Date Posted: 11/2/2007

12 Days of A-Sun Basketball takes its second trip to Jacksonville, Fla., this time to preview the UNF Ospreys. The Ospreys enter their third year in the Atlantic Sun on the heels of back-to-back seasons in which their conference record would have qualified them for the A-Sun Championship had they been eligible and not undergoing the NCAA reclassifying process.

In 2007-08, Sophomore Antoinette Reames will continue her assault on the all-time UNF blocks record. After amassing 29 blocks her freshman year and 23 in an injury shortened 2006-07 season, she is now fourth on UNF's all-time blocks list with 52. Reames is only 10 blocks away from moving into third place and 32 blocks away from setting the all-time record

Last season, Shandrea Moore became the first Lady Osprey to earn an Atlantic Sun postseason honor last season when she was named to the Atlantic Sun All-Freshman Team. Moore led the team with 94 assists this season

Coach Mary Tappmeyer on the Ospreys

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SEASON PREVIEW - (Courtesy UNF Media Relations)

As the University of North Florida women’s basketball team heads into its third year of competition at the NCAA Division I level, it’s easy to see why Lady Osprey head coach Mary Tappmeyer is excited about the future of her squad.

For the past three years she has been laying the groundwork for a team that could make a run at winning the Atlantic Sun Conference when it becomes eligible for postseason play during the 2009-10 season. Several pieces of that puzzle have been put into place the last couple of years, while Tappmeyer hopes a new crop of freshmen that have been brought in this year will ultimately lead her team to postseason success.

For a pair of juniors, however, the time to win is now and while postseason success may await this team, Jennifer Bowen and Jennifer Guldager have their eyes focused on making a strong run in the Atlantic Sun Conference regular season race in 2007-08.

For that to happen it takes a commitment from the whole team, and that’s something Tappmeyer seems to have.

Guldager and Bowen – the only two upperclassmen on this year’s squad – are part of a group that has worked hard as individuals and as a team in the offseason and preseason workouts. Despite the fact that this year’s roster features 12 players with a year or less of experience, it is that level of commitment that has Tappmeyer optimistic about what the coming year might hold for her Lady Osprey squad.

“I feel like we’ve upgraded and addressed our needs,” Tappmeyer said. “Our returners committed themselves and worked on their games this summer and we are starting to see improvement. We are still going to be very young, but have the potential to be much better than we were last year.”

The Lady Ospreys finished the 2006-07 season with an 8-21 record, winning seven games in conference play, which was good enough for a sixth-place finish in the A-Sun. While fighting through an up-and-down season that saw three starters end the year on the bench because of injury. UNF was able to work a host of freshmen into the lineup, giving them valuable experience heading into this season.

Given the fact that so many freshmen received time last year, Tappmeyer isn’t worried about not having a senior leader on the floor this season.

“It’s different not having a senior leader, but Jennifer Bowen and Jennifer Guldager have been around for three years and I really feel like we have some young leaders who are committed to what we are trying to do,” Tappmeyer said. “It has never been a big deal to me to have senior captains. I believe leadership is an innate ability, you don’t necessarily lead by example because you are a senior.”

Youth seems to be the trend this season in the Atlantic Sun, where the Lady Ospreys are picked eighth in both the preseason coaches and media polls. That prediction could actually be an encouraging sign for UNF, which has finished higher than the preseason prognostications the last two seasons.

Before conference play gets rolling on Jan. 5 at home against Stetson, UNF must navigate its way through a challenging non-conference schedule. That begins with a trip to Florida State to tipoff the season on Nov. 11 this year. The Seminoles were a Sweet 16 team last season and return four starters to the squad.

UNF returns home on Nov. 15 to face another in-state squad when it battles UCF. That will be the first of seven non-conference home games for the Lady Ospreys this year, a marked increase from last year when the Lady Ospreys played only two games at home against non-conference opponents last year.

“Last year’s team was so young that they didn’t know that going on the road was hard,” Tappmeyer said. “We will have to see if the freshmen this year are more confident at home or on the road. It will be helpful if we can get some really good crowd support. Our kids are doing a very good job of generating interest on campus.”

The Lady Ospreys will highlight their non-conference schedule with the UNF Holiday Classic Dec. 18-19. UNF will play host to Norfolk State on Dec. 18 in its first ever home tournament game at the Division I level before taking on Wofford the next night.

Other non-conference home matchups include Bethune-Cookman (Nov. 20), Lehigh (Nov. 30), Southeastern Louisiana (Dec. 8) and Savannah State (Jan. 2).

UNF’s non-conference road schedule will be one of its most challenging with matchups against Southern Miss and Austin Peay or Texas A&M Corpus Christi on Thanksgiving weekend as well as a trip to USF (Dec. 5) and Wofford (Dec. 29).

The Atlantic Sun Conference will get a little bit of a new look this season when it switches to a north and south division format thanks to the addition of newcomers Florida Gulf Coast and USC Upstate. The Lady Ospreys will get their first look at Florida Gulf Coast at home on Jan. 7.

Conference road play opens with a trip to Kennesaw State (Jan. 12) and Mercer (Jan. 14) before the team returns home for its first installment of the SunTrust River City Rumble against cross-town rival Jacksonville on Jan. 19.

