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Tina Martin's program has become one of the great success stories in women's college basketball. Martin took over the University of Delaware program five years ago and gave it more than a facelift. She rebuilt it from the ground up. In her first two seasons, Martin's Blue Hens were a combined 15-40 and did not make it out of the conference quarterfinal round. In her last two seasons, she has led her troops to back-to-back 20 win seasons, a combined record of 47-13, the program's first-ever votes in a Top 25 poll, America East regular season and conference titles, and the school's first NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament appearance. Yet, as the Blue Hens move into the Colonial Athletic Association, Martin knows she still has her work cut out for her. "I guess you could say we have a new mountain to climb," said Martin. "It is certainly a bigger challenge for our program. We reached the top in America East and now we move to the CAA, which is a league that is higher thought of when you look at rankings and such. So from that respect, I guess it is a new mountain for us." Martin returns three starters from last year's squad, but does have to replace a pair of 1,000-point scorers in Danielle Leyfert and UD's career scoring leader Cindy Johnson. "I think our nucleus is solid," said Martin. "The freshmen will have to contribute right away for us to compete. It is tough to replace players like Cindy Johnson and Danielle Leyfert. However, the nucleus is there for us to be successful." Martin doesn't have to worry about the point guard position. Three-year starter Megan Dellegrotti returns to run the offense with two-year letterwinner Carrie Timmins along side of her. "The point is our strongest position with Meg and Carrie both returning," said Martin. "Both are very experienced and have leadership qualities that will be key with a younger unit this season." Dellegrotti set both the UD single-season and career three-point field goal marks last season as a junior. She hit 49 three-pointers last year and has 106 for her career in the first three seasons. The native of Berwick, PA also led the team with 90 assists and shot 85.8 percent from the foul line last season. Timmins has been a two-year contributor of the bench and allows the Blue Hens to go in a tandem point guard set or just to rest Dellegrotti. The native of New Oxford, PA had a season-high 10 points in a one-point loss at Maryland last year. The other guard position sees an obvious hole with the graduation of UD's all-time leading scorer Cindy Johnson, a first-team All-America East pick in 2000-01 when she averaged 17.3 ppg. "The two-guard slot is a big question mark for us as the season opens," said Martin. "Several people have a chance to step into that slot. Obviously, Allison Trapp is the most athletic person in the position and the most athletic person on the squad. Kim Tingley has experience, but had an injury-plagued junior year. Freshman Jade Leitao is very talented, but doesn't have experience, yet." Trapp, a 5-9 junior transfer from East Carolina and a native of Philadelphia, PA, played in all 31 games last year, with four starts. In two of those starts, however, she had some huge nights &endash; 12 points and 10 rebounds in a two-point loss at Maryland and 26 points in a win at St. Francis (PA). For the season, she averaged 6.0 ppg and had 32 steals despite playing just under 15 minutes per game. Tingley played in just seven games last year due to periodic back spasms. Before transferring from West Virginia two years ago, the 5-8 native of Coudersport, PA appeared in 21 games for the Mountaineers with five starts. She played in 15 games as a freshman. Leitao, the first UD women's basketball recruit from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, was a much sought-after guard coming out of Randolph HS. The native of Braintree, MA is the niece of UConn men's basketball associate head coach Dave Leitao and was a three-time all-conference honoree and Bay State League MVP last year. Senior Valerie Katsorhis will try to finally shake off the injury bug this season. The native of Jamaica, NY missed all of last season and most of the previous season with a foot injury. After having surgery prior to last season, it was discovered that the foot had not healed properly, forcing Katsorhis to undergo surgery a second time. In addition, homegrown Kristin Mills returns to the lineup. Mills, one of two former Delaware High School Player of the Year honorees on the 2000-01 roster, will look to add to the backcourt in a reserve role. Another possibility exists in freshman Julie Sailer. The 5-11 Sailer, who was a Parade Magazine second-team All-American at Council Rock HS in Pennsylvania and also was an AAU All-American in the summer of 2000, could see time at either the off-guard