CALGARY – They shocked the nation – and themselves – with their first-place finish and 19-3 record last season. So don't expect the University of Calgary Dinos to sneak up on anyone in Canada West women's basketball this time around.
Reigning conference coach of the year Damian Jennings readies for his sophomore CIS season, preparing to field a team that is far different from the one that finished fourth in the nation at last year's CIS championship in Regina. By Jennings' count, he has made 16 individual changes with players coming in and departing since the national bronze medal game last March.
"For me, it's fair to look back on last year because that team did overachieve and it's now an impressive part of Dinos history, but I think it's a little unfair to compare this year's team with last year's," said Jennings, who spent the summer as the head coach of the British senior national team. "Even though the formula hasn't changed, we're now driving a different culture with this year's team. Last year's group was a lot more experienced at the CIS level, and we were able to impact culture very quickly. This group is doing the same thing, just at a slower pace because they don't have that experience under their belts."
Chosen by the conference's coaches to finish in the middle of the pack – the Dinos were ranked seventh of 16 schools in the Canada West preseason poll – Calgary limps into the regular season with an 0-6 record in non-conference play. Jennings has been forced to juggle his lineup early, with key recruits Emily Morales and Anmol Mattu suffering season-ending injuries in practice just minutes apart earlier this month.
"From the scoreboard, we're 0-6 in exhibition, which is disappointing, and we've had to deal with some injuries already," Jennings said. "It has been a difficult start, but we have focused on how we create the culture we want considering the number of changes we've made.
"I'm a little more long-term with this group, and we need to stay with that growth mindset. We're doing our best to be less perturbed about the results and more about what's been great, what hasn't, and how do we turn that around and build a solid consistency to our play."
The Dinos will rely on veterans Tamara Jarrett and Ashley Hirons to provide scoring, while Kristie Sheils will see plenty of time on the floor at the point guard spot. Jennings' recruiting class was outstanding with some of the top high school players in the province joining the squad, including Edmonton's Hayli Hinchey, Brianna Ghali from Sir Winston Churchill High School in Calgary, and Chestermere's Aimee Wilson. Calgary has also added experience in the form of Jessica Thielen, who played Division-I basketball for Eastern Washington University and is working on a graduate degree.
Calgary opens the season on the road this weekend with visits to Trinity Western and Fraser Valley before beginning the home schedule Nov. 8-9 when the Winnipeg Wesmen visit.
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