No longer the 'other team': Women's hoops finally claims some of the Cameron Indoor magic for itself

Cameron Indoor Stadium has long stood for men's basketball.

With the two national championship banners adorning the north end of the gym, one cannot help but be reminded of the greatness achieved by the men's team.

But there is another team that graces the floor of that gym.

The women's team, however, has not been able to achieve nearly as much success as the men's team has in the past decade. Many times in previous years, the women's team would draw a crowd of only a couple hundred--even though admission was free--while the men's team would sell out the stadium every single game.

But the past few seasons have brought about a change in the women's program. Those changes started in 1992, when head coach Gail Goestenkors came to Durham to take over the flailing women's program. Over the course of three years, Goestenkors has made her mark on the program, and the women's team has begun to create some basketball history of its own.

In fact, the women's team would like to add a few banners of its own to those of the men in Cameron.

"This year, there really are no excuses," senior center Alison Day said. "We've got a good nucleus coming back. We were really close last year to being the type of team that is Final Four quality. I think this year--if we get some breaks and everybody can stay healthy--then we can definitely be in Charlotte for the Final Four."

While the men's team was mired in an uncharacteristic downhill slide last season, the women's team started winning games. And it kept on winning. In mid-January, the women's team took its place in the national rankings for the first time since 1989. And on Jan. 25, the women's team settled in at Cameron for the long haul.

After all these thrilling victories last season, can the Blue Devils continue to break records and establish themselves as one of the premier programs in the nation? Is the rise of women's basketball at Duke a trend that will continue?

Goestenkors thinks so.

The team returns four starters and two key reserves from last year's record-breaking team, so the personnel is solid. Joining these six upperclassmen is a class of five recruits--two from abroad--who will add depth to an already strong team.

"I think we can do anything this year," Goestenkors said. "The door is open for us. I think we have in Ali Day one of the best post players in the nation, in [junior guard] Kira Orr one of the best point guards in the nation. We've got six returners that all have a lot of experience."

The five incoming freshmen will have different roles on this Duke team, but two of those players should have an immediate impact. Freshman Payton Black will offer immediate help at the post position, while her classmate, Hilary Howard, could push for a starting spot.

All of the returning Blue Devils have been in Durham for at least some portion of the summer, training and playing together. Orr and Black are currently competing on the East team in the U.S. Olympic Festival in Denver.

While Duke had to rely on buzzer beaters to capture some of its victories last year, it hopes to have more comfortable wins this season.

"You have to build from the wins as well as the losses," Day said. "I'm sure we'll have a lot more exciting wins. Hopefully we won't put ourselves in the position as much this coming year for having to come back and beat people on last-second shots."

Part of the rise of women's basketball at Duke may be due to what some consider a national trend. The women's game is gradually obtaining a larger fan following, and many coaches attribute this to the differences in women's play the past few years. The games are typically not as slow as they used to be.

"I think the style of play is exciting," Goestenkors said. "I think people came to the games--who maybe hadn't been to the games in five or 10 years--and they saw a much different style of play."

Of course, Duke basketball fans are used to having winning teams for which to cheer. The women's team posted its first winning season since 1990-91 during Goestenkors' second year, and the team finished with a 22-9 record last season.

"People like to watch teams win," Goestenkors said. "We were competing, day in and day out, with the top teams in the country--and beating some of those teams. And that's exciting. I think people felt like they could get in with us at the ground floor. If they've been watching us for three years now, they've seen us get better and better. They feel a part of it."

For basketball fans in the area, Duke offers more than just the men's game, although Goestenkors never felt that her team was overshadowed by the men's team.

"A lot of people have asked me about being in the shadow of the men," she said. "I've always said--and I believe this with all my heart--that they have never cast a shadow on us. They have pulled us into the light. Because of the men's program, we were able to go into some of the top players' homes in America. Not because of women's basketball, but they knew of Duke men's basketball, so that got my foot in the door."

Although Goestenkors may have used the popularity of the men's team to aid in her recruiting, women's basketball now speaks for itself. The women's team finished with a national ranking of No. 20. The two international freshmen--one from Sweden and one from South Africa--both contacted Goestenkors of their own volition. So the team is now recognized not only in the nation, but across the globe as well.

"They just wrote us and we followed up," Goestenkors said of Juanita Hepburn and Nazrawit Meshanie, from South Africa and Sweden, respectively. "We found out they were great students as well as great athletes. JoAnn Boyle, my assistant, was very involved--she played overseas."

Day and fellow senior Jen Scanlon have been a big part of the rise of the program here. They entered Duke the same time Goestenkors did, and have been a key factor in the Blue Devils' success. Day is quick to give credit to Goestenkors for the rise in the women's program.

"[Goestenkors] came in and the first year she knew that we weren't going to go from the basement to the top," Day said. "But it was like taking steps each year. She knew that it was going to be a gradual process. She came in and brought a new enthusiasm toward [the team]. She's also a fantastic recruiter."

Goestenkors' first recruiting class has already proven this, as Orr and forward Tyish Hall were both starters last season. The incoming freshmen are some of the best in the country.

"That makes it a little easier on you, too, if you're getting in great players," Day said. "She really has totally committed herself to the program. Everybody on the team has a great deal of respect for the entire coaching staff."

Goestenkors also credits the athletic department with assisting in the rise of the program.

"I can't say enough about [athletic director] Tom Butters," Goestenkors said. "When I first interviewed here, he basically asked me what I needed to be successful. He really gave me everything that he agreed was necessary to run a top-10, top-20 program. He's been behind me and the administration's been behind the women's program the entire way."

The improvements which the athletic department has made for the women's program are evident. Women's basketball now has two full-time assistants and one part-time assistant, the equivalent of what the men's program has. The athletic department refurbished the women's locker room last year, and the basketball office will be expanded upon the completion of the Cameron Annex, one of the department's three upcoming capital projects.

With that expansion, the women's basketball program will have the office space and other facilities to prove it is one of the top programs in the country. The program has advanced from a team that had only seen one NCAA tournament appearance before, in 1987, to one that should be a solid top-20 program this year.

Part of the disappointment of falling in the second round of the NCAA tournament last year was due to the fact that the women's program has never advanced past the second round of the tournament. Countless times during the Alabama game, the Blue Devils were just one point away from the Sweet 16.

"When you end your season like that, it kind of leaves a bitter taste in your mouth--you can't wait for the next season to start," Scanlon said. "We were so close to the Sweet 16, and that's something that you dream about."

Those dreams no longer seem too far-fetched.