or as a small forward. Sailer was a two-time Bucks County Player of the Year selection and selected to the Associated Press All-State squad last year. "Sailer could slide over from the three to the two-guard to get her some more minutes," said Martin. "Her regular spot will be at the three-spot behind Lindsay Davis." Davis, a senior from River Edge, NJ, proved herself last year, averaging 6.8 ppg and 4.6 rpg off the bench. In appearing in 27 games last year with two starts, Davis connected on 20 of 53 from three-point range and had 17 points and nine rebounds in 25 minutes off the bench in the Blue Hens' America East championship game win at Vermont last March. "Lindsay has the inside track on the starting role" said Martin. "She established herself down the stretch last season and played extremely well in the championship game at Vermont. She has earned that chance." Another possibility is Tracey Howell. Howell, a graduate of near-by A.I. duPont HS, came to Delaware last year as a low post player. However, she has worked on her outside skills in the off-season and will see some playing time out on the wing. "Tracey will also see time at the three-slot a little more this season," said Martin. "We've moved her outside and worked on her ballhandling and shooting in the off-season." In the frontcourt, the starting duo of 6-1 Christina Rible and 6-2 Christine Cole return. Rible earned first-team all-conference honors and was an all-tournament selection last year when she became just the 10th Blue Hen to average a double-double for the season. She recorded 17 double-doubles last year while averaging 12.5 ppg and 10.5 rpg &endash; ranking No. 13 in rebounding in Division I. She was one of two Blue Hens to start all 31 games (Dellegrotti being the other). "Rible had a breakout year last season," said Martin. She averaged a double-double last year, which not many in the history of our program have done. She also has a chance to be one of a select few to have 1,000 points and 1,000 rebounds in a career. We will count on her leadership in the frontcourt this season. She will play a big part if we are to challenge this year." Cole became a full-time starter as a sophomore last season and proved herself to be a strong defensive presence. She led the team in blocked shots with 31, while grabbing 4.4 rebounds per game and chipping in 5.1 ppg. "Christine has established herself in the middle with her defense and rebounding," said Martin. "She's improved each of the first two years and we look for her to continue that and improve on the offensive end of the floor. "We are a different team from last year. This year, our frontcourt is stronger, whereas last year we were more of a backcourt-loaded team with Danielle [Leyfert] and Cindy [Johnson]." Backing up Cole and Rible will be a trio of young talent. Jayne Boyer got her feet wet last year, while freshmen Tiara Malcolm and Tiffany Young get their first taste of collegiate action this season. Boyer appeared in 15 games last year as a reserve. She averaged 1.3 ppg and 1.3 rpg. "Jayne has to stay out of foul trouble," said Martin. "The CAA is a more athletic league and a bigger league. The amount of improvement she makes from last year on the defensive end of the floor will equal into the amount of playing time Jayne sees." Malcolm, a 6-1 forward from Wilmington, DE, was Co-State Player of the Year in Delaware last year and was a two-time all-state selection at near by Caravel Academy. "Tiara has unlimited potential," said Martin. "She is very athletic. As a freshman, we will look to her for key minutes and she will probably challenge Christine Cole for playing time. I'm really looking forward to coaching Tiara for the next four years." Young, a 6-2 forward from Fairfax, VA, will also be counted on to contribute right away. A physical presence in the low post, Young was an all-district and all-region selection at Fairfax HS. "Tiffany is a very strong body on the low block," noted Martin. "She is a rebounder that can score. She plays very physical, which will be important in moving to the CAA." Overall, Martin sees her team as a middle of the pack team... but that's just on paper. "Old Dominion is a Pre-season Top 25 caliber team," said Martin. "James Madison is solid after advancing to the WNIT semifinals last March, and George Mason also received a bid into the WNIT. I think Drexel will be tough, too. They have a lot back from a team that was on our tail in the America East standings much of last season. "When the ball gets tossed in the air, though, a lot of different things can change," Martin pointed out. "A variety of intangibles can change that and I am very excited about coaching this young group. We may take a few lumps, but we may surprise a few people, too." Copyright, © 2000, University of Delaware. All
rights reserved.
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