UC Clermont women’s basketball season tips off

The UC Clermont College women’s basketball team is starting the 2018-19 season with a ton of talent — and high hopes.

The team, which won the United States Collegiate Athletic Association Division II National Championship in 2014, finished around .500 last season. But Coach Rick Hosea, who has led the team for 12 years, believes an influx of new players could propel the squad to more success this year. The Cougars have three returning players and have added talented sophomore transfers Brooke Jenike (Bethel-Tate) from Florida Southern College, Anna Voskuhl (St. Henry) from Midway University in Kentucky and Hanna Thierauf (Milford) from Roosevelt in Chicago. A number of talented freshmen also join the team, including Gabrielle Barnet (Mt. Healthy), Kristi Duncan (Mt. Notre Dame), Cana Kleemeyer (Western Brown) and Laronda Castleberry (Western Hills).

“Our potential success this year is not a question of talent,” Hosea said. “It’s around getting everyone on the same page and striving for the same goals. If we come together and play as a team, especially defensively, we can be successful.”

For Coaches Ken Lowe and Hosea, that means returning to the USCAA national tournament. To get there, the program will face tough competition at home, including Warren Wilson on Jan. 5, Villa Maria on Feb. 2 and Andrews University on Feb. 10.

The Cougars play all home games in the Student Activities Center on the UC Clermont campus, 4200 Clermont College Drive, Batavia, Ohio. See the full season schedule.