Coach Angel Whetstone has always known what she wants her team to look like on the basketball court. And for the first time in her three seasons as the women’s basketball coach at Madison College, she feels closer to that goal than ever before.
“I’m super excited for my third year here,” Whetstone said. “It’s kind of like a complete team.”
In her first season as coach, Whetstone didn’t have much of a chance to recruit players and had soccer players help field a team. The squad finished the year with just one win.
Last year, her team was made up entirely of freshman and managed to win 11 games.
As the team enters a new season, Whetstone feels any holes in the lineup have been filled and the team is ready to play her brand of basketball.
“We really had an emphasis when we were recruiting last year to find players that can play defense and really be pressure on ball,” Whetstone said.
“Our strength is going to be being a long team,” she added. “We have a lot of players that are long, lengthy. We’re really focusing on defense this year. Emphasizing that it helps when you’re able to defend, you’re able to get points in transition. So, we’ll really be a transition team.”
The team is an even split between freshmen and sophomores, although only five of the sophomores are returnees. One is a transfer student from Milwaukee Area Technical College, point guard Chloe Bynum.
“Last year, we didn’t have any point guards,” Whetstone said. Adding someone with Bynum’s experience was “really nice because we’re able to set up our offense. We’re able to have someone who can get our players set and where they need to be.”
Other key returnees include team captain Maia Ellis, who averaged 7.9 points a game last year, and Dani Latz, who led the team in scoring 14.1 points a game.
In addition, the team returns Jaida Gaskins (10.9 points a game), Keelyn Zwirschitz (10.5 points a game) and Amaya Travis (3.2 points a game).
Incoming freshmen include guards Jamera Green, Iyanna Green, Serinity Metcalfe and Ava Landrum and forwards Sofi Blahnik and Maddi DeSmet.
Whetstone believes this year’s team will take another step forward. Included among her goals is to “make sure that our players who want to play at the next level are ready for that” and to help players achieve their personal goals.
But beyond that, as Whetstone put it, “when you’re playing a sport, you want to win.” That’s something that many of the WolfPack teams have been doing this season.
“Our athletics department is doing really well right now,” Whetstone said. “Our men’s soccer team is undefeated, they’re ranked in the nation. Our women’s volleyball team is ranked in the nation. … But that’s a lot of pressure. The pressure is a privilege, like they say, so I’m happy for that.”
Last year, there was pressure just to win. So when Madison College upended Waubonsee Community College in their second game, Whetstone admitted feeling relieved.
“Just remembering our first win last year. It was at Waubonsee, and was just like the weight lifted off my shoulders. Like, man, we finally got one,” Whetstone said.
This season, Whetstone didn’t have to wait at all for that first victory. Madison College handily beat Prairie State College, 74-31, in its opening game on Nov. 1. Five players scored in double figures in the game, led by Ellis, Zwirschitz and Metcalfe who each scored 13 points.
Her team has won two games since then to start the season, 3-0. Madison College beat McHenry College, 95-49, on Nov. 4 and Gogebic Community College, 108-37, on Nov. 7. The win over Gogebic saw the highest point total for the WolfPack in Whetstone’s tenure as coach.
“I think we’re going to be a fun team to watch,” Whetstone said. “I think if you came to any games in the past couple of years, I think this team has more energy. They’re more excited. I think it’s just because they also look at our team and think, like, ‘yeah we have a squad.’”
“I think we have a team that can really go far and push in the region and really compete,” she added. “So I’m excited for that. I think if anyone comes to our games, you would be excited to watch us, too.