Women’s Pride basketball is looking to make more breaks for itself this season.

The team went 8-21 last year, matching its 2021 performance, but a little luck – and a few more breaks — would have made for a significantly different win/loss total.

“We lost eight games by less than four points,” said fifth-year head coach Courtney Locke. “Those are some games where we hopefully can turn the corner on some of those. I think it is just maturity and learning how to finish those games.”

One player she hopes will become an important “closer” for the Pride is Dash Shaw, a senior guard who etched herself onto the first-team All-GLIAC a year ago. 

Shaw took a noticeable leap from her sophomore to junior seasons, notching career bests in multiple categories. She also became the first woman to eclipse the 500-point mark in a season since PNW moved to Division II basketball.

“Dash is a force and is extremely tough to guard,” Locke said. “There is just a sense of urgency that this is [her] last go around.” 

Shaw is not only a gifted scorer at the team level but also ranks high among her competition. She finished fourth in the conference and top-30 in all DII. 

Merecedes Simmons, a senior forward, is another player to look out for, as she started in 27 of 29 games last year and averaged double digits.

But the Pride’s most important player may possibly be fifth-year senior guard Kennedy Jackson. 

In the 91 games she has played during her four years with the program, she has started in 87. Although Jackson may not have eye-popping stats like some of their teammates, she has important experience and helps to pull the team together.

“We have a great chemistry, and our team gets along really well,” Locke said. “[Jackson] leads the charge on that. She’s been with me for five years and she knows the culture of this team and what it means to be a part of the PNW women’s basketball program.”

Locke wants the players to spend their first few games finding their overall identity through intensity on the defensive end. 

“A big piece of that is going to be our defense,” she said. “We are excited to start at home in front of our home crowd as that will be the first time that will happen since I’ve been here. At the end of the day, we want to compete and be tough out there. We want to make those who played before us proud for wearing that PNW on our chest.”