ATLANTA – The Georgia Tech women’s basketball team tips off the 2000-01 season with the Atlanta Marriott Northwest Classic November 24-25 at O’Keefe Gymnasium.
The Yellow Jackets, who return four starters from last year’s 17-14 squad that advanced to the quarterfinals of the Women’s National Invitation Tournament, host Cornell at 2:00 p.m. on Friday, November 24. Mount St. Mary’s and Winthrop tip off at 4:00 p.m. The tournament will conclude on Saturday, November 25 with the consolation game at 2:00 p.m. and the championship game at 4:00 p.m.
Niesha Butler, the Atlantic Coast Conference Rookie of the Year in 1999, returns after sitting out last season with a torn ACL. Butler averaged 19.3 points and 4.4 assists per game as a freshman and is one of 30 preseason Naismith Player of the Year candidates.
Last year’s leading scorere and rebounder, forward Jaime Kruppa, returns for her senior year. She led the Jackets with 10.4 points and 7.7 rebounds per game last season.
A trio of guards is expected to help lead Tech this season. Sophomore Nina Barlin started every game at point guard last season, averaging 7.2 points and a team-best 3.8 assists per game. Sophomore Alex Stewart also saw action in every game as a freshman and is expected to be a leader this season. Junior Milli Martinez was second on the 1999-2000 squad with 9.9 points per game.
The Yellow Jackets are once again led by Agnus Berenato, who begins her 13th season as head coach of the team.
