WBB: Empire 8

TheNextLevel · March 11, 2009, 12:05:53 PM

As much as we all citicized Donahue, no one could say he didn't put in the time. Perhaps to much, he over-analyzed everything. We need a happy meduim.

As I said earlier and before the season...Elmira just didn't have the talent or the depth to compete for 40 minutes. Losing Lawlor & Kaczynski for the 2nd semester hurt. Howley didn't have a chance to prepare properly or recruit (hired in late August) making the transition much more difficult. Given the roster and the circumstances, I don't think you could expect much more. She appears to be able to coach, next year will be the key. She will have a full year to recruit and prepare.

Coakley & Symonds will be missed, congrats to them on solid careers.
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Quote from: sotier on February 22, 2009, 08:32:04 AM
Hey Bombers. I also am surprised at the lack of posts in the E8 section. The only theory I can come up with is the coaching turn over in the conference has a lot of people up in the air as to how they feel about their teams. I for one have seen enough. Elmira coaching change,for as much as I criticized former coach Donahue in the past, was not one for the better.The team DID have the talent to win,that was not the problem. As a former player I can tell you one thing that was very evident about this Elmira team, they were not prepared. I will bet there was no film work, little if any scouting. And that cannot be accepted from a new coach.Coach Howley this is a Very Competative Conference,you better be prepared. And coach you better be instructional. I see players making the same errors over and over. These are smart girls,they will learn if you teach. No excuses.If frustration comes through in my tone,that is intentional.Elmira was "in" almost every game. Nearly every game in the loss column could have been in the win.
I must thank Elmira seniors Coakley and Symonds, these girls are great reps for the school. Both played with class, thats the right word CLASS.

Quote from: Bombers798891 on February 13, 2009, 05:44:02 PM
Quote from: TheNextLevel on February 13, 2009, 03:41:09 PM
As sotier says...no surprises at the top. I look for Utica or Stevens to win the league with IC on the outside looking in. The other 6 teams are all having an up & down year...not surprising given they all have new coaches.

After showing a lot of promise in the 1st semester, Elmira is having a tough 2nd semester. Losing Lawlor & Kaczynski hurt...they just don't have the depth to compete for 40 minutes. Howely didn't have a chance to prepare properly or recruit (hired in late August) making the transition much more difficult. Given the roster and the circumstances, I don't think you could expect much more. She appears to be able to coach, let's hope for next year...recruiting will be the key.

Quote from: sotier on February 07, 2009, 12:24:42 PM
all quiet on the E8 posting front! So I'll give it a go at the season so far (around 20 games played). The teams at the top are no surprise. Ithaca, Stevens,Utica each at 9-2 conference play . All quality teams, who will end on top is anyones guess but my money is on Utica at this point. Having seen each of them play, I think that Utica simply has more scorers. They shoot the three with acuracy and consistantcy, they have quickness and can score in the paint.There only weakness is staying focused,but playoff time their coach will DRILL FOCUS in them.
The fourth playoff team is ...who knows,Nazareth...Fisher...Hartwick...Elmira. Only two games separate them at this point.This will be more clear as Naz and Fisher play today. The winner has a good chance of the playoffs.
Elmira is a team on the edge. Seems they can play anyone close, put a scare in both Ithaca (OT) and Utica. Games all season have been close (PF-1222, PA-1220).They are a quality win from believing they can win and learning to close a game out.Do not believe they can make the playoffs this season, and I'm sure the top three are glad of it, for you dont know what kind of team will show up, and that makes them dangerous.

TheNextLevel
Re: Empire Eight
« Reply #317 on: February 13, 2009, 04:41:09 pm »

As sotier says...no surprises at the top. I look for Utica or Stevens to win the league with IC on the outside looking in. The other 6 teams are all having an up & down year...not surprising given they all have new coaches.

