Last season's finish has not led to wins yet this season, but it's early and the team has time to jell around a trio of seniors.
By STEVE LEE
Published December 3, 2003
SAINT LEO - The 2002-2003 season for the Saint Leo women's basketball team can be summed up in one word: streaks.
In Kerri Reaves' inaugural season as the Lions' coach, the team lost five of its first seven games. A six-game winning streak followed.
Yet for all of last season's ups and downs, Saint Leo finished just shy of .500 at 13-15, 5-9 in the Sunshine State Conference.
An 0-3 start season, however, has Reaves and the Lions on the verge of another dubious streak they hoped to avoid.
"The talent's there and the work ethic's there," Reaves said. "We're just waiting for that one chance to put it all together."
A daunting task, considering the Lions are without Ebony Winn and Jackie Pugh, who graduated after last season. Winn set the school's career rebounding record and Pugh was a standout post player.
A trio of returning seniors - guards September Harrison and Shannon Cummings, along with forward Jessica Goneconte - pace the Lions' attack.
They also must lead in the locker room since Reaves has brought in five freshman, including starting forward Elaine Evans.
"We do have a group of seniors, but we're very young," Reaves said. "I think that's showing early."
While the freshmen have yet to win in a Saint Leo uniform, Reaves is counting on the returners to build on last year's 11-10 finish after that 2-5 start.
"Being the first time we were together, to end the season the way we did was a pretty good job," Reaves said. "The returning players, they kind of got a taste of winning and they like that."
Harrison, who last season made the All-SSC second team, is Saint Leo's best and most experienced player. The former Tampa Catholic standout did her best in the opener, but her 27-point, 10-rebound, six-steal effort could not prevent a 80-74 loss to Northern Michigan.
"We need for (her) to be big for us if we're going to win games," Reaves said of Harrison, who last season averaged 14 points a game.
Reaves also expects big things from Goneconte, who can post up at center or play small forward, and makes few mistakes.
"She's really just a bigger guard on the floor for us," Reaves said of Goneconte, who last season averaged 5.3 points. "She gives us a lot."
Evans made her presence felt in the second game, scoring 11 points in a 94-62 loss to Lake Superior (Mich.) State.
"I knew I'd have to count on one or two (freshmen) to start for me," Reaves said.
Rosetta Little, a junior forward who last season averaged 3.8 points, scored 17 in the opener.
In former coach Dave Wilson's final season before Reaves was hired from Providence, the Lions won three conference games and eight overall. While Reaves is aware of last season's improvement, the second-year coach counts on her squad jelling to surpass last year's fifth-place SSC finish.
