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 MOUNT VERNON, Ohio - With a roster consisting of only two seniors and no juniors, the Mount Vernon Nazarene University women's basketball team knew that the 2003-2004 season would be a challenging one.

Add to that a demanding American Mideast Conference South Division schedule that included two games each against three teams that made the NAIA Division II National Tournament, and the Lady Cougars knew that they were not in for an easy season.

The year got off to a good start, though, as MVNU opened the season with an 84-55 victory at the University of Michigan-Dearborn as freshman guard Katie Keller made her college debut by nailing a school-record 12-of-15 three-point shots to finish with 39 points - one shy of the Lady Cougars' single-game record. Keller was featured in the December 8th issue of Sports Illustrated in the "Faces in the Crowd" section.

MVNU made it two wins in a row as the Lady Cougars nipped Concordia (Mich.) University 76-74 in the team's home opener. However, MVNU dropped its next four contests as the team's record slipped to 2-4.

Then, the Lady Cougars accomplished something that had never been done in the program's history as the team topped the 100-point mark in each of MVNU's next two games as the Lady Cougars defeated Concordia 100-66 and cruised past Michigan-Dearborn 103-62. Previously, MVNU had registered four 100-point games with never more than one coming in any given season.

At that point, MVNU began its grueling conference slate that saw the Lady Cougars go 2-16. The highlights of the conference schedule were a 78-68 win over Tiffin University and a 62-60 buzzer-beater against Walsh University, who was nationally ranked during the season, on Keller's last-second three-point shot.

Despite its 7-22 overall record, MVNU played hard all season and did not give up as the Lady Cougars continued to improve and gain valuable experience that will pay off in the future.

"This season was a challenging one in many respects," said MVNU head coach Steve Gregory. "First, the AMC South Division is very strong and competitive, and we knew that we would not get any breaks in our schedule. Secondly, we were breaking in eight new freshmen. We were already a young team, and getting younger was not going to help against a strong conference schedule. With only two seniors and no juniors, veteran leadership and experience were severely lacking heading into the season. We knew it would catch up to us in the form of mistakes, mental toughness, knowledge, and patience."

"Even though we lacked experience and know-how, I loved my team's enthusiasm and positive attitudes," Gregory added. "This was a very close-knit group - one of the closest I have ever been a part of. I appreciate how they picked each other up on and off the floor when things did not go their way."

Individually, senior forward Susan Adams wrapped up her stellar career by leading the team in scoring (16.5 points per game), rebounding (7.6 rebounds per game), and steals as she was named to the AMC South Division First Team and the National Christian College Athletic Association East Region First Team. Adams, who set a new school record by playing in all 116 games during her career, finishes her career ranked third in MVNU history in points (1,503) and rebounds (769).

"Susan finished out a stellar career and will be sorely missed," said Gregory. "Her leadership and intensity was outstanding this year. She led us in scoring and rebounding and was one of only a handful of players whom I felt have reached her full potential as a player."

Senior guard Lisa Weller also closed out her career by averaging 2.8 points and making 22 three-pointers to finish tenth in school history with 100 career treys.

Keller finished an outstanding freshman season by averaging 14.3 points per game to go with a team-high 66 three-pointers, 75 assists, and 53 steals. For her efforts, she was named to the AMC South Division Second Team, the NCCAA East Region Second Team, and the AMC South Division All-Freshmen Team.

Sophomore center Erin Arnett contributed 8.6 points and 6.4 rebounds per game and was an NCCAA East Region Honorable Mention pick. Sophomore forwards Amanda Stevens and Jenny Slack added 8.0 and 7.0 points per game respectively with Slack nailing 38 three-pointers in her return after missing a season with a knee injury.

In addition to Keller's play, the rest of the MVNU freshman class showed promise as they gained plenty of experience. Point guard Ashley Banas led the team with 108 assists while averaging 3.2 points, while guard Allison Linak nailed 38 treys and averaged 5.9 points after joining the team following the completion of the soccer season. Post players Amanda Rowe (4.0 points, 2.7 rebounds, and 14 blocked shots), Miranda Capuano (2.9 points and 3.7 rebounds), and Beth Ryder (1.1 points and 1.3 rebounds) also provided depth for the Lady Cougars.

"Katie and Ashley both showed strong determination in cracking the starting lineup and helping our team make strong progress this year," said Gregory. "Allison, Amanda, and Miranda all came on strong at the end of the season and give us confidence about a strong future for Lady Cougar basketball."

"Having a year of experience is going to benefit these freshmen greatly," Gregory added. "It is hard to appreciate how talented the returning players are from these other schools until you have gone through the battles yourself. Now, they (the freshman class) have a good idea of the talent level and what they have to do to be competitive at this level."

With the loss of only two seniors due to graduation, MVNU will return an experienced group of players for the 2004-2005 season.