Two more home games this week
With a huge upset over Texas, the Cougar women's team continues play at home this week hosting Boise State on Nov. 27 and Weber State on Nov. 30.
Tip off: BYU (1-0) vs Boise State (1-1) 7:00 p.m.(MST) Arena: Marriott Center
Tip off: BYU (1-0) vs Weber State (1-1) 4:00 p.m.(MST) Arena: Marriott Center
LIVe Internet broadcast and Stats
Cougar fans can follow all the action of the women's basketball team live on BYU radio via the internet. Veteran BYU broadcaster Jay Monsen willcall the action. You can also log on to the BYU web site at www.byucougars.com for live stats throughout the home games.
BYU's Probable Starters
Pos. # Name Ht. Yr. PPG RPG
F 21 Jennifer Leitner 6-1 Sr 18.0 7.0
F 45 Lisa Hansen 6-5 Sr 11.0 4.0
F 51 Danielle Cheesman 6-2 So 13.0 3.0
G 11 Erin Thorn 5-10 Sr 19.0 6.0
G 14 Julie Sullivan 5-8 So 6.0 6.0
Cougar Players Off The Bench
Pos. # Name Ht. Yr. PPG RPG
G 25 Kali Taylor 5-11 So 2.0 4.0
G 05 Amy Lewis 5-6 Sr 0.0 0.4
F 20 Brittany Larson 6-0 Sr 3.0 0.0
G/F 01 Nancy Seljaas 6-0 Fr 5.0 1.0
F 33 Ambrosia Anderson 6-2 Fr 3.0 2.0
G 04 Kestlee Nelson 5-8 Jr 2.0 0.0
G 15 Jen Overdiek 5-10 Fr 2.0 5.0
Player Updates
#40 Ashleigh Chamberlain is academically eligible to play in January.
#32 Kristen Kozlowski is transfer eligible in mid December. She transferred from Boise State.
Cougar Review
BYU returns three starters from last season's 24-9, 10-4 team who made history by winning their first-ever NCAA Tournament game, going on to the "Sweet Sixteen" in the Midwest Regional.
All-American and MWC MVP Erin Thorn leads the Cougar offense with an average of 17.3 points and 4.0 rebounds a game. Senior teammate Jennifer Leitner is the second leading scorer on the team as well as the leading rebounder. Leitner averaged 11.9 points and 8.7 boards a game. Sophomore forward Danielle Cheesman who got a starting position midway through last season also returns to the team. She averaged 8.6 points and 4.4 rebounds per game.
This season's roster will see the return of MWC's 1999-2000 Newcomer of the Year Julie Whetten Sullivan who redshirted last year. Joining her at the guard position will be Maria Chiara from Hamilton, New Zealand who played two season at Casper Junior College before serving an 18-month LDS mission to Florida.
Senior guard Amy Lewis will finish her college career joined by her twin sister Angie Gatten who redshirted last year. The sister duo walked on the Cougar roster last year. Lewis, who played in 18 games, gained valuable experience and is very familiar with the Cougar offense.
Senior transfer Lisa Hansen who came off the bench in every game is also back for one more season with the Cougars. Her averages included 2.5 points and 2.3 rebounds.
On this season's roster there's three more letterwinners that return with a lot of playing experience. Hansen, and senior Brittany Larson along with Kali Taylor a sophomore guard from Lyman, Utah who averaged over five minutes of playing time in 28 games her freshman season will be critical to the success of the Cougar team.
Utah high school standouts Jen Overdiek, Nancy Seljaas and Ambrosia Anderson will also be part of the roster this year. The two high school graduates will be joined by Kanab, Utah native Ashleigh Chamberlain who joins the team after two seasons at Utah Valley State College. Also from UVSC is junior guard Kestlee Nelson. Kristen Crockett Kozlowski joins the Cougar program via Boise State where she played for one year.
Final 2001-02 Cougar Stats
u Shooting from the field: (.448, 855-1910)
u Shooting from the free-throw line: (.752, 425-565)
u Shooting from three-point line: (.401, 264-658)
u Average points per game: 72.7
A look at this week's opponents
Boise State
The Broncos return three starters and seven letterwinners from last year's 10-20 team. Boise State opened the season hosting Washington last Friday night. The Broncos dropped the game 55-73. This week they begin a gruelling road schedule in which they play five games in a two-week span. That road trip started Monday, Nov. 25 battling Weber State, a game they won by one point, 61-60. The Boise State team is being coached by first-year coach Jen Wardon.
