Parkland College Women’s Basketball Team
Jordan Hannah
Staff Writer
The Parkland Women’s Basketball Team has recently seen a great amount of success. According to Assistant Coach Bill Dobrik, the team sought to draw out its inner potential and go for big this season.
“It was my hope that we would have the opportunity to take the next step as a program and have an even better season than we did last year. I believed that we had the talent to do so but wanted to be sure that we lived up to our potential,” Dobrik said.
Dobrik explained that this moment of success is not the only goal for this season. The team leads the NJCAA polls, has 28 wins, and only 1 loss, but Dobrik still believes the team can do better.
“Honestly, the ranking and the winning streak is nice but at this point in the season, it means next to nothing,” Dobrik stated.
With the Regional Championship and Nationals looming in the near future, the team cannot afford to take a break now. Dobrik explained that being a part of the Regional Championship is very important to the organization.
“We have to be focused on playing our best basketball to end the season in order to give ourselves a chance to win the Region Championship and make it back out to the National Tournament,”
Sophomore Center Hannah Wascher scores two points for Parkland on Feb. 25, 2015. The Cobras defeated the Loggers 84-32.
Dobrik explained.
Two of the team members also had their own input about their recent record. Both of which agreed with their coach, seeing their own potential for this season. Point Guard Laura Litchfield is a transfer student from Southwestern Illinois College. She explained how ready she felt for this season.
“I am more aggressive defensively and I’m guarding the ball and pressuring more,” Litchfield stated. “When we pressure and dictate what our opponents do, it helps our transition game and helps everyone get involved. I think that’s really important when we all get involved. We seem to naturally flow.”
Guard/Small Forward Nadine Vaughn is a sophomore and has seen firsthand what it takes to win. Vaughn also agreed with her coach, along with her teammate, that the team has potential for
something greater than simply being NCJAA poll winners.
“I would have to say that making it to Nationals last year and finishing 5th in the nation was an eye opener to us sophomores,” Vaughn stated. “We knew we were capable of being better than 5th and I feel that we have carried that energy over to our practices and getting our other teammates on board.”
Both players elaborated on how they are preparing for this great achievement in order to capitalize on the hard work they have put in this season. According to the players, Coach Lindemann trains using techniques similar to real game situations.
“Every day at practice we are seeking to get better, and compete against one another in game situational drills,” Vaughn explained.
Litchfield explained how their practices help the team prepare for future games and how she individually trains to become better at the game.
“I wasn’t here last year but I can say that this year, Coach Lindemann has done a great job making our practices very competitive and game-like. Individually, we are all very competitive and hate losing so, when we practice with a no lose mentality, it transfers over to our games,” Litchfield stated.
This all translates into the heavily trained team that is currently NCJAA record holders. Above all, the team simply wishes to thank the students of Parkland College.
“To all Parkland students and staff members, thank you for the support this season as it coming to the end,” Vaughn said.
Students wanting to attend a game can find more information about the team and their upcoming schedule at http://www.parkland.edu/athletics.
