Women’s Basketball Boasts Big Returners

Goodwell, Okla.— In the months leading up to the 2018-19 season, the women of Aggie Basketball have already been hard at work before practice even began. The athletes hit the grindstone with three weeks of ‘boot camp’ to begin extensive strength and conditioning. Following, they stepped it up with three weeks of individual skill work and honing fundamentals. “We’re getting back in to the feel of basketball again,” said Head Coach Victor Esparza.

Now, the Aggies are in their third official week of practice. “There has been a lot of learning to catch up on but now we are getting back into the flow and already improving,” affirms Esparza, as getting prepped for their first scrimmage is the goal at hand. The season opening scrimmage will take place in Garden City, Kan. as the Aggies take on Garden City Community College on Oct. 19. The following week will take the team to Espanola, N.M. for the New Mexico Classic as they face University of the Southwest and Northern New Mexico College for a weekend set to start the official season. “We will be looking to see where we are defensively,” says Esparza of the upcoming contests. The Aggies boasted a stellar defense in the previous 2017-18 season and hope to continue their defensive success this year.

Recruiting efforts have yielded a promising batch of newcomers, but a handful of star returners will look to lead the team into the season. Both returning starters, senior Monti Regier and junior Addison Munsch, hold high expectations for the Aggies. Munsch was the team’s leading scorer last season and Esparza is looking for her to echo the steep progression she made from her freshman to sophomore year. Regier ranked 4th in the country in 3-points made per game in 2017-18 and averaged ten points a game for the Aggies over the season, and the coaching staff has high hopes that Regier will work to culminate her career on a high note.

Returning seniors Hannah Faulks and Taylor Acosta will round out the trio of seniors looking to leave their imprint on the program in their closing year. Faulks emerged as a defensive star for the team last year and Esparza hopes she will rise to one of the best defenders in the conference. Acosta, who redshirted for the team her junior year, is expected to play a significant role at point guard as she helps to lead the team. Sophomore Naomi Rodriguez and junior Shambri Kelso both came off the bench last season and progressed to see significant playing time. Both honed impactful roles in the guard position and Esparza has high expectations that both can step into bigger roles this year.

“We are looking forward to another year as we continue to build our success,” says Esparza, “We will keep taking steps forward and put our program on the map.”

Season tickets for the Aggie Basketball 2018-19 season are now available on opsuaggies.com via the Fan Central tab. The complete roster and schedule for women’s basketball is also available online.