Boise State Probable Starters
Pos. # Name Ht. Yr. PPG RPG
F 22 Camille Woodfield 5-11 Jr 6.6 4.6
F 44 Symone Grant 6-0 So 3.3 2.2
C 42 Heather Little 6-2 So 5.6 3.3
G 03 Lynnette Grondin 5-7 Fr HS HS
G 11 Abby Vaughan 5-6 Sr 7.7 1.6
Last meeting
In last year's contest played at The Pavilion in Boise, it was the Cougars getting the 85-72 victory.
Series record
Record: 10-7 overall. At the Marriott Center, the Cougars are 5-3.
Weber State
This season the Wildcats return four starters and eight letterwinners from last year's 22-9 squad that went to the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Head Coach Carla Taylor is in her 15th season at the helm of the Weber State program who won their first ever Big Sky Championship last year. Senior center Crystal Howe is the team's leading returning starter along with 5-10 sophomore guard Julie Gjertsen, Karsen Muller the 5-6 senior point guard and junior forward Angela Sampson. The Wilcats have a 1-1 record to date with a win over the University of Idaho and a one-point disappointing loss to Boise State on No. 25.
Weber State Probable Starters
Pos. # Name Ht. Yr. PPG RPG
F 20 Ali Johnston 5-7 Sr 4.6 1.8
F 34 Angela Sampson 6-0 Jr 2.5 5.0
C 42 Crystal Howe 6-4 Sr 15.2 7.8
G 14 Karsen Muller 5-6 Sr 7.5 0.5
G 12 Julie Gjertsen 5-10 So 18.0 10.5
Last meeting
The Cougars traveled to Ogden for the early December contest in which the visiting BYU team picked up the 70-49 victory.
Series record
Record: 31-8 overall. At the Marriott Center, the Cougars are 14-1 against the Wildcats.
Texas Game Recap
The Cougar women opened their 2002-03 season playing great basketball and upsetting the 11th ranked Texas Longhorns 79-63. BYU's senior All-American Erin Thorn led all scores with 19 points and six rebounds. Three other teammates also scored in double digits with senior forward Jennifer Leitner picking up 18, followed by sophomore forward Danielle Cheesman's 13 and Lisa Hansen's 11. It was a very physical contest between the two Sweet Sixteen team's from last season.
After the first 20 minutes of play the homestanding Cougars took a slim 34-32 lead. But in the second half it was all BYU who quickly extended their lead by as much as 22 points with eight mnutes left in the contest. Texas had a poor shooting performance in the second half of action and finished the game shooting 28 percent from the field and 53 percent from the free-throw line. BYU also outrebounded the Longhorns 47 to 41.
In the Polls
After the decisive upset victory over the 11th ranked Texas Longhorns, the Cougars reached the top 25 in this week's AP Top 25. This week the BYU team is ranked 22nd.
Thorn watch
Erin Thorn - 5-10 Senior Guard, Orem, Utah/Mountain View HS
u Senior Erin Thorn was picked as a 2002-03 Pre-Season College All-America Second Team honoree.
u Thorn was also named to the "Players to Watch" list for the 2003 Senior CLASS Award.
Thorn picks up first conference player of the week honor
Senior guard Erin Thorn had a stellar performance in the first game of the season against Texas. She led all scores with 19 points and six rebounds. In the game she also tallied six assists and two steals and played 36 minutes. This is Thorn's third overall MWC Weekly honor.
Media Picks Cougars MWC Champs
During this year's MWC Basketball Media Day, the media picked BYU to win this year's regular season title capturing eight of the 15 first-place votes.
Senior guard and All-American Erin Thorn earned Top Returning Player honors. She was joined on the squad by five additional seniors, including teammate Jennifer Leitner. Colorado State's Ashley Augspurger, New Mexico's Jordan Adams, UNLV's Constance Jinks and Wyoming's Carrie Bacon.
2002-03 Mountain West Conference Preseason Media Poll
Rk. Team (1st-place votes) Pts
1. BYU (8) 110
2. Colorado State (7) 103
3. New Mexico (1) 91
4. Utah 70
5. UNLV 69
6. Wyoming 49
7. San Diego State 31
8. Air Force 17
2002-03 MWC Women's Basketball Preseason All-Conference Team
Jennifer Leitner, Sr., F BYU
Erin Thorn, Sr., G BYU
Ashley Augspurger, Sr., F Colorado State
Jordan Adams, Sr., C New Mexico
Constance Jinks, Sr., G UNLV
Carrie Bacon, Sr., F Wyoming
2002-03 MWC Women's Basketball Preseason Top Returning Player
Erin Thorn, Sr., G BYU
The Judkins file
Jeff Judkins, begins his second season at the helm of the Cougar women's program. Judkins, a longtime University of Utah coach and player has a proven record of success dating back to his high school days at Highland HS in Salt Lake City.
