Nov. 11, 2008

BEAUMONT - Fans of the Lamar Lady Cardinals basketball team will get their first look at the 2008-09 squad on Wednesday night when they host the Houston Jaguars at 7:00 at the Montagne Center.

The 2008-09 Lady Cards feature two pre season first team all-Southland Conference selections in Brittney Williams and Nikki Williams who combined for 42 percent of Lamar's offense a year ago.

In her first season at Lamar Nikki Williams put together one of the strongest seasons for a point guard in the history of the LU program. She ranked second on the team in scoring with 14.3 points per game and led the team in assists with 119 and steals with 89.

Brittney Williams followed up a strong freshman campaign by finishing third on the team in scoring with a 12.8 points per game average, while ranking third on the team in rebounds at 5.1 per game.

Forward Trashanna Smith and shooting guard Emily Spickler made 26 total starts a year ago, and will look to get even more time on the floor this season. Smith averaged 5.1 points per game and led Lamar in blocks with 29. Spickler finished her junior year second on the team in three point baskets made with 42, ranking her among the league leaders in triples.

Agnija Reke, Brittany Hendrix, Jasmine Stewart and Ashley Crawford round out the returning players for Lamar. Reke finished the 2007-08 season second on the team in assists with 66 while Stewart and Hendrix played important roles for the Lady Cards off the bench. Crawford, who started the first two games a year ago, returns to the floor after a medical redshirt season following an injury at Oklahoma State.

The cast of newcomers to the Lady Cardinals program will give Lamar depth at every position, while several of the additions could find their way into the starting lineup.

Darika Hill, a 6-0 forward, comes to Lamar after earning third team Junior College All-American honors at Trinity Valley Community College. Ang Green enters her freshman campaign after a stellar four-year career at Silsbee High School in Texas where she averaged 26.7 points, 11.7 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 2.7 steals per game as a senior. Chrisan Petrovanie, a 6-4 native of San Fernando, Trinidad, spent her prep career at Lake Country Christian School in Fort Worth, Texas where she had a very strong senior season.

Rounding out the newcomers is Whitney Coffey and Myriam Igoufe. Coffey comes to Lamar from Princeton High School where she had a strong senior season for the Panthers and Igoufe joins the Lady Cards from France, where she was a member of the French National team.

The Houston Jaguars were founded in 1997 as a travel team to help women's basketball players continue their post-collegiate career and aspire to take their playing skills to the next level of professional achievement. The Jaguars compete against some of the top Division I colleges and universities each year, sometimes sending split squads to two schools in one night.

The Jaguars, led by head coach Louis Ray III, feature University of Houston and three-time Conference USA Player of the Year and NCAA All American Chandi Jones and Umeki Webb, a North Carolina State and Phoenix Mercury standout.

After Wednesday night's showdown with the Jaguars, the Lady Cards will be off for a week before opening the regular season on Wednesday, November 19, when they take on the Grambling State at 7 p.m. at the Montagne Center.