After showing a lot of promise in the 1st semester, Elmira is having a tough 2nd semester. Losing Lawlor & Kaczynski hurt...they just don't have the depth to compete for 40 minutes. Howely didn't have a chance to prepare properly or recruit (hired in late August) making the transition much more difficult. Given the roster and the circumstances, I don't think you could expect much more. She appears to be able to coach, let's hope for next year...recruiting will be the key.
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Re: Empire Eight
« Reply #289 on: May 10, 2008, 06:10:20 pm »

"Lets start fresh!

Elmira is a great school! Assuming Pat Thompson finds a good hire (she is very good AD) EC will be a great pick for any Coach and any new recruit. It will be a little tough for the first year (the cupboard was left a little bare) but lets hope we can return EC to the glory days of current Rochester and former Elmira coach, Jim Scheible."

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sotier · March 17, 2009, 02:53:24 PM

Thanks for your view Next Level. Hopefully longer prep time will help.Keep us informed on any potential recruits you hear of.Believe there is a good nucleus to start with next year with Rupell,Kent,Peterman. A good point is needed.

TheNextLevel · June 01, 2009, 12:45:02 PM

Pretty quiet here...I have heard almost nothing on recruits/ commitments for the E8 schools. I realize it was a down year in terms of the depth of HS talent, but the roster spots need to be filled, up to a point that is.

Costanza · June 09, 2009, 10:16:13 AM

This is my first post here; however, I've been a reader and fan on the message boards for sometime. This is the first time that I found myself compelled to join the discussions. I guess I'm just curious as to what you mean when you say it was a "down year in terms of HS talent". Was it a down year in your town, county, state, region? I've seen a lot of great basketball this year, and I would say that, in general, the talent pool in girls basketball is better than it ever has been. I do realize that we may be watching different games in different areas, thus my initial question.

Ralph Turner · June 09, 2009, 10:22:37 AM

Welcome to the boards, Costanza!

Good question. I think that you are describing two different things.

Women's basketball is getting better over the decades. Today's college players have been playing basketball since they were pre-schoolers. Their moves and instincts are intuitive. That was not the case with my friends who played D-1 women's ball in the late 1980's.

We see ups-and-downs in various regions. In my conference, the ASC, we were down, primarily because we lost the 2008 POTY (Howard Payne's Meia Daniels) and the 2008 Jostens winner (McMurry's Tarra Richardson).

Costanza · June 09, 2009, 07:49:10 PM

Thanks for the feedback. It does make sense that there are ebbs and flows within different conferences with regard to the strength of each conference's teams. As players graduate, you'll always have drop offs here and there, especially when you're talking about graduating a player of the year, (as in your case). The good thing is that there is so much talent and depth in the high school and AAU game that coaches have more opportunites to rebuild. One look at George Fox, (I think they had ten freshman on the roster) will show that there is always hope to rebuild quickly. I certainly am not looking for teams to rebuild to the level of a national champion, but it would seem that there is justifiable hope to rebuild to a high level of competitiveness. Ayway, thanks for the welcome and thanks again for the feedback.

TheNextLevel · June 11, 2009, 10:31:56 AM

I agree, there is a lot of high end talent out there, but not the depth there was 5-8 years ago, at least in the upstate NY area that make up the bulk of the players for E-8 schools. The high end talent goes DI or to the premier D3 conferences like the UAA. The E8 conference is obviously a notch below the UAA.

That said, there are always some diamonds in the rough to be found. Normally we have heard about them by now. Who are they and where are they going?

Quote from: Costanza on June 09, 2009, 07:49:10 PM
Thanks for the feedback. It does make sense that there are ebbs and flows within different conferences with regard to the strength of each conference's teams. As players graduate, you'll always have drop offs here and there, especially when you're talking about graduating a player of the year, (as in your case). The good thing is that there is so much talent and depth in the high school and AAU game that coaches have more opportunites to rebuild. One look at George Fox, (I think they had ten freshman on the roster) will show that there is always hope to rebuild quickly. I certainly am not looking for teams to rebuild to the level of a national champion, but it would seem that there is justifiable hope to rebuild to a high level of competitiveness. Ayway, thanks for the welcome and thanks again for the feedback.

