Women’s basketball poised to dominate ivies

The Harvard women’s basketball team has problems—twelve, in fact.

No, it is not fraught with a dozen injuries. Strangely enough, the squad just might have the enviable dilemma of too many good players. At least that is the predicament facing Crimson coach Kathy Delaney-Smith.

“My challenge is going to be choosing a starting team and making sure everyone gets playing time,” Delaney-Smith said. “Everyone’s contributing. There isn’t a player I wouldn’t want in a game.”

Harvard (22-6, 13-1 Ivy in 2001-02) is coming off an Ivy League championship and an NCAA Tournament appearance. But more importantly, the team returns two of the top scorers in the league, junior Hana Pejlto and sophomore Reka Cserny.

The Crimson’s high hopes rest on the tall shoulders of these two All-Ivy selections. In her sophomore season, Pejlto was unanimously voted Ivy League Player of the Year, after leading the team in scoring (20.1 points per game) and rebounding (9.5 rebounds per game). She was also one of five players chosen to the Verizon Academic All-District team.

Peljto’s scoring average is third-highest in school history, behind only the WNBA’s Allison Feaster ’98 (28.5 ppg in 1997-98, 21.6 ppg in 1996-97). Although Pejlto has hardwood accolades aplenty, an offseason spent filling the holes in her game has already created marked improvement for the star forward.

“Hana could become a better passer,” Delaney-Smith said. “She’s creating [offense]—because she gets double- and triple-teams all the time—for teammates who are good shooters.”

Delaney-Smith sees Peljto as a cut above her Ivy-League counterparts.

“Her body’s just bigger, stronger, and better,” she said.

Cserny, Peljto’s partner-in-crime, will also carry much of the scoring burden. Last year, the Hungarian-born Cserny garnered First Team Ivy honors and the Ivy League Rookie of the Year award. Cserny didn’t have lingering trouble adjusting to collegiate basketball as she led the Ivies in field goal percentage (51.2 percent) and free-throw percentage (85.4 percent).

Sidelined by an ankle injury for two games last season, the ailment has reared its ugly head again in the preseason this year. However, Cserny started practicing last week and is not expected to miss any games, which is good news for Delaney-Smith, who describes Cserny’s game as “magnificent.”

“You can’t describe what Reka does—no one teachers her any of those things,” Delaney-Smith said.

But Peljto and Cserny will need help if the Crimson is to realize its lofty goals of an Ivy crown and NCAA glory. And that’s where the other 10 tremendously talented “problems” come in.

Half of the supporting cast is composed of freshmen. But these players aren’t the kind to be content with warming the bench or waiting until next year to make their marks on the court.

“This is one of the great freshman classes,” Delaney-Smith said. “Coming in here and learning so quickly and fitting in so quickly—it has amazed the entire coaching staff.”

“They are a versatile group of speed and talent who can just play the game,” Peljto said.

One of these fantastic freshmen is Chicago native Shana Franklin, a 2001 Nike All-American, can knock down the triple and has tremendous court presence.

“Shana Franklin is just money,” Delaney-Smith said about the 6’1 guard.

Harvard will also be aided by the “Twin Towers,” as Delaney-Smith refers to Maureen McCaffery and Kathryn Mannering, who was a Street & Smith All-American honorable mention.

The pair of six-footers will give the Crimson a formidable second line in the frontcourt.

“They’re going to have awesome careers here,” Delaney-Smith said.

The rookies alleviate the gap left by senior forward Sarah Johnson, who quit the team this preseason. Johnson, one of Harvard’s leading scorers off the bench, cited several reasons for leaving, including knee problems and a heart condition.

“Most importantly, it was not making me happy anymore, as it once did,” Johnson said. “My passion for the game had paled, and that is not fair to my teammates. They work so hard and deserve so much more.”

The freshmen class’ impact doesn’t end with the frontcourt. Harvard’s backcourt will be strengthened by the addition of freshman Jessica Hosley. Hosley received Street & Smith All-American and McDonald All-American honorable mention accolades and was ranked the No. 18 point guard for the class of 2002 by the All-Star Girl’s Report. Hosley’s quickness and ability to penetrate adds versatility to the Crimson backcourt, which also features junior transfer student Bev Moore, freshman Laura Robertson, and sophomore Dirkje Dunham.

Harvard’s many point guard possibilities help fill the void left by Jenn Monti ’02, a two-time Second Team all-Ivy selection that engineered the Ivies’ most powerful offense last year.

Dunham brings lightning speed and intimidating on-the-ball defense. Primarily a utility player and shooting guard last year, Dunham looks to step up into the role of point guard.

“This year, I am focusing primarily on being a point guard so my offensive role will be to communicate our plays and set the tempo,” Dunham said.

Sharp-shooter Moore will most likely join Dunham in the Crimson’s starting lineup after sitting out last season due to the NCAA transfer rule. Moore played for two seasons at Louisiana Tech, where she played in 24 games.

“She’s just like no guard I’ve ever had,” Delaney-Smith said. “She can single-handedly crush a defense.”

Junior forward Tricia Tubridy had difficulty adjusting to the new flex offense, but still managed to set a Wildcat Classic record with a career-high 19 rebounds against Idaho State. Throughout the season, Tubridy proved to be a threat on offense and a presence on the boards.

“When you give a player like that guidelines and a system, she’s brilliant in it,” Delaney-Smith said. “She knows angles, she knows timing, she knows how to read a defense and create. She didn’t do it last year in the flex, but wait until you see her this year.”

Captain and forward Kate Ides is at the helm of this star-studded Harvard team. Ides played in every game last season, starting in seven, and averaged 10 points per game over the span of three contests, against Yale, Columbia and Cornell.

Ides’s team will need all of its talent, old and new, to step up early on as the Crimson plays its most formidable nonconference schedule in recent memory.

Right off the bat Harvard looks to test its potential by opening with Syracuse. In 2001, Harvard fell to the Orangemen 78-66. The Crimson looks at its tough schedule as not just a challenge, but as an opportunity.

“We have the toughest early season Harvard has ever had with several NCAA tournament teams,“ Dunham said. “Our goal by playing them is to show that we can beat high-caliber teams and that we deserve to be back in the tournament again.”

Harvard looks to November and December match-ups against BC, Minnesota and at Vanderbilt in the First Tennessee Tournament to gauge its NCAA prospects and prepare for its Ivy League season.

After experiencing March Madness last year in the Crimson’s first-round loss to North Carolina whetted the Harvard’s appetite for national success. Heading into the 2002-2003 campaign, the Crimson, armed with a crop of hungry young freshmen and celebrated veterans, looks to surpass last year’s glory.

“Nationally, I’d liked to stay in the top 30—that’s how good I think we are,” Delaney-Smith said.

“I think anything less than an Ivy League title and an NCAA berth for our team would be very disappointing,” Peljto said.