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Continued success

MARQUETTE – The Northern Michigan University women’s basketball team had an amazing 2013-14 season.

The Wildcats finished second in the GLIAC North Division with a record of 22-8 and went on to win the GLIAC Tournament, which resulted in an NCAA tournament bid.

“We got off to a great start,” Wildcats head coach Troy Mattson said. “We had a lot of returning players and we expected good things to happen.

“About six games in, one of our best players came down with a serious knee injury, but we continued to survive and play well. We hit a bit of a lull in the middle of season, but we ended on a great roll, where we won 10 in a row before we got into the national tournament.

“We were excited about what happened for our program and, hopefully, that carries over into this season.”

This year has the potential to be just as successful. NMU returns a pair of All-GLIAC players in guards Alyssa Colla and Lauren Gruber, who not surprisingly have been named to the preseason All-GLIAC First and Second teams, respectively. The Wildcats were also picked to win the GLIAC North Division by a wide margin in the preseason poll by GLIAC coaches.

“I expect a lot out of my returning players,” Mattson said. “They’ve showed a lot of leadership. When you have two of the best guards in the league, that really helps.

“Abbey DeBruin is also one of the best players in the conference. She doesn’t get the notoriety of the other two, but when she is healthy, she is a really good player.

“We have a lot of depth with a lot of people coming back. We also added Kendall Martenet out of New Hampshire, so we’ve got a good group.”

Colla and Gruber are the two players that stand out, though. There’s a sentiment that good guards are what win games, and Mattson agrees with that.

“They are two incredible people,” he said. “Both are first-team all-defensive players as well. They have a great way of approaching their business every day both on and off the court. I feel lucky to be able to coach them.”

Not only will the Wildcats have a talented backcourt and a lot of depth, they will also have some height to help work the boards.

“We are as tall as any other team in the country,” Mattson said. “We may not have the 6-(foot)-4 or 6-5 person, but we have a lot of size and strength. We have some toughness on the front line and I expect us to be a very good rebounding team and also a good defensive team around the basket.”

Mattson will also have some talented freshmen on his squad this season.

“I’ve got three who I think will be really good players here,” he said. “Chloe Tompkins has really shown us a lot, and Darby Youngstrom played well in our exhibition game. Also, Tess Weatherly is a really good athlete.

“They all have potential, but they might not see a lot of minutes this season.”

As far as the GLIAC goes, Mattson expects it to be tough as always.

“From top to bottom, it’s probably the best conference in the country,” he said. “The teams that are picked to be at the bottom definitely have a chance to beat the teams at the top.

“I actually think it’s better than some of the (NCAA) Division I conferences, to tell you the truth.”

The Wildcats opened their season with a 67-47 exhibition loss to Division I Butler University on Nov. 2, but they play their first regular-season games this weekend at the Moorhead State University Tournament in Moorhead, Minnesota. NMU faces Minnesota-Crookston Friday at 9 p.m. EST Friday, then play host Minnesota State-Moorhead at 6 p.m. EST Saturday.

Ryan Stieg can be reached at 906-228-2500, ext. 246. His email address is rstieg@miningjournal.net.

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