March 27, 2012
During the course of each season, there are those moments that stand out. Today, we begin a two-part look at some of those moments from this year’s Vanderbilt women’s basketball team through the lenses of Vanderbilt University photographers Joe Howell, John Russell and Daniel Dubois.
Some of the photos help tell the story of the season, while others are simply those lucky moments in the game where a photographer captured a moment hardly noticeable to the naked eye. Whatever the case, VUCommodores.com takes you back through the 2011-12 season with women’s basketball photos of the year.
2011-12 Women’s Basketball Photos of the Year
Tiffany Clarke – NCAA Second Round vs. Duke (March 20)
Photo by Joe Howell.
It was another successful season for the Commodores, who won 20 games and reached the NCAA Tournament for the 13th-straight season. Vanderbilt hosted the first and second rounds of the tournament at Memorial Gym, falling to second-seeded Duke in the round of 32.
Maggie Morrison – Thanksgiving Tournament vs. No. 12/14 Oklahoma (Nov. 26)
Photo by Daniel Dubois.
Entering the year, Vanderbilt expected to rely on its youth as the roster of 11 had just one senior and three juniors. Freshman point guard Maggie Morrison was a big part of that, as she gave sophomore Jasmine Lister a chance to rest on the bench, as well as play off the point. Shortly after scoring eight points and dishing out eight assists in two games at the Thanksgiving Tournament, Morrison was lost for the year to a knee injury just before the NC State game on Dec. 18.
Jasmine Lister – vs. Alabama A&M (Nov. 11)
Photo by John Russell.
Jasmine Lister would eventually evolve into a true point guard, averaging 38.9 minutes per game during SEC play. This shot, from the season-opener against Alabama A&M on Nov. 11 is one of those great moments only a photographer’s lens can capture.
Christina Foggie – vs. Florida State (Dec. 22)
Photo by Joe Howell.
By the time the Commodores hosted Florida State on Dec. 22, the story of the season had become Christina Foggie. Foggie, seen dishing to a post player in the win over the Seminoles, became just the second player in Vanderbilt history to have at least five-straight games of 20 or more points from Nov. 26-Dec. 7, matching Wendy Scholtens. Foggie would go on to match Scholtens again by becoming just the second Vanderbilt player to win an SEC scoring title.
Christina Foggie, Stephanie Holzer & Gabby Smith – vs. Ole Miss (Jan. 8)
Photo by John Russell.
SEC play began on January 5 at South Carolina, followed by a win in the first SEC home game on January 8 against Ole Miss. SEC play marked the return to the lineup of junior guard Gabby Smith, who missed 11 non-conference games due to a concussion.
Jasmine Lister – vs. Auburn (Jan. 12)
Photo by Joe Howell.
As SEC play heated up, Lister had to grow into the role of point guard. This photo shows that evolution does not always come as quickly as the head coach may like, as Balcomb and Lister talk things over during Vanderbilt’s win over Auburn.
Jasmine Lister – vs. Auburn (Jan. 12)
Photo by Joe Howell.
The win over Auburn became of foreshadowing of the dogfight the SEC would be. Eight teams would go on to receive NCAA Tournament bids and the team that finished 12th (Alabama) defeated the regular season champion (Kentucky) during the year. The Commodores would finish just one game off their SEC record from the previous year, but that meant a seventh place finish, as opposed to third place.
Stephanie Holzer – vs. South Carolina (Jan. 22)
Photo by Joe Howell.
One of the most hard-fought games of a hard-fought SEC season was the overtime loss to South Carolina on Jan. 22. Stephanie Holzer showed the emotion of that game as the Commodores battled back from nine down early in the second half to force overtime before falling, 65-60. Holzer grabbed a career-high 15 rebounds in the contest.
Check back to VUCommodores.com tomorrow when we take you through the rest of the season during part two of our photos of the year.