Costanza · June 11, 2009, 01:30:56 PM

Unfortunately, you have a great point about the quality and depth of talent in Upstate NY. For further commentarty on the depth of talent one need only look at the rosters of the top NY teams in the Empire 8, (Ithaca and Utica). Sporting a roster of 14 players Ithaca only had 2 players from NY State, while Utica,(also sporting a roster of 14), filled half of its roster with out of state athletes. It seems that many of the better programs are hitting the road and traveling out of state to find the depth that used to exist in Upstate NY. I would imagine that must thrill Admission Offices who are hopeful of having their college or university gain a stronger, more national reputation like that of the U of R, NYU, and other elite private colleges and university. I guess the bottow line in all of this is that if you want your program to succeed and compete with the elite programs these days then you have to hit the road to build your program.

TheNextLevel · October 22, 2009, 09:53:41 AM

Practice is underway! What are the reports.

sotier · October 31, 2009, 01:20:05 PM

Anyone see or heard about the Elmira-buffalo state scrimmage. What are the first impressions on the Elmira team this year.My only info is that the player numbers are way down.

JQV · November 20, 2009, 08:41:57 AM

I know there are only one or two peopl following the E8 women (and candidly, I am not one of them) but any reaction to IC hanging 102 on Hobart last night?

Is that Hobart girls' program still as strong as it was around 2000?

TheNextLevel · November 23, 2009, 12:26:31 PM

It looks like Elmira is in for a long season. Only 3 new players and none look to make an impact anytime soon. No one to replace the loss of Coakley and Symonds. Only Rupell, Kent and maybe Peterman have the talent to compete with quality d3 teams.

TheNextLevel · December 01, 2009, 02:51:39 PM

What happened to sotiers post? It didn't seem to warrant removal...but it must have irked someone.

sotier · December 01, 2009, 07:42:11 PM

Not to worry , Next Level.I removed it by mistake while tinkering with my posts.But hey, I think you and I are the only E8 people interested in expressing views on this years teams.I hope we start getting views from other fans about their favorite team and how they are fairing. As for me,since taking a new job in the Elmira area a few back, I been watchin the Elmira teams. This years team has had a rough start both on a player and coaching level.They did show signs of offensively finding an identity in the loss to Colby-Sawyer.They play fri-sat home games, we will see what happens and report.As to ruffling feathers,I just call em as I see em.

sotier · December 07, 2009, 08:37:04 PM

One step forward,two steps back.Thats the weekend Elmira had.In the friday game vs Naz,they played their best basketball since the arrival of coach Howley.They played with enthusiasm,they played with some structure. They played with a plan.They played with aggression offensively.They used the inside game very well. Way too often this season the bigs(Fretz,Lawlor) play too far from the hoop. Elmira's strenght is the inside game. And they showed that friday.
Take EVERYTHING they did well Against Naz, and that is what they did wrong against Hartwick. Lawlor got lazy,was content to sit outside,and not do the work to get to the hoop.Rupell has not been able to buy a basket,but she still fires it up with three players guarding her instead of kicking it out(she needs to recognize that).She has skills(great moves near basket),BUT I question her desire at times.Giarra will take it to the hoop,but cannot finish, so stay out and distribute already.
I have criticized Howley in the past, so I will give her credit for Naz game.She used her players well,in particular getting Lawlor to the hoop. BUT on saturday she was stubborn,she simply refused to play zone against a team whose only threat was a quick point guard.And why abandon sending Lawlor to the hoops(if she was told to and didnt,sit her on the pine).Kent and Peterman are underused offensively. But do we run plays for them,no. Watch your Naz film coach,have your players watch it. PLAY THAT WAY.