University of North Carolina Ashville Athletics
Monroe & Young Spark Bulldogs Off the Bench - UNC Asheville Bulldogs Official Athletics Site
01.01.1970 | Women's Basketball
March 6, 2006
By Jason McGill
Citizen-Times
ASHEVILLE - When Jessica Monroe helped lead Franklinton High School to a pair of Tar-Roanoke Class 1-A Conference titles, she had to learn just two offensive plays.
Now a freshman member of the UNC Asheville women's basketball team, she's tasked with knowing at least 12 offensive plays and handling the ensuing variations - broken plays, shot clock winding down, double teams and so on. And she's doing it all from the bench, where she averages 1.2 points and 1.6 rebounds in 6.6 minutes per game.
"Coming from high school, I dealt with a confidence issue," Monroe said. "It's like, you're the person they depend on, but now it's more of a team thing. This is something new to me. As far as coming off the bench, it's a lot of pressure for me as a freshman. I'm still learning. You have to come in and just do what the starters are doing. It's something for me to live up to.
"The game will come with experience. I have three more years, so I'm not really worried about that."
Monroe, a 5-foot-11 post player, shares the bench with junior forward Leslie Young, a former Pisgah High standout. Young and other upperclassmen have told Monroe to stop worrying about making mistakes and be patient.
And Young would know.
After averaging 7.5 mpg last year, she's up to 13.6 mpg this season. Reserves Katie Baldwin(injury), Wudi Alford(suspension) and Amy Mulnix (injury) all are out, which means UNCA has needed increased production from its remaining bench players, including freshman point guard Ana Baker and junior transfer forward Tasha Branch.
"It's hard coming off the bench. That goes without saying," said Young, who averages 4.0 points and 2.5 rebounds per game. "You're expected to go in and maintain whatever the starters are doing. If they're going on a run, you have to in and continue that. You can't really let down. If you're going in and they're not doing good, you're expected to bring something - a spark to get them going, get them motivated."
Young said her biggest fear coming off the bench is losing ground. While the Bulldogs don't use charts detailing how varying personnel packages perform, coach Betsy Blose will point out key statistics during halftime.
"She'll say who's got the offensive rebounds and distinguish between the starting post and the people coming in," Young said. "It's kind of a kick in the butt. If you go in and you're losing ground, of course, it's going to be frustrating (but) we've got a really good team dynamic where we'll pick each other up."
"Leslie's an interesting story," Blose said. "She hasn't played a lot in her career. This year, I thought she came back really ready and confident. She stayed here last summer and worked on her game and I thought she earned the right to play because she outworks a lot of people. ... She's stuck with it and she's to be commended for that. It's not always easy."
As for the promising freshman from Youngsville? Blose said Monroe's best days are ahead of her.
"She has a lot to learn but she's probably one of the best athletes on the team," Blose said. "You can see she's getting more comfortable as the season progresses. We kind of use her sparingly, but I told her, 'you always got to be ready.
