Women’s Basketball MVC Tournament
Jenny Van Kirk '10 is enrolled in Bradley's Individualized Major Program (pre-med) with a 4.0 grade-point average, and she is a starting forward for the women's basketball team. The team co-captain is journaling this week from the Missouri Valley Conference tournament in St. Charles, Missouri, where she'll give a player's perspective on the week's events.
From Jenny Van Kirk ‘10…
Unfortunately the run has come to an abrupt halt. After we took a controlling lead into halftime (40-23), Evansville came storming back in the second half to send the game into overtime. At that point, they had all the momentum, and were unable to hold on to advance to the championship game.
The loss was definitely not the way we wanted to end our season, but all good things come to an end. We are all extremely disappointed, and still a bit in disbelief that this season is over. We do have a thread of hope that an at-large WNIT bid will have our name on it, but at this point it seems unlikely. Although the season did not end the way we anticipated or dreamed, it was a great success overall, and nothing can change that. I can guarantee that my teammates and I are hungry for more, and we will work as hard as possible this off-season to ensure that no one stops us next year.
The worst part about the end of the season is knowing that we will never play with the seniors again: Kelly Krumwiede, Monica Rogers, and Aseer Itiavkase. All three seniors were an instrumental part of our success this season, and we will greatly miss them both on and off the court.
Finally, I would like to thank everyone who supported us this year. President Glasser, a.k.a. “Mighty Mouse,” was our biggest fan, and I cannot express how grateful we are to have her behind us 100%. She has served as a great inspiration to our team, and will continue to do so in the future. Our families and friends have also been amazing, as they traveled long distances to cheer for our team. Additionally, our coaches worked very hard this season, and deserve a great amount of credit for our 21 victories. Life as a Division I Women’s basketball player can be difficult, grueling, and exhausting, but we play for the love of the game and the opportunities the game we love provides us. The experience of the MVC conference tournament is one of the great opportunities we have, and I hope that through this journal, you were able to experience it along with us.
From Jenny Van Kirk ‘10…
The excitement amongst Bradley women’s basketball fans has grown exponentially in the last few hours. We have survived and advanced another day with our 70-49 win over Indiana State this afternoon. Our team fought extremely hard and played with an incredible amount of energy and intensity to pull away in the second half. We are obviously pleased with the victory, but we have more business to do before we leave. Our team is not done yet. The motto for this weekend is “survive and advance.” We are fully aware that the only thing guaranteed to our team is the semifinal game tomorrow, and we are fighting to keep playing another day.
The conference tournament is a very unique and thrilling experience, and we must stay focused to avoid getting wrapped up in the hype. There are some distractions, but overall, our pre-game routines and preparations have remained the same. This morning we left the hotel at 8:30 a.m. for our shootaround at the Family Arena. Normally we have an hour on the court, but today we only had twenty minutes. Although we could have let this become an issue in our preparation, we had a very productive twenty minutes. Following shootaround, we watched film and ate breakfast as a team for pre-game meal. Another special part of the conference tournament is the send-off we receive from the band, cheerleaders, and fans. It is what I call a “goose-bump moment,” because it is great motivation to see the support our team has and we are so appreciative. Following the game, our team and fans gathered at the hotel for cake for Coach Garber’s birthday. She said she has never received a birthday gift this good! We are now relaxing at the hotel before another team dinner tonight. Preparation for tomorrow’s game against Evansville will also begin tonight after dinner, as we continue our business in St. Charles.
There is something special about our team this year. We are like one big family, and we enjoy spending time with each other on and off the court. I think the fans have picked up on this, and they have all jumped on the train to support us on this ride. We’re not sure where it will take us, but we have our goals set. We are dreaming big.
From Jenny Van Kirk ‘10…
The rest of the day was relatively uneventful, but we are all quite tired after our early start this morning. We had a 30-minute practice slot at the Family Arena, the site of tomorrow’s game, which we used to get a lot of shots in and to get up and down the floor. From the intensity and energy shown at practice, I get the feeling that we are ready to play tomorrow. Waiting can be difficult, but the excitement surrounding this event should help us stay energized. After practice, we gathered to watch film on Indiana State, our opponent for tomorrow, in order to ensure that we are fully prepared when we tip-off tomorrow at 2:35 p.m.
