2009-2010 Season Preview
" STRONG, STEADY, SIGNIFICANT"
In his first chapel presentation of the new school year, Cornerstone university president Dr. Joseph Stowelll talked about the gospel from Matthew (7:24) that tells of the man who builds his house upon a rock: “And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat upon that house, and it fell not, for it was founded upon a rock.”
Cornerstone women’s basketball coach Carla Fles took that message to heart, and is using that concept as the building block to this year’s season.
“Matthew compares building a house on a rock to building on one on sand,” she said. “If you build on sand, the wind and water will come and wash it away.
“That same idea fits us, because we need to have a solid foundation for our team and our season. Dr. Stowell used three words to point us in the right direction: strong, steady and significant.
“Thos words reached right into my heart, because those are the words that should shape us, whether we are on the court or away from it. We want to be strong, steady and significant in everything we do, with our teammates and coaches certainly, but also with our family, our friends, people we meet, and even those we are playing against.”
Cornerstone’s women’s basketball team has been strong, steady and significant for years. Seven times in the past ten years Fles has taken her team to the NAIA National Championships, the highlight of those trips coming in 2002, when the Golden Eagles were National Runners-Up.
Fles is 245-90 lifetime, with four Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference titles plus six WHAC tournament crowns.
“I think strong, steady and significant describes what we’ve done for the past decade,” Fles said. “It’s just that I never really looked at it that way until Dr. Stowell talked on Matthew, and I saw how it fit not only our record, but the things we stand for.”
Last year’s Cornerstone team went into its season with a huge exclamation point following their names. This year, however, it has been replaced by a question mark.
Gone are three two year starters, including first-team All-American Jenna Plewes, steady Tami Thelen and playmaker Kara Overbeek.
Even though the Golden Eagles tend to reload rather than start over, that is a huge talent loss to absorb.
“We need to find some answers,” Fles said. “Who will step up? How will we play together? How do we replace the points we are losing up?
“Maybe this isn’t the year the players fill the gap, but the coaches do. We just have to play it out and see what happens.”
Cornerstone will not have a lot of size this year, but they have experience and great quickness in the post. The Golden Eagles are also blessed with strong perimeter possibilities, including three-point shooting and the ability to penetrate off the dribble.
“Last year we used a lot of four-out, one-in looks on offense, and this year I can see us going with just two posts and three perimeter players,” Fles said. “We will have several different looks, depending on game situations.
“I know that as coaches we have to be patient,” she went on. “We play a very difficult pre-season schedule, and for those games we will focus on just getting better, on communicating well, being aggressive on defense, and each individual working hard to become better than they were when the season started.
“I think that by the conference season we can be a pretty competitive team. The big thing is that we can’t make an issue of the players we lost. Jenna, Tami and Kara were great players and did wonderful things while they were here.
“But they are gone, and we have to move on. We have some really good players coming back, and this year it will be their turn to shine. I have every confidence that this year’s team will be very competitive in the WHAC, and we always go into a season expecting to get a bid to the Nationals.
“That hasn’t changed for this season.”
There are no seniors on this year’s team, which speaks well for the future.
Junior Brooke Carter (5-10 Byron Center) will be the muscle of this year’s team.
“She averaged 10 points and 7 rebounds a game last year,” Fles said. “She just missed making the all-conference team. She played in every game last year, usually against a bigger post player. I like her game, because she can drive on anybody, and has a sixth sense on the floor.
“She is a great defender and I think she can be a real leader on the floor.
“Krista Vink (5-11 Hamilton) didn’t play a lot last year, but I think she is ready to get her minutes,” Fles went on. “She is a great outside shooter, has very long arms and causes defensive problems when she’s on the perimeter because of her size.
“Her length will be a big help to us.”
Both Alicia TerHaar (5-9 Caledonia) and Ashleigh Lund (5-4 Thornapple-Kellogg) play other sports at Cornerstone, TerHaar on the CU volleyball team and Lund with soccer.
“We miss them during the preseason,” Fles said, “but I think it is good that they stretch themselves and play other sport if they are good enough to compete.
“Ashleigh will be the back-up point guard, and I think we’ll also see her sharing that two-guard spot,” Fles said. “She just loves to be in the gym, brings real energy to the team. Very vocal, very intense, she is the kind of player you want off the floor, because of the way she can doesn’t back down from a challenge.
“Last year she defended our best players in practice, so I think that will pay off for her this year,”
TerHaar was a part-time player early last season, but by the end of the year was seeing significant minutes.
“She really came on strong at the end,” Fles said. “She was one of the key reasons we won the WHAC Tournament. She is a ‘tweener’, plays inside and out. Has a good mid-range jumper and can score well underneath. She also is a great rebounder.”
Sophomores include Robyn Veltkamp (5-8, Hudsonville), a returning starter, her twin sister Melissa and Samantha Flietstra (5-11, Grand Rapids Christian).
“Robyn will be one of our leaders this year,” Fles said. “She does it all, shoots, defends, rebounds, passes. She sees the floor really well, and is just what you want from your floor general. Her money move is off the dribble, she is very difficult to contain.”
Melissa is also slated for a starter’s role.
“She wasn’t far behind last year,” Fles said. “She is our best three-point threat, and it is amazing how she rebounds. The twins play so well together that I don’t want to split them up. But I do want to see them being more vocal, and take on more leadership this year.”
Flietstra comes into the season stronger than a year ago.
“I think she is more confident too,” Fles said. “She is taking the ball to the basket more, is looking good off the boards, and I am especially impressed by the leadership she is showing, especially in the weight room.”
There are four freshmen on this year’s team.
“Kathy DeYoung (5-6 Otsego) is fast, physical, and can create things anywhere on the floor. She will challenge for a starter’s role, and will definitely get minutes. She is very strong, a very exciting player who will bring some real determination to our team.
“Kayleigh Hammond (5-10 Zeeland West) is a solid rebounder, has great strength on the boards, and she will get her minutes,” Fles went on. “She’s one of our best post passers. She needs to work on her moves, but there is real potential for her to be an outstanding player.”
Alexa Hensler (5-9 Waterford Kettering) gives Fles another player who can be effective inside or out.
“She needs to increase her range,” Fles said, “But she has a nice shot, and again, her size will cause some problems for teams that have to defend her on the outside.”
Katie Allers (5-8, Coopersville) earned a spot during tryouts, following in the footsteps of older sister Stephanie.
“It will be great to have the Allers’ family involved again,” Fles said. “Katie was going to Grand Valley, then decided over the summer she wasn’t finished with basketball. She is very athletic, but she needs time to get back into that basketball mindset. But she can play a solid role for us.”
Time will tell about this edition of the Cornerstone Golden Eagles.
“In some ways it will be fun to go back to teaching,” Fles said. “When you have three solid starters you work on the little things, but this year we will have to go back and build that foundation again. Our goal never changes. We want to win the conference and go to the Nationals.
“This year it won’t be any different.”
