Nov. 5, 2002
Duquesne University women's basketball, under the direction of 10th-year Head Coach Dan Durkin, was picked to finish fourth in the West Division of the Atlantic 10 in the 2003 Atlantic 10 Pre-Season Coaches Poll. The Dukes finished in a tie for second in the West last year with a 14-15 overall mark and an 8-8 A-10 record.
Two Dukes have been named to three honors on the 2003 Atlantic 10 Women's Basketball Pre-Season honors list as announced today by the Atlantic 10 Conference. Senior Beth Friday (Pittsburgh, Pa./Upper St. Clair) has been named a first team pre-season selection for the second-consecutive year and to the league's All-Defensive team while junior Candace Futrell (Altoona, Pa./Altoona) has been chosen as a second team honoree.
A first team pre-season selection, Friday was a 2002 first team All-Atlantic 10 pick and a second team selection in 2001. She led the Dukes with 9.3 rebounds per game, which stood second among A-10 leaders and added 13.5 points per game. Friday has registered 32 career double-doubles and is on track to become the first Duquesne player to reach 1,000 career points and rebounds. She enters the season with 1,010 points and 866 rebounds and is ranked in the top 25 among returning NCAA rebounding leaders. Friday stood 33rd in rebounds and 45th in field goal percentage in the country last season. " Friday is a tough, hard-nosed kid that just gets better and better each year. She is pretty driven in everything she does is someone we will rely on an awful lot," said coach Durkin.
Futrell, a second team pre-season All-Conference pick, is the Dukes' and the Atlantic 10's top-returning scorer with 17.9 points per game. She was lauded as a 2002 second team All-Atlantic 10 pick and as the league's Most Improved Player adding 4.9 rebounds per game. Futrell was ranked among NCAA Division I leaders in scoring last year and is listed among the top 30 returning NCAA scoring leaders. Her 518 points last year ranks just second among sophomores to Korie Hlede, a 1998 graduate and current member of the WNBA's New York Liberty, who notched 611 points in her second year with the Dukes. Futrell hit double figures in 27 of her 29 games last season. "Candace just kind of grew into her own last year. She was named the (A-10's) Most Improved Player, she is bigger and stronger right now and we expect really great things from her," added Durkin.
Duquesne returns four starters from last season with the loss of center Oxana Shetko to graduation and welcomes back 2001 starter Khalihah Este-Shehu who was sidelined last year with an injury. In all, the Dukes welcome back nine letterwinners and post depth and experience in each position.
The Dukes face a demanding non-conference slate highlighted by home games with teams from the Big 10, Big East and SEC. Five of Duquesne's opponents advanced to post-season play last year, four of which will visit the Palumbo Center. Highlighting the home slate are bouts with Vanderbilt of the SEC and defending Atlantic 10 champion Temple. Both advanced to last year's NCAA tournament with Vandy, which ranked #5 in the country with its 30-7record, advancing to the Elite Eight of the tournament. Three WNIT teams also appear on the schedule as the Atlantic 10's Saint Joseph's and George Washington will hit the Palumbo hardwood and the Dukes face a possible match-up with Virginia Tech at the Hokies' tournament Dec. 28-29. The season opens Nov. 22 with the Dukes playing host to Ohio State in a 7:05 pm tip-off.