An all-state selection in basketball, football and baseball, Judkins went on to play for Utah from 1974-78. While playing for the Utes, he helped the team win one conference championship and two berths in the NCAA Tournament. He was a second-team academic All-American and three-time first-team District VII academic selection. Judkins earned three first-team All-WAC honors and was a member of the 1977 United States World Games team that captured the gold medal.
He played five years in the NBA for the Boston Celtics, Portland Trailblazers, Detroit Pistons and the Utah Jazz. He was a second-round pick by the Celtics in 1978, the same year the Celtics selected Larry Bird with the sixth pick overall.
After his NBA career, he returned to the U of U in 1989, and remained with the men's program for 10 years. Judkins, a Salt Lake City native, graduated from Utah in 1978 with a degree in health and physical education. He is a member of the Utah Sports Hall of Fame and the Crimson Club Hall of Fame.
He and his wife Mary Kay, are the parents of five children: Jessica (21), Jordan (20), Jenna (17), Jaime (14), Jaxson (11).
Returning player bios
51 Danielle Chessman ---- (6-2 Sophomore Forward, Orem, UT/Mountain View HS)
2001-2002: Played in all 33 games, starting in the last 19 of the season...averaged 8.6 points and 4.4 rebounds....was team's second leading rebounder...named to the MWC Academic All-Conference Team with a GPA of 3.00 in an undeclared major...picked up a season high 16 points and 12 rebounds vs New Mexico on 2/16/02.
45 Lisa Hansen ---- (6-5 Senior Center, Bakersfield, CA/Centennial HS/UCSB)
2001-2002: Played in all 33 games for the season...averaging 2.5 points and 2.3 rebounds a game...named to the MWC Academic All-Conference Team with a GPA of 3.31 in History...tallied a season high 10 points and six rebounds at Weber State on 12/01/01.
2000-01: Redshirt.
20 Brittany Larson ---- (6-0 Senior Forward, Chicago, IL/New Trier HS)
2001-2002: Played in 27 games with an average of 1.6 points and 0.9 rebounds per game...also had an average of 6.5 minutes of playing time per game...tallied a season high eight points vs. Washington State on 11/24/01 and a year high four rebounds per game.
2000-2001: Played in 17 games...averaged 1.6 points a game and 1.1 rebounds a game.
1999-2000: Played in 10 games during her first season with BYU...averaged 4.5 minutes of playing time...tallied five points and two assists.
21 Jennifer Leitner ---- (6-1 Senior Forward, Chico, CA/Pleasant Valley HS)
2001-02: Played in 30 games, starting in 29 compiling a total of 357 points for an average of 11.9 per game...second leading scorer and leading rebounder on the team averaging 8.7 boards a game...named to the 2002 MWC All --Tournament Team...and to the MWC All-Conference Second Team...also honored as an MWC Academic All-Conference with a GPA of 3.12 in physical education... named Cougar Club Scholar Athlete.... was named MWC Player of the Week on Feb. 25 after her stellar performance against the University of Utah that included her eighth double-double of the year with a team high 18 points and 12 rebounds...tallied a total of 11 double-doubles for the season ...had a season high 18 points vs UNLV on 2/28/02 and a season high 17 rebounds vs Florida in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on 3/16/02.
2000-2001: Played in 20 games with an average of 6.5 ppg and 5.4 rpg....finished the season as the team's second leading rebounder...had season and career high 21 points against Hawai'i in the second round of the WNIT on 3/19/01...in that game she picked up a double-double with 10 rebounds...also had a career and season high four assists in the game against Utah at the MWC Championships on 3/9/01.
1999-2000: Played in all 31 games, starting in one....averaged 7.5 ppg and 5.6 rpg...finished the year as the second leading rebounder with a total of 174, 113 of them defensive boards.
1998-99: Redshirt.
05 Amy Lewis ---- (5-6 Senior Guard, Jefferson City, MT/Jefferson City Hs/No. Idaho College)
2001-02: Played in eighteen games averaging 3.4 minutes of playing time...tallied 14 points, four assists and nine rebounds per game.