“Jacksonville and ETSU would have to be considered the powerhouse teams in the league,” Tappmeyer said. “Belmont has always been the team to shoot for, but they lost two-time conference player of the year Alysha Clark when she transferred this summer. Without her, it might bring them back to the pack. I think there will be a lot more parity in the league, and the middle of the pack could beat each other up.”

UNF will take on ETSU (Jan. 25) and Belmont (Feb. 9) only once this season, with each of those games coming on the road.

The Lady Ospreys will squeeze in three home games between those ETSU and Belmont matchups, starting with USC Upstate on Jan. 28. UNF will renew its rivalry with the Spartans – a former Division II Peach Belt Conference foe – in that contest.

The team’s trip to Belmont begins a four-game road swing for the Lady Ospreys – which will be highlighted by the second SunTrust River Rumble matchup against JU on Feb. 16 – before Mercer (Feb. 23) and Kennesaw State (Feb. 25) come to town to round out the team’s home schedule. The season will come to a close with games at Stetson (Feb. 28) and Florida Gulf Coast (March 1).

Guard

UNF returns plenty of experience to its backcourt this season, led by Bowen, who had a breakout season last year, leading the squad in scoring, while finishing second on the team in assists and third in rebounding. Bowen scored a career high 28 points at Campbell last season and had 16 games in double-digit scoring, including 10 of her last 13.

Tappmeyer said she knows Bowen will be a marked target for opposing defenders this season, but is hoping a deeper lineup will get her a little more rest this season after she led the squad in minutes played last year, averaging more than 33 minutes a contest. That depth will also help her on the defensive end, where Tappmeyer does not expect her to have to be as physical with opposing offensive players.

Joining Bowen in the backcourt will be Atlantic Sun All-Freshman selection Shandrea Moore, who will resume her role at point guard this season and will also see time at shooting guard. Moore led the team in assists as a freshman and finished second on the team in scoring and steals.

Juliemay Syquio will vie for time with Moore at the point guard spot. The Jacksonville native is a fundamentally sound guard who has tremendous court vision and will make the rest of squad around her better and free Moore up to be a scoring threat. Syquio isn’t the only freshman who could make an impact in the backcourt. Brittany Burton is a strong guard who is expected to help out at the three spot.

“We’ll be a lot more fun to watch this year,” Tappmeyer said. “We have upgraded our offensive ability. Juliemay will be fun to watch and we have some legitimate long-range shooters.”

Sophomore Tiffany Williams returns to what appears to be shaping up as a crowded backcourt. Williams is a dynamic guard who has worked hard on her game and will be able to take the ball to the basket and score as well hit the long-range shots.

Kim Baker will also fight for time in the backcourt and could be counted on as one of the team’s defensive stoppers.

Forward

Two-year starter Jennifer Guldager will resume her role in the starting lineup this season and is expected to help anchor a solid defensive frontcourt. Guldager led the team and finished among the conference leaders in rebounds last season. She also led the Lady Osprey squad with 56 steals, while averaging more than 31 minutes a game.

“Our goal is to be one of the best defensive teams in the conference,” Tappmeyer said. “I have always prided this program on defense and we’ve upgraded our athleticism enough that we will be able to press and run a little more this season.”

While Guldager’s defensive role isn’t expected to change – she will once again draw the toughest defensive assignment on the floor – her role on the offensive end will. Guldager looks to continue to develop her 3-point shot this season and will face the basket more on the offensive end, something she is more comfortable doing.

Brittany Jones is expected to contribute at the forward spot as well this season along with Shennette Sheffield, Antoinette Reames and Willonda Windham.

Sheffield was expected to redshirt last season, but was pressed into action after Reames went down with a knee injury. She turned that opportunity into a successful campaign that saw her lead the team with 27 blocked shots to go along with 4.1 rebounds per contest.

Center

Along with Sheffield, UNF has three legitimate shot blockers with both Reames and Dominique Barbosa in the mix. Reames led the conference in blocked shots last season and also contributed with 6.4 points and 4.7 rebounds a game before going down in December with a knee injury.

Reames was able to secure a medical redshirt and still has three years of eligibility left for the Lady Ospreys. With this being her third in the UNF system, Tappmeyer expects more of a leadership role from Reames this season.

“Antoinette is very competitive and I think we are going to see her emerge as a leader this year,” Tappmeyer said. “You have to be competitive to be a leader, and I think the people who emerge in that role this year will have that built into them.”

Dominique Barbosa completes UNF’s three headed shot blocking monster. The redshirt freshman – who stands 6-4 – will give UNF a big inside presence that could cause plenty of matchup problems on both sides of the floor.

Barbosa took her redshirt year to work on her game and has been one of the early season surprises for UNF.

Windham rounds out the Lady Osprey frontcourt and will push for a starting spot among another crowded group. Windham closed out the season on a strong note last year and has slimmed down over the summer, which will allow her more minutes this season.

12 Days of A-Sun Basketball Schedule
Oct. 22 - Belmont
Oct. 23 - Campbell
Oct. 24 - ETSU
Oct. 25 - Florida Gulf Coast
Oct. 26 - Gardner-Webb
Oct. 29 - Jacksonville
Oct. 30 - Kennesaw State
Oct. 31 - Lipscomb
Nov. 1 - Mercer
Nov. 2 - UNF
Nov. 5 - USC Upstate
Nov. 6 - Stetson

Related Links:
 • Team Photo Gallery
 • Interview with Mary Tappmeyer