Oct. 31, 2005
quotes courtesy of the Big Ten
Head coach Beth Combs:
On outlook for upcoming season:
"We are excited about this year. We have a lot of new faces. Northwestern definitely has a new look this year. I think people are going to see things from this program that they may have not seen in recent years. We have a total of eight underclassmen, but we are looking to rebuild and bring some respect to the program. I think that we have the team to be able to do that."
On players taking on leadership roles:
"Ifeoma Okonkwo is our only senior. I think that she has made a very serious commitment to her game over the summer and she stepped up in practice over the last couple months. I think she realizes that this is it for her and she hasn't been able to experience success on the court in the previous three years. She is ready to step in and shoulder some responsibility. A.J. Glasauer is our only junior and did not get a lot of playing time last year. A.J. and Ifeoma are outstanding when they work together. We are excited because all of these girls spent time together this summer. They were getting stronger, getting better, and getting to know each other. Our incoming freshmen spent time in summer school so they were able to step in and gel with the team. We are going to play a lot of underclassmen but they will step up and really get some things done. We are excited about that. We are looking to rebuild, bring respect to the program and protect home court."