25 Kali Taylor ---- (5-11 Sophomore Guard, Lyman, UT/Wayne HS)
2001-2002: Played in 28 of 33 games averaging 5.6 minutes of playing time per game...tallied 1.2 points and 0.4 rebounds...had a season high 11 points vs. Washington State on 11/24/01 and six assists vs Arkansas Pine-Bluff at the Denver Pioneer Classic on 12/14/01.
11 Erin Thorn ---- (5-10 Senior Guard, Orem, UT/Mountain View HS)
2001-02: Started in all 33 games...averaging 17.3 points and 4.0 rebounds a game....was team's leading scorer for the third consecutive year...picked up the MWC MVP trophy for her performance at the 2002 MWC Championships in Las Vegas where she tallied eight treys in a game vs Wyoming on 3/6/02 and 13 3-pt field goal attempts in that same game...also tallied a total of 60 points for the 2002 tournament in three games...named to the MWC All-Tournament Team and the MWC All-Conference First Team....garnered MWC Player of the Week for the Dec. 17, 2001 week after her strong performance in the University of Denver Pioneer Classic...at that tournament she picked up a season and career record high nine-three pointers in the game against Arkansas Pine-Bluff, the nine treys set a new BYU record for treys in a game for both the men's and women's team....had a season high 29 points against Arkansas Pine-Bluff on 12/14/01...eight rebounds at Boise State on 11/16/01 and season high nine assists vs Colorado State on 1/10/02.
2000-2001: Started in all games...finished the season as the team's leading scorer with an average of 15.5 points and 4.5 rebounds a game...had career and season high 36 points and eight three-pointers against Arizona on 11/18/00...those eight three-pointers tie her with Kari Gallup for record three-pointers in a game...named to the MWC All Conference First Team and to the MWC All-Tournament Team.
1999-2000: Started in all 31 games...averaged 13.2 ppg and 3.5 rpg...finishing the year as the team's leading scorer...led the team in assists with a total of 114 and an average of 3.7 per game...also led the team in steals with 61 her first season with BYU...scored in double digits in 24 games...was the MWC Player of the Week on December 6 after picking up a career and season high 25 points against Idaho State on December 1, netting 7-of-9 three-pointers which also put her in second place on the BYU chart for treys in a game....named to the Women's Basketball News Service National All-Freshman All-America team...also named Second Team All MWC and Freshman of the Year...named to the MWC All Tournament Team.
REturning redshirt player BIOS
03 Maria Chiara ---- (5-8 Junior Guard, Hamilton, New Zealand/Casper Junior College)
2001-2002: Redshirt
40 Ashleigh Chamberlain ---- (6-4 Junior Center, Kanab, UT/Kanab HS/UVSC)
2001-2002: Redshirt
12 Angy Gatten ---- (5-6 Senior Junior, Jefferson City, MT/Jefferson City
HS/No. Idaho College)
2001-02: Redshirt
32 Kristin Kozlowski ---- (5-10 Sophomore Forward, Centerville, UT/Centerville HS/Boise State)
2001-2002: Redshirt
14 Julie Sullivan ---- (5-8 Sophomore Guard, Silver City, NM/Silver City HS)
2001-2002: Redshirt
2000-2001: Played in all games...contributing 5.2 points and 1.8 rebounds a game...had season and career high 15 points against Wyoming on 2/17/01...had a season and career high eight assists against Air Force on 3/3/01 named MWC Newcomer of the Year.
12 Angy Gatten ---- (5-6 Senior Junior, Jefferson City, MT/Jefferson City
HS/No. Idaho College)
2001-02: Redshirt
newcomer player bios
33 Ambrosia Anderson ---- (6-2 Freshman Forward, Colorado Springs, CO/Doherty HS)
Before BYU: Two-time All-State, All-Area, All-Star in basketball...named Top 70 Blue Chip Player...named in the Top 25 Street & Smith Basketball team.
04 Kestlee Nelson ---- (5-8 Junior Guard, Sandy, Utah
Alta HS/UVSC)
At UVSC: Female Athlete of the Year in 2002...Team MVP in 2002...First Team All-Region...All-America Honorable Mention...averaged 12.8 points, 4.8 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 2.8 steals per game...athletic honor roll.
Before BYU: Team MVP in 2000...three-time All-Region honoree...Academic All-Region....All-State in 2000.
15 Jen Overdiek ---- (5-10 Freshman Guard, Syracuse, Utah
Clearfield HS/UVSC)
Before BYU: Academic All-State... graduated top three percent of class with honors...three-time basketball team MVP...led team in rebounds for four straight years...was team scoring leader three season...four-year letterwinner in women's basketball...named Region I MVP twice...made the All-State First Team three times and Second Team All State once.... named Utah Gatorade Player of the Year in 2002...was also an All-State performer in soccer...lettered two years in soccer and one in volleyball.
