Made the jaunt over to Roseville on late Wednesday afternoon to take in the evening practice being held by Northwestern at the Ericksen Center. I got there early enough to get myself situated and settled in and, much to my surprise, one of the important cogs of last year's run to the UMAC title and NCAA Tournament appearance, Mollie Sir; now helping out with Kahl and the coaching staff with practices, came down the stairs after the team meeting to greet me. She, along with fellow grad Jessica Fife (not at practice on this night), are both helping out with the team at practices and that's a really great thing that they can share their experience and knowledge with the newbies on the squad. And there are a LOT of new faces on the team this year. Shortly thereafter, Head Coach Aaron Kahl came down the stairs to greet me as we made our way to the gymnasium where the men's team was just finishing up practice. Kahl is one of the truly good guys in the coaching ranks and Northwestern's run the UMAC title and subsequent NCAA Tournament appearance were no fluke. He has taken the program to new heights and last year's feats are just one step forward.
After some dynamic stretching and warm-up exercises to get loosened up, Kahl has the team engage in their first drill in practice called "2 In A Row Shooting". Here, players are either two or three at a basket and a player has to hit two shots in a row from one spot before they can move the next spot. As the drill progresses, Kahl has the shooting range lengthen and it increases the difficulty of making two in a row.
The next drill is "Perfects Into 5-0". This is an interesting drill as Kahl has five players working on their zone defensive positioning by how he directs them with the ball. Kahl then puts up a shot (I was amazed at what a good shooter Kahl actually is!) for the group to rebound and then they go the other way on a 5-0 "shell" drill. This same group will come back down with the ball to the other end but this time they're greeted by a new group of five players and they will battle it out 5-on-5. The new group goes through the same process as the first group and when they get back to the other end, there's another group of five players waiting for them for another 5-on-5 half court clash.
Next is a team breakdown as the squad splits into three groups to work on various facets of the game. Kahl and assistant coach Zach Filzen work with one group on offensive positioning (5-0; 4 on the perimeter). Sir has another group under her tutelage as they work on inbounds passes and how to score off of them. Assistant Coach Roxie Brown has another group as they focus on starting points (with the high post). After six minutes, the groups switch so each group gets a taste of each work station.
Brown takes charge in the next drill which is aptly entitled "Get Lean And Mean With Rox!". Here, five players go down the floor on a 5-0 "shell" drill situation. The group must make five short shots off the glass and then sprint down to the other end and get into a 1-2-2 zone. Needless to say, a water break is in the offing for the squad once this session is complete.
Kahl has the squad spend some time on rebound transition work which consists mostly of 5-on-5 full court situations but he spends a large amount of time on 5-on-5 half court work; trying to get the offense to do what he wants them to do while, at the same time; getting his team to learn the ins and outs of zone defense - something that Kahl believes in strongly and something his teams have employed quite effectively over the last few years.
One of the really cool things about attending this practice was that practically all of the players came over to greet me and introduce themselves during the short breaks they had. I have to admit that I've never had quite anything like that happen before but, then again, this is a classy group and it's just further proof what a great program Kahl has here and the quality people he has in it. Afterward in his office, I got to talking with him about last year's team and if this year's squad can continue on that same path. Kahl admits that the road ahead is arguably a bit more treacherous than what it was last year given the youth on his squad. "We still have to get better defensively" he said and it's little wonder why he was doing so much half-court work focusing on defense in the latter stages of practice on this night. They'll get a chance to test their mettle this next week Monday night when Anoka-Ramsey makes the trek over to Roseville for a scrimmage that begins at 7:00 P.M.
Outtakes: This is a very young team and the two seniors, Chanel Madson and Jacki Smith, will certainly be thrust into the leadership role this season.......Speaking of newcomers, Kahl is very high on freshman Amy Berglund out of Springfield, Virginia and, watching her in practice, it's easy to see why. She has the potential to be a very, very good player for this program. Another newcomer to keep your eye on is junior Regan Cooper who transferred into Northwestern from Briar Cliff College. A very strong, athletic player who seems to be a perfect "fit" at the "4" position. Smith is the heir apparent to the post spot held down the last few years by Fife and her 6'2" frame will certainly allow her to get the job done in her own fashion. She hasn't been with the team as much as she'd like as she's also on the volleyball team at Northwestern. Another player to keep your eye on, IMHO, is 5'10" sophomore forward Emily Van Lith who likely will be one of the first players coming off the bench this season......Northwestern has been picked to finish third in the UMAC behind UM-Morris and St. Scholastica.
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