Irish stronger with Schrader back
SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- Sitting courtside last season with a knee injury helped Notre Dame guard Lindsay Schrader to see the game from a different perspective.
"It made me an all-around better player definitely on and off the court," said Schrader, a Bartlett High School product. "It was tough for me in the beginning. But I definitely pulled away a better person and a better player because of this."
Schrader, who averaged 10.5 points and 5.4 rebounds as a freshman, tore the anterior cruciate ligament in her right knee during the first week of practice last year and did not play all season. Coach Muffet McGraw agrees watching from the bench helped Schrader to grow.
"She listened to her coaches and learned probably more than she wanted to," McGraw said. "She could really see things a lot differently."
Schrader can see the floor better now because she learned last season as McGraw began installing the four-guard system the Irish plan to depend on this season. McGraw said it will give the Irish a more balanced attack.
She wants the Irish to be more uptempo, running and pressing more.
Charel Allen (17 ppg, 6.2 rpg) is one of three returning starters, along with center Melissa D'Amico (8 ppg, 4.6 rpg) and Tulyah Gaines (9.6 ppg). Other key returning players include Ashley Barlow (10.3 ppg), Melissa Lechlitner (6.3 ppg) and center Erica Williamson (6.1 ppg).
Freshmen Devereaux Peters, Brittany Mallory and Becca Bruszewski also are expected to contribute. Peters is expected to provide defense, rebounding and shot blocking, Mallory is a 3-point shooter and Bruszewski is a physical player.
McGraw said it is probably the deepest team she's had talent wise - deeper even than the national championship team in 2000-01. She said it will be a challenge for her to use all that talent.
The 24th-ranked Irish open the season Friday against Miami of Ohio in the first round of the Preseason Women's National Invitation Tournament. The Irish have a difficult schedule with games against No. 1 Tennessee, No. 2 Connecticut and No. 3 Rutgers, and could face No. 4 Maryland and No 5. LSU in the Preseason WNIT.
With the goal being to advance past the second round of the NCAA tournament this year, which the Irish did last season in finishing 20-12, McGraw said she wanted a tough schedule.
The biggest challenge for the Irish is to become better defensively, she said.
"Defense has to be a priority with the team. It has to be a mind-set," McGraw said. "It's got to be an attitude. It has to be something they really want to get better at."
Schrader can't wait for the season to begin, saying she missed everything about playing while she sat out the season.
"It wasn't just playing the game I missed the most. It was all the little things," she said. "The little bonding things we had at practice or at team dinners or the announcer calling your name. Those are the things I really, really missed the most."
She's also eager to see how good the Irish can be.
"I can't wait to see what we're going to be able to do and what we're capable of," she said.