01 Nancy Seljaas ---- (6-0 Freshman Guard/Forward, Bountiful, Utah/Bountiful HS)
Before BYU: Three-time honor roll student...three-time basketball MVP...team captain twice...UWBCA 2002 4A Region Five Player of the Year ...Clipper Newspaper District MVP in 2002...two-time Clipper First Team All-District honoree...two-time UWBCA 4A Region Five First Team...Deseret News Ms. Basketball of Utah in 2002...Salt Lake Tribune 4A MVP in 2002...two-time Deseret News First Team All-State...two-time Salt Lake Tribune First Team All-State...in her senior year averaged 23.3 points a game...six rebounds per game...2.2 steals and 3.6 assists per game... also lettered in volleyball.
2002-03 byu team captains
There are four players that were selected by their teammates to be this season's captains. They are seniors Erin Thorn, Lisa Hansen and Jennifer Leitner and sophomore Danielle Cheesman.
Cougars practice schedule/media requests
BYU's women's basketball team holds its practices at the Marriott Center M, W, and F from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. On Tues. and Thurs., the team practices from 7-9 a.m. Head coach Jeff Judkins is available for media interviews prior to or after practices. Players are also available at that same time. All interview request must be scheduled in advance through the women's basketball SID Norma Collett. Please contact her at 801-422-4908 or via e-mail at norma_collett@byu.edu She can also be reached on her mobile phone 801-372-0989.
Up Next for byu
After this week's home stance, the Cougar women will spend the next three weeks on the road. Their road adventures begin on Dec. 3 at Southern Utah. Then it's off to the west coast for a game against the University of San Francisco on Dec. 5 and in Portland to battle Oregon on Dec. 7. The following week the team travels east to the capital city for a first ever meeting against George Washington University and then on to Raleigh, North Carolina for another first time meeting with North Carolina State.
2002-03 WOMEN'S BASKETBALL - NUMERICAL ROSTER
No. Name Pos. Ht. Cl. Exp. Hometown/School
01 Nancy Seljaas G/F 6-0 Fr. HS Bountiful, UT/Bountiful HS
03 Maria Chiara G 5-8 Jr 2V Hamilton, New Zealand Casper JC
04 Kestlee Nelson G 5-8 Jr 2V Sandy, UT/Alta HS/UVSC
05 Amy Lewis G 5-6 Sr 3V Jefferson City, MT/No. Idaho College
10 Marianne Miller* G 5-6 Jr HS Middleton, ID/Middleton HS
11 Erin Thorn G 5-10 Sr 3V Orem, UT/Mountain View HS
12 Angie Gatten G 5-6 Jr 2V Jefferson City, MT/No.Idaho College
13 Laura Stratton* G 5-6 So HS Missoula, MT/Sentinel HS/BYU Idaho 14 Julie Sullivan G 5-8 So 1V Silver City, NM/Silver City HS
15 Jen Overdiek G 5-10 Fr HS Syracuse, UT/Clearfield HS
20 Brittany Larson F 6-0 Sr 3V Chicago, IL/New Trier HS
21 Jennifer Leitner F 6-1 Sr 3V Chico, CA/Pleasant Valley HS
25 Kali Taylor G 5-11 So 1V Lyman, UT/Wayne HS
30 Melissa Brown * G 5-8 So HS University Place, WA/Curtis HS
32 Kristen Kozlowski F 5-10 So 1V Centerville, UT/Boise State
33 Ambrosia Anderson F 6-2 Fr HS Colorado Springs, CO/Doherty HS
40 Ashleigh Chamberlain C 6-4 Jr 2V Kanab, UT/UVSC
42 Angie Wallace# F 6-0 Fr HS Cleburne, TX/Cleburne HS
45 Lisa Hansen C 6-5 Sr 3V Bakersfield, CA /Centennial/UCSB
51 Danielle Cheesman F 6-2 So 1V Orem, UT/Mountain View HS
* 2002-03 WalkOn
# 2002-03 Redshirt
HEAD COACH: Jeff Judkins (2nd Year)
ASSISTANT COACHES: Alli Bills, Jonas Chatterton
ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT: Stacy Jensen
ATHLETIC TRAINER: Carolyn Billings
NICKNAME: Cougars
COLORS: Blue, White and Tan