Our team went to Pujols 5 for dinner, much to the dismay of the Cubs fans on our team. Despite their preconceived notions about a restaurant named after a Cardinals player, the food was delicious, and it was a great bonding experience, as always. I am sure we are quite the handful for any waiter or waitress who serves our table! Following dinner, we attended the second half of the Evansville vs. Southern Illinois game, with Evansville pulling it out at the end.
It is now nearly 9 p.m., and a group of us are sitting in the hotel lobby in order to access the Internet. We would like to thank President Glasser, Ken Kavanagh, Virnette House-Browning, and all the other administration and staff who have come to St. Charles to support our team. We fully intend to make their trip worthwhile and bring home some victories.
From Jenny Van Kirk ‘10…
Thursday, March 12, 2009. The day we have been waiting for since our first practice in October in finally here. The Missouri Valley Conference tournament commences today in St. Charles, MO, with a banquet at noon and two games this evening. As I mentioned in my previous post, we earned the fourth seed and will play our first game on Friday afternoon.
Our bus left Haussler Hall this morning at 7:30 a.m. For 16 college women, a 7:30 a.m. departure time is a bit on the early side. A normal bus ride for our team consists of watching movies, listening to music, talking to each other, and maybe even doing some homework. However, today’s trip was pretty quiet, as everyone used the three-hour trip to get some additional sleep.
We arrived at our hotel around 10:30 a.m., checked in, and had some time to relax and get organized before starting our day of events. As usual, we were each assigned to a room with one other teammate, which allows us to spend additional time with our teammates on road trips throughout the year. An interesting element of the conference tournament is that all ten teams stay at the same hotel. It is always fun to see the opponents in an environment off the court.
At 11:30 we boarded the bus once again and departed for the awards program and luncheon. The banquet was held at The Columns Banquet and Conference Center in St. Charles. The awards were presented first, followed by a delicious meal. As a result of our success on the court, our team was rewarded with a number of individuals recognized for their accomplishments throughout the year. Monica Rogers ‘09 was named First Team All-MVC, Sonya Harris ‘11 made the Second Team, Skye Johnson ‘09 was named Honorable Mention, and Michelle Lund ‘12 earned a spot on the All-Freshman team. Additionally, Skye Johnson and Sonya Harris were named to the All-Defensive team. These awards are very well-deserved, and we are all proud of their individual accomplishments on the court this year. We will definitely be glad to have them on the court with us this weekend! Not to undermine the accomplishments of my teammates, but the most exciting announcement came when Coach Buscher was named Coach of the Year. She has worked extremely hard this year and has done an excellent job leading our team. This is definitely a great reward for her efforts.
Later this afternoon we will have a short practice at the Family Arena, followed by a quick dinner before we attend the quarterfinal games tonight. Today will be a busy day, but being in the atmosphere of the tournament will prepare us for our game tomorrow.
From Jenny Van Kirk ‘10…
Hi, I’m Jenny Van Kirk ‘10, and I am a junior on the Bradley women’s basketball team. This season has been extremely successful thus far as our team has compiled a record of 20-9 overall and 11-7 in the Missouri Valley Conference. We finished fourth in the conference and received the fourth seed for the MVC tournament this weekend. By earning the fourth seed, we have avoided the play-in game on Thursday. This serves as a huge advantage because the top six teams will have fresh legs on Friday. Our first game will be 2:30 p.m. Friday against Indiana State. We are extremely excited about our chances at this year’s tournament, and I will be keeping you updated on our progress daily.
This year we have a very tight-knit team, and our team chemistry has been an instrumental part of our success. We have been through a lot on and off the floor this year, and the MVC tournament is the culmination of all our efforts this season. The season can be thought of as three mini-seasons: nonconference play, conference play, and the MVC tournament. We have reached the third part of our season, and now every team “starts over.” Records do not matter. Seeds do not matter. Any team can win. There is no tomorrow. It is either win or go home. The team that comes to play the hardest and strings together three wins will earn the automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. We would love to have your support as we head to St. Charles with big goals.
Through this journal I hope to provide you with an inside look at our experiences as a part of the Bradley women’s basketball team, as we are provided with tremendous opportunities and enjoy every minute of our time together. Thanks, and Go Braves!
