Gonzaga women enjoying surprise setting — at home for NCAA’s Sweet 16
First-year head coach Lisa Fortier continues her successful initial season at the helm
SPOKANE — Lisa Fortier looked around the press room in the bowels of Spokane Arena and called the occasion a “happy accident.”
This was totally unexpected a year ago. The NCAA tournament women’s regional originally was slated for Sacramento, Calif., but moved to Spokane in July due to a scheduling conflict. Gonzaga, with Fortier in her first season as head coach, wasn’t expected to be a postseason participant either. But her No. 11-seeded team (26-7) upset third-seeded Oregon State in Corvallis last Sunday to advance to the Sweet 16.
So, there Fortier sat comfortably in happenstance.
“We’ll take it,” said Fortier, a longtime Gonzaga assistant coach under Kelly Graves, who left for a similar position at Oregon last April.
The reward for Gonzaga is second-seeded Tennessee (29-5) in a 4 p.m. matchup Saturday. Officials said about 8,000 tickets have been sold for the two games, which begin with top-seeded Maryland against fourth-seeded Duke at 1:30 p.m.
Facing Tennessee in the NCAA tournament could be daunting for some coaches in their first season.
As part of Graves’ staff, Fortier designed the defensive schemes, worked with the guards, and recruited many of the current players. Zags athletic director Mike Roth needed only a week last spring to decide to promote Fortier to head coach.
“I applaud Gonzaga for moving her up,” said Tennessee coach Holly Warlick, who was a longtime Pat Summitt assistant before replacing the Hall of Fame coach in 2012. “Not too many universities and programs do that. They always think you have to go get a head coach. That’s not necessarily so. When somebody has a love for the program, has lived it — that’s an intangible that you can’t measure in X’s and O’s. There becomes a love in the program and a love at what you do … I absolutely love what I do, where I’m at, and I’m positive that’s how Lisa feels.”
Under Fortier, the Zags lost to American in November and then to No. 17 Iowa in a tournament in Las Vegas.
At that point, Gonzaga tinkered with its system.
Emerging from that work was freshman center Emma Wolfram, who scored a career-high 17 points off the bench against OSU, and junior guard Elle Tinkle, who moved into the starting lineup in December to replace injured sharpshooter Lindsay Sherbert (knee).
They’ll join noted defender Keani Albanez, a senior guard, and senior forward Sunny Greinacher, who averages a team-high 13.8 points, as keys to countering Tennessee’s quick, deep and talented roster.
“All of us were more confident that she (Lisa) was going to be able to take this team and do something special with us,” Tinkle said. “And she’s been able to do so, so far. All of us have committed, and it was really (a) pretty seamless (transition).”
While Gonzaga is in a comfortable setting, compiling a 5-2 overall record in NCAA tournament games played in Spokane, the Vols have appeared in all 34 NCAA tournaments and won eight titles.
Tennessee advanced by defeating Boise State and Pittsburgh in the first two rounds. Vols junior forward Bashaara Graves led the way, averaging 22.5 points and 9.5 rebounds in the victories.
“I didn’t know how good we were going to be and, as a first-time head coach, I tried to set myself up for success by keeping our goals (small),” Fortier said. “We had a bumpy start with how we were playing, but we’re finally starting to hit our stride.”
First-year head coach Lisa Fortier continues her successful initial season at the helm
SPOKANE — Lisa Fortier looked around the press room in the bowels of Spokane Arena and called the occasion a “happy accident.”
This was totally unexpected a year ago. The NCAA tournament women’s regional originally was slated for Sacramento, Calif., but moved to Spokane in July due to a scheduling conflict. Gonzaga, with Fortier in her first season as head coach, wasn’t expected to be a postseason participant either. But her No. 11-seeded team (26-7) upset third-seeded Oregon State in Corvallis last Sunday to advance to the Sweet 16.
So, there Fortier sat comfortably in happenstance.
“We’ll take it,” said Fortier, a longtime Gonzaga assistant coach under Kelly Graves, who left for a similar position at Oregon last April.
The reward for Gonzaga is second-seeded Tennessee (29-5) in a 4 p.m. matchup Saturday. Officials said about 8,000 tickets have been sold for the two games, which begin with top-seeded Maryland against fourth-seeded Duke at 1:30 p.m.
Facing Tennessee in the NCAA tournament could be daunting for some coaches in their first season.
As part of Graves’ staff, Fortier designed the defensive schemes, worked with the guards, and recruited many of the current players. Zags athletic director Mike Roth needed only a week last spring to decide to promote Fortier to head coach.
“I applaud Gonzaga for moving her up,” said Tennessee coach Holly Warlick, who was a longtime Pat Summitt assistant before replacing the Hall of Fame coach in 2012. “Not too many universities and programs do that. They always think you have to go get a head coach. That’s not necessarily so. When somebody has a love for the program, has lived it — that’s an intangible that you can’t measure in X’s and O’s. There becomes a love in the program and a love at what you do … I absolutely love what I do, where I’m at, and I’m positive that’s how Lisa feels.”
Under Fortier, the Zags lost to American in November and then to No. 17 Iowa in a tournament in Las Vegas.
At that point, Gonzaga tinkered with its system.
Emerging from that work was freshman center Emma Wolfram, who scored a career-high 17 points off the bench against OSU, and junior guard Elle Tinkle, who moved into the starting lineup in December to replace injured sharpshooter Lindsay Sherbert (knee).
They’ll join noted defender Keani Albanez, a senior guard, and senior forward Sunny Greinacher, who averages a team-high 13.8 points, as keys to countering Tennessee’s quick, deep and talented roster.
“All of us were more confident that she (Lisa) was going to be able to take this team and do something special with us,” Tinkle said. “And she’s been able to do so, so far. All of us have committed, and it was really (a) pretty seamless (transition).”
While Gonzaga is in a comfortable setting, compiling a 5-2 overall record in NCAA tournament games played in Spokane, the Vols have appeared in all 34 NCAA tournaments and won eight titles.
Tennessee advanced by defeating Boise State and Pittsburgh in the first two rounds. Vols junior forward Bashaara Graves led the way, averaging 22.5 points and 9.5 rebounds in the victories.
“I didn’t know how good we were going to be and, as a first-time head coach, I tried to set myself up for success by keeping our goals (small),” Fortier said. “We had a bumpy start with how we were playing, but we’re finally starting to hit our stride.”
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