The second season of the Jody Wynn era began Tuesday with a high-energy, first official women’s basketball practice in The Goldmine.
The enthusiasm started just before the start of practice, as Wynn said she was ready to get on the court and play. Unfortunately for her, one-third of the Long Beach State roster isn’t ready to suit up.
Five players — Courtney Jacob, Ashley Bookman, Alex Sanchez, Chantel Dooley (who sported a neon green cast on her right leg) and Jhakia McDonald — were limited or held out of practice entirely with various injuries. Wynn said none of them will be back “any time soon,” and McDonald will miss the entire season because of foot surgery.
“It’s not something that we all anticipated, but it’s reality right now,” Wynn said before practice.
That didn’t stop the coaching staff from immediately jumping into contact drills. The team’s first order of business? Learning how to take a charge.
Last season, Wynn took over a program with a wealth of seniors, but this year’s roster features seven freshmen. Wynn doesn’t look at the situation as a rebuilding period, however.
“We’re still building. I don’t think, last year, we built it for this year to rebuild anything,” she said. “[Last year’s] seniors did a fantastic job of establishing a winning culture, again, and a culture of just working hard everyday.
“We’re just trying to continue to grow from that.”
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