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WOMEN'S BASKETBALL: Colby sophomore Mack works to expand her game
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BY TRAVIS LAZARCZYK, Staff Writer Kennebec Journal & Morning Sentinel 11/18/2009

WATERVILLE -- Lori Gear McBride, the Colby College women's basketball coach, doesn't mince words when she talks about the potential of sophomore forward Rachael Mack.

"I think she can dominate almost every game she plays in," McBride said. "Not necessarily from a points and boards standpoint, but just from everything. She's a very smart player. She makes the right decisions. When she draws attention, she knows how to get other people the ball. "

The 6-foot-1 Mack became one the Mules' top players the second she arrived on campus from Cony High School. Mack led Colby in rebounding with 7.4 boards per game and was third on the team in scoring (10.7 ppg).

The New England Small College Athletic Conference keeps track of eight statistical categories, and Mack -- Miss Maine Basketball in 2008 -- was the only player to lead the league in three of them: Blocked shots (1.56 per game), field goal percentage (.558, 101 for 181), and free throw percentage (.846, 66 for 78).

Mack is one of four returning Mules who averaged at least 10 points per game. Seniors Alison Cappelloni (11.5 ppg) and Sam Allen (10.1 ppg) and junior Julianne Kowalski (10.8) give Colby a great chance to improve on last season's 13-12 record and go deep in the NESCAC playoffs.

"We pretty much have scoring punch from every position, which is exciting," McBride said. "Alison is deadly from the outside. Both her and Sam Allen have a real sense of urgency to the season. We know we're right on the cusp of doing some really good things and they want to see it before they graduate."

