UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - During an impressive 92-57 win over Lock Haven the last week of October, the Lady Lions had multiple players make an early statement as what might be to come during the upcoming season. One of the glaring takeaways from the exhibition was the impact the sophomore class was able to have in the game.
The combination of Alisia Smith, Kamaria McDaniel and Sam Breen combined for 42 of Penn State's 92 points. It's clear that an extra offseason of work and a full college season under their belt were both able to help the Lady Lions' young talent improve, but it may have been even more helpful than we know.
Smith, who led the Lady Lions in both points and rebounds in the exhibition, with 17 and 12 respectively, thinks an extra summer has helped her game.
"I think it's really improved a lot, especially my rebounding and defense." Smith said. "Another thing I would say I improved is my confidence. It helps me be better in games."
Fellow sophomore Sam Breen, who knocked in nine points against Lock Haven, echoed the same improvement. "I think my confidence is a lot higher. Last year I didn't have the confidence I needed to be more successful. The confidence is definitely helping me and it's still going up from here."
With that said, head coach Coquese Washington, doesn't necessarily place the improvements just on confidence.
"The reason they are more confident is because they improved their game. They improved certain skills, they're in better shape, they've gotten stronger and they're shooting the ball a little bit better." Washington said. "All of those things have contributed to their confidence, but they've also gotten better from a skill standpoint."
McDaniel, who was just behind Smith in the scoring and rebounding column with 16 and nine in the exhibition, also highlighted the importance of having an extra offseason to improve her production.
"Being able to come into the offseason, having all that time to work on the things I need to get better was very important in my development as a player." McDaniel said. "Seeing what I needed to improve on, and being able to be honest with myself on how I needed to elevate my game is something that happened."
Breen also believes looking back at her freshman season has helped her preparation for the upcoming year.
"Freshman year was definitely a foundation," Breen said. "I didn't know what to expect, I didn't know what I was preparing for. The offseason, summer at home and summer here, I think you can gauge better what you are preparing for. I wasn't coming in blind like I was freshman year. I knew what to practice."
After such a strong showing in their first real competition of the season, Washington thinks this high level of production may be common this year.
"I'm hopeful and optimistic of our sophomore class." she said. "They all put in a lot of work over the summer to get better. They have the ability to have a big impact on the team this year."
On a team with a good balance of senior leadership, emerging stars and promising freshman, this sophomore class has the opportunity to change games when playing at a high level. We'll see if the trio can carry this hot start into the season opener when Penn State takes on Providence on Nov. 8 at 7 p.m. in the Bryce Jordan Center.
