Nov. 8 -- It seems like last season just ended, but here we are five days away from opening the 2009-10 year!
I can tell you, without a doubt, all of our players and coaches are looking forward to Friday afternoon at 3 p.m. when we open up the 2009-10 campaign with a match-up against Moorpark College in the first round of the Santa Barbara Tournament. We haven't played Moorpark since late February of 2005 when we lost a close, overtime game in the first round of the playoffs. Moorpark is a member of a Western State North Conference that has been totally dominated by Ventura College. Ventura has rarely been challenged in conference play, winning the conference title (I believe) 19 consecutive years.
I don't know much about Moorpark other than they return a 6-foot-3 center who averaged around 14 points/game and a shooting guard who shot an extremely high percentage from 3-point range.
I'm not sure it really matters. First games usually are difficult to play for all teams and the ones that can overcome the first-game jitters, relax and play the game the way they practice usually have a great chance of being successful - providing the talent level of both teams is similar.
This year will be a little different around here. For the first time since I can remember, our team is not among the favorites to challenge for the Orange Empire Conference title. We are also lightly regarded in the state rankings which is usually the opposite of that. If work ethic and character means anything -- and I think it does -- we have a great chance to be one of the surprise teams of the 2009-10 season.
Our coaches and players are dedicated to making this season as successful as our abilities allow us to be and I don't only mean as far as wins and losses are concerned. I really believe that all the players and coaches involved with this team are genuinely excited about working together every day!
We only have five players that have played a college basketball game, but we have more depth at every position on the floor. We could have as much as a 12- or 13-player rotation at least at the beginning of the year. Our freshmen class is deep, smart and enthusiastic. They have a great future. Our sophomores have been great leaders in practice on and off the floor.
We had a great Tip-Off Banquet a week ago that I was very proud of being a part of. I can promise all of the fans and relatives of our team and players that our expectations for ourselves are much higher than public expectations. We fully expect the winning tradition of OCC women's basketball to continue!
Please come out and support us throughout the year. I can promise you that you will see a team that plays hard and gives a maximum effort each and every time they take the floor. “40 or More The Hard Way” is our theme for the year and that's the way we plan on playing the game! Talk to you next week! --MT