Lions Are Hopeful This Is the Start of Something Big : Women’s Team Will Open Season at Home

It worked for the men’s program, and put the school on the basketball map.

So this season, the Loyola Marymount women’s team is running the fast break.

With the three highest scorers in school history returning and the most depth he has had, sixth-year Coach Todd Corman is hoping to improve on last season’s 14-14 record by dictating the tempo of games and wearing down opponents.

“I think the outlook is pretty bright,” Corman said. “Teams will have to play us for 40 minutes, unlike the past. Before, we’d hit dead spots and teams could play hard for 25 minutes and beat us. Now we’re trying to set the pace and make people run with us. The team is actually excited to be playing this style. They’re having fun at practice. I’m having more fun. This team wants to succeed more than ever.”

The Lions unveil their new look at 7:30 tonight in Gersten Pavilion against what should be an overmatched Master’s College. Then they travel to Arizona State for one of their toughest games.

Four returning starters are led by the senior trio of Kristen Bruich, Lynn Flanagan and Tricia Gibson--the school’s all-time career scorers in that order. Bruich, the point guard, and Flanagan, the designated shooter, form one of the West Coast Conference’s top backcourts, while Gibson, a 6-foot-3 center with a nice shooting touch, has annually ranked among league leaders in blocked shots. Bruich, who holds 17 school records, is 13 points shy of becoming the first Loyola woman to score 1,000 points.

Junior small forward Jamie Jesko, prized by Corman for her hustling style, is the other returning starter. Junior Joelle Longobardi, a strong rebounder and one of the team’s best outside shooters, rounds out the starters.

Corman said the three seniors are among those benefiting from the faster game.

Bruich, a two-time all-conference selection who ranked among WCC leaders in assists and steals, had arthroscopic knee surgery just before the start of fall practice but is rounding into shape. The feisty senior is the one who will make the Lions’ break go. “She’s really improved the last two weeks,” Corman said. “I think she’ll have a great season. Flanagan has dropped about 10 pounds and is really getting down the floor. She plays that two-guard like (Jeff) Fryer. If she has the ball she’s allowed to shoot. We have to have a consistent season from her.”

In Corman’s rotation, sophomore Joell Coltrane will back up Gibson at center and also see time at forward; freshman Chris Fortney is Bruich’s understudy at the point; freshman Lisa Humphreys is the first small forward off the bench, and junior Katie Brazelton will shift between shooting guard and small forward.

The weekend after their game at Arizona State, the Lions encounter nationally ranked Vanderbilt in the Utah Classic in Salt Lake City.

“Vanderbilt will be the best team we’ve ever faced,” Corman said. “We should learn a lot from playing Vanderbilt and Arizona State. If we stay healthy we should be right there in the conference. This should be the best team we have had here.”