Texas Tech University Athletics
Women's Basketball Gearing Up For New Season
September 05, 2014 | Women's Basketball
Sept. 5, 2014
Basketball season might not start for another two months, but the Texas Tech women's basketball team has already begun its preparations for the start of the 2014-15 season after completing its second week of fall workouts.
Tech welcomed eight new faces to campus this summer to join the five returning players that will make up the roster for second-year head coach Candi Whitaker.
"Lots of new faces," Whitaker smiled and said. "Our staff worked very hard to try and find players that were going to fit what we wanted to get done ... We feel like we've built a good foundation in this first class to build upon and we're excited to do that next with the 2015-16 class."
This is the first full recruiting class for Whitaker and her staff, who signed three high school players in November before adding on an additional five junior college transfers in the late fall and spring. Two of those transfers, Rayven Brooks and Paige Parliament, spent significant practice time with the team last season.
Each of the junior college transfers were ranked in the top 10 in their respective positions with three in the top 15 overall in country. All three high school players were ranked nationally as well, including Dayo Olabode, who was ranked No. 30 overall in the state of Texas and 11th at forward.
Olabode said the transition from high school to college has been a welcoming challenge.
"It was intense for me and a big change from high school," she said. "But my teammates have been there to push me and help me get stronger and better. So it really made me tougher and stronger as an athlete. I work hard and it pushes me to be on the same level every day as my teammates."
Being on the same level could be taken in more than one way when looking at Whitaker's improved roster.
Texas Tech's average height last season was five feet, 10 inches, with only three active players listed at six feet or higher. The squad has an average height of 6-1 this season with seven active players listed at six feet or taller.
Redshirt senior Kelsi Baker, who returns after taking last season off following Achilles surgery, said the mix of talented freshmen and junior college transfers is just what the Lady Raiders needed this year.
"I don't think we could have asked for a better group of incoming freshmen and transfers," Baker said. "They come in and work hard every day ... They're amazing people first, amazing students second and amazing athletes third. I think that is one thing this program was really striving for with this group and they've been at the forefront of that."
Whitaker resonated Baker's thoughts, adding that the new players help bring a different dynamic to the team on the court.
"I feel like we are really tough and we work really hard," Whitaker said. "We're definitely more skilled and more versatile. We're going to have a lot more scoring options. They've been a ton of fun to work with and we're very excited about the future."
Great first workout today! @LadyRaiderWBB #energy&effort
- Candace Whitaker (@CWhitakerTTU) August 27, 2014 
