#4/4 Terrapin Women Open 2007-08 Season on Friday
11/8/2007 7:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Nov. 8, 2007
Complete Game Notes in PDF Format
Game 1
Preseason WNIT
Princeton (0-0, 0-0 Ivy League) at
#4/4 Maryland (0-0, 0-0 ACC)
When: Fri., Nov. 9 • 7 p.m.
Where: Comcast Center (17,950) • College Park, Md.
TV: None
Radio: WMUC Sports/WMUCSports.com
Webcast: ACC Select/ACCSelect.com
Quick Hits
• Game 1 vs. the Tigers is the 2007-08 season opener for both teams.
• Maryland opens the campaign ranked fourth in the AP and ESPN/USA Today Coaches Polls.
• Senior Crystal Langhorne was named to the AP Preseason All-American team.
• Three Terps were selected preseason candidates for the Wade Trophy and Wooden Award.
• The Terps have won their last nine season-opening games.
• It is the first-ever meeting between Maryland and Princeton.
• Maryland returns the second-most experienced team in the nation, with eight-returning letterwinners boasting 351 combined starts.
Terps Open 2007-08 Season
• The fourth-ranked Terrapins open the new season this Friday, hosting Princeton in the first round of the Preseason WNIT. Despite the close proximity, with the Tigers traveling approximately 180 miles, it will be the first-ever meeting between the teams. It is the second Ivy League opponent Maryland faces in three games, after defeating Harvard in the first round of last year's NCAA Tournament.
• It is Maryland's first appearance in the Preseason WNIT. The winner moves on to face the winner of the Delaware/Delaware State matchup on Tuesday, Nov. 13.
• The game will be webcast on ACC Select and can be heard on Maryland's WMUC Sports. Video and audio links are available at www.umterps.com.
Terps Ranked Start Season Ranked Fourth
• Brenda Frese's latest Terps found themselves garnering high rankings for the second-straight year. Maryland was ranked No. 4 in the first Associated Press and ESPN/USA Today Coaches polls of the season. It is the second-consecutive top-five preseason ranking after Maryland was ranked No. 1 in both polls last year.
• Eight Maryland opponents also appear in the top 25 poll. The Terps face top-10 foes Rutgers (#3/3) and Oklahoma (#6/6). Conference rivals North Carolina (#8/7) and Duke (#10/9) were also among the top 10.
• The Terps also battle No. 16/16 Ohio State, No. 19/19 Florida State, No. 20/21 Pittsburgh and NC State is rated 25th in the coaches poll. #5/5 LSU and #17/18 Michigan State are possible opponents and could face the Terrapins in the Preseason WNIT, as is Notre Dame, who is tabbed 24th in the AP poll.
• Opponents receiving votes are Middle Tennessee State, Georgia Tech, UCLA and Temple. Other Preseason WNIT teams getting votes are TCU and Western Kentucky.
About the Terps
• Maryland was 28-6 last season, 10-4 in the ACC, placing third in the conference, advancing to at least the second round of the NCAA Tournament for the fourth-straight year.
• Entering her sixth season at the helm, head coach Brenda Frese welcomes back her most experienced class since taking over the reigns at Maryland. Eight letterwinners return, including four starters. The Terps lost just two players from last year's squad, including Shay Doron who ended her career as Maryland's second all-time leading scorer.
• Among the returnees are two-time All-American and National Player of the Year candidate Crystal Langhorne. She led the nation with a 70.7 shooting percentage, leading the team in scoring and rebounding for the second-straight year.
• Also returning are All-ACC performers Marissa Coleman and Kristi Toliver. Both, along with Langhorne, were named to the Wade Watch preseason candidate list. 2006 NCAA Final Four Most Outstanding Player Laura Harper is also back for the Terps.
• Joining the Terrapins this season is the No. 2 recruiting class in the nation, which includes four Parade All-Americans. Freshmen Marah Strickland and Drey Mingo were also WBCA and McDonald's All-Americans.
• The sideline will also have some new faces. Joining Frese and long-time assistant coach Erica Floyd are Daron Park, who spent three years at the University of Utah, and Diane Richardson, who is well known in the Washington, D.C. area as a successful high school coach.
About the Tigers
• Princeton is coming off a 13-15 season, tying for fourth in the Ivy League with a 7-7 record. Ten letterwinners return from that team, including four starters.
• Returning for the Tigers is the team's top scorer from last year and first-team All-Ivy selection senior Meagan Cowher, daughter of former Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Bill Cowher. Meagan averaged 17.7 points per game, also grabbing a team-best 7.3 rebounds per game.
• The Tigers are directed by first-year head coach Courtney Banghart. She joined the team after spending four seasons as an assistant coach at her alma mater, Dartmouth. She was the third-youngest head coach in Division I women's basketball when she was hired in May.
• SERIES HISTORY: It is the first meeting between the Terps and Tigers, however, Maryland has dominated the Ivy League, going 5-0 against those teams with an average margin of victory of +36.2.
Three Named Wade Watch & Wooden Award Candidates
• Three Terrapins were named preseason candidates for the State Farm/WBCA Wade Trophy and, on Wednesday, were place on the top 30 preseason candidate list for the John R. Wooden Award. Crystal Langhorne, Marissa Coleman and Kristi Toliver are all repeat honorees, with Langhorne making her third-straight appearance.
• Last year, four Terps were placed on the preseason Wade Watch list, a record for the award. Langhorne was a finalist for the honor, eventually being named to the WBCA All-America team.
• All three were also on the preseason list for the Wooden honor last season. Coleman and Langhorne went on to earn a spot on the Midseason All-American team, while Langhorne was a finalist.
Langhorne Named Ap Preseason All-American
• Senior Crystal Langhorne was picked one of the top-five players in the nation, earning a spot on the five-player Associated Press Preseason All-American team for the second-consecutive year.
• Langhorne is a two-time AP All-America selection, the only multiple All-America selection in school history, also garnering All-American nods from the USBWA twice and the WBCA last year. Last year, she became only the third player in NCAA history to lead the nation in field goal percentage two years in a row. Last season, she boasted a 70.7 field goal shooting percentage, 1.7 percent shy of tying the NCAA record.
World's Largest Baby Shower
• To help celebrate head coach Brenda Frese's pregnancy, Maryland fans are invited to attend the world's largest baby shower on Friday, Nov. 30 when the Terps take on Ohio State in the inaugural Big Ten/ACC Challenge.
• Fans are encouraged to bring a new and unused toy to the game. All donations will go to the Washington, D.C., chapter of Toys for Tots.
Older and Wiser Terps
• With eight returning letterwinners on the 2007-08 roster, Maryland boasts the second-most experienced team in the nation. The eight returnees boast 351 combined career starts, second to only West Virginia's 364 returning career starts.
• This year's roster is the most experienced squad head coach Brenda Frese has had since arriving in College Park. The senior class, who have all started significant games at some point in their careers, consists of Laura Harper, Crystal Langhorne, Ashleigh Newman, Jade Perry and Sa'de Wiley-Gatewood. Juniors Marissa Coleman and Kristi Toliver have also been starters since arriving on campus.
Watch All Season Long on ACC Select
• Terp fans can watch nearly every Maryland women's basketball game with ACC Select. All non-televised home games will be webcast over the internet at ACCSelect.com with Matt Noble and former Terrapin Vicki Brick calling all the action.
• Selected ACC road games will also be streamed over the internet. Check the schedule on the ACC Select web site.
Coming Up
• Maryland takes a break from the Preseason WNIT to participate in the State Farm Tip-Off Classic. In a highly anticipated matchup, the Terps take on sixth-ranked Oklahoma on Sunday, Nov. 11. Two of the nation's top players will bang down in the post, with Crystal Langhorne and OU's Courtney Paris battling out. The two were teammates this summer on the U.S. U21 National Team.
• The game will be played in Chapel Hill, N.C., at the Dean E. Smith Center and will be televised on ESPN2. Tip off is scheduled for 5 p.m.
