up some decent points every game and keep the player she is defending in front of her at all times. She definitely hits open shots; she has worked extremely hard on her shot over the years and I think it has paid off for her. She is just reliable in so many ways.”
Junior
Brooke Olson (PICTURED RIGHT) was a Third Team All-CCIW honoree last year. She led Wheaton with 4.3 assists per game, starting in every game as a sophomore. Olson contributed 10.9 points per game and led the club in steals with 2.1 per contest. Madsen mentions, “
Brooke Olson is a great competitor who really helps set the tone defensively because she is a great defensive player and she is also an excellent ball-handler. She keeps improving year in and year out. She has become a very good leader for the team and when she is out there it is like having a coach on the court, which makes it very nice for us. She was Third Team All-Conference last year and I could see her as one of the top players in the league this year.”
Returning starter
Elisabeth Potts (PICTURED LEFT) averaged 7.3 points per game last year, with 4.3 rebounds per game from her forward position. Potts shot 47.2% (67-142) from the field, with a 40.8% (20-49) effort from three-point range as a junior last year. The Thunder head coach notes, “Elisabeth made huge strides last year as a junior. I think she is gaining more and more confidence with each year. I really look for her senior year to be her best year. I am really pleased with how she has continued to grow offensively and become a threat.”
Center
Maris Hovee played in every game last season as a freshman for the Thunder. She averaged 5.1 rebounds per game last season in just a little more than 14 minutes per game. Madsen states of her, “Maris' health is a concern since she is coming off of two knee surgeries since the end of last season. But, you are talking about a 6'2” player with a lot of athletic ability. As much as we can get her on the court that will be important because she definitely provides an inside offensive presence for our team, and she is also a really strong rebounder.”
Junior
Breanna Bohlen played in every game of her sophomore season, including the first five as a starter. She contributed 4.7 points per game in the campaign. “Last year Breanna had to change roles by coming off the bench with
Laura Karsten returning from her injury,” notes Madsen. He adds, “She is going to be a kind of utility player for us because she can play so many spots. What I like about my guards is that there is a lot of flexibility between all of them. She had surgery in the offseason and has done a phenomenal job of rehabbing this year. She is an outstanding outside shooter and has a wonderful leaping ability for pull-up jumpers. I look for her to have a very strong junior year.”
Senior
Lissie McAlvey returns after sitting out the 2010-11 season with injuries. In 2008-09 she played in 23 games, averaging nearly four points per game. Madsen says of her, “Lissie is a player that has been in our program in the past and is going to try and come back from numerous ACL surgeries. She can help us because she is a very strong outside shooter and has the ability to drive. She is another one of our guards who provides a lot of flexibility in that she can bring the ball up the court if we need her to. She can hit the outside shot and yet she can drive and attack the basket.”
Maria Panaggio played in 21 games as a freshman for the Thunder last season, gaining valuable varsity experience. The Wheaton head coach says of her, “Maria is one of those players who can play a lot of different roles. She can play in the post, she can play on the wing and she has the ability to attack the rim.”
Madsen says of
Kate Hoeksema, who played in 19 games last year as a freshman, “
Kate Hoeksema provides us with an outside threat and she can also handle the ball and fit in wherever we need her to.”
Madsen and assistant coach
Sarah Harris have brought in some newcomers to the program to join the team's strong mix of returning players. Madsen says of 5' 10“ forward
Lauren Graham (Wheaton, Ill./Wheaton North), “Lauren will have a significant role as one of our primary post players. She has a real strong work ethic. She has nice range for a post player and can definitely score around the basket.” He continues, “
Brannon Burke (Port Jefferson, N.Y./The Stony Brook School) has been dealing with some off-season injuries. We are hoping that she will be able to get healthy at some point during the season because she would definitely increase our depth in the post position. She has nice range, but is also capable of scoring in the post.” Sophomore guard
Bri Graham (Wheaton, Ill./Wheaton North) has transferred into Wheaton from Calvin College. “
Bri Graham definitely has a defensive mindset and provides you with good effort on that side of the ball,” notes Madsen. He adds of freshman guard
Janessa Bohlen (Glenvil, Neb./Adams Central), “I like what I have seen from Janessa in the preseason. She is a very scrappy defender. I think she has continued to improve, especially during this pre-season.”
