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Gold and Black Illustrated, Vol 26, Digital 2

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VOLUME 26, ISSUE 2 69 PURDUE WOMEN'S BASKETBALL ROSTER No. Name El./Cl. Pos. Ht. Hometown (High School) 1 Ashley Morrisette Jr./Jr. G 5-9 Twinsburg, Ohio (Twinsburg) 2 Abby Abel Fr./Fr. G 5-5 Carmel, Ind. (Carmel) 3 Tiara Murphy Fr./Fr. G 5-7 South Bend, Ind. (Washington) 4 Torrie Thornton Sr./Sr. (5) F 6-0 Carmel, Ind. (Carmel) 5 Justine Hall So./So. G 5-10 Denver (Regis Jesuit) 10 Hayden Hamby Sr./Sr. G 5-7 Trinity, Ala. (West Morgan) 12 Nora Kiesler Fr./Fr. C 6-6 Louisville (Assumption) 13 Bridget Perry Jr./Jr. G 6-2 Mooresville, Ind. (Roncalli) 20 Dominique McBryde Fr./Fr. F 6-2 Bedford, Ind. (North Lawrence) 21 Erica Moore So./So. F 6-2 Fortville, Ind. (Mount Vernon) 22 Bree Horrocks So./So. C 6-5 Buford, Ga (Buford) 24 Andreona Keys So./So. G 5-10 Atlanta (Roswell) 25 April Wilson Sr./Sr. G 5-7 Louisville, Ky. (Manual) I t's the little things. After a year in which Purdue finished last in the Big Ten, the Boilermakers say they're doing them now: Keeping the locker and weight rooms clean, get- ting rehab done efficiently in the training room, watch- ing food intake, putting in extra conditioning, getting up more shots in the gym. It adds up, Purdue hopes, to a culture change that will result in better performance. "(We're) starting from scratch and changing all of that," junior forward Bridget Perry said. "It's really carried over on the court, changing what goes on in the locker room, looking at workouts differently, with a different mindset, not just getting through them or barely getting by but excelling at those. That's been the change, not just settling for good enough but wanting to be great." Purdue has a long way to go, but it thinks that the small steps taken now might get it there. Last season, the Boilermakers were only 11-20, with three wins in the Big Ten, their worst showings in more than 30 years. They set other marks for futility, including 10 straight losses to end the regular season — Purdue ended the streak by picking up a win in the Big Ten Tournament — and will take a seven-game home los- ing skid into this year. The roster looks different. The top and third-leader scorers, along with top two rebounders, are gone in forwards Whitney Bays and Liza Clemons, leaving the Boilermakers to rebuild in the frontcourt. But the backcourt, led by senior point guard April Wilson and junior Ashley Morrissette, is a veteran group, one that Purdue thinks can lead the way. To do so, the Boilermakers are trying to put the past in the past. When workouts started in mid-June, after what the Boilermakers called a grueling postseason workout regimen a couple months earlier, they had their usual Purdue apparel taken away. Instead, they wore only plain gray shorts and black shirts, with "20" stitched on the back, representing the 20 losses last season and the expected 20 wins this one to come. In the months since, Purdue earned back its Nike apparel, throwing out the "20" jerseys, and with that, symbolically throwing out the past season. "We don't talk about the past anymore," said Sha- ron Versyp, the second-winningest coach at Purdue who enters her 10th season. "We've moved on. We talk about today and they've done a lot of great things al- ready. We have a long way to go, but the mindset, the commitment, the respect, understanding the program is bigger than them, all those things came back. They're a fun group to coach. "So when you get out on the court and are having fun because they want to work hard and they want to BY KYLE CHARTERS KCharters@GoldandBlack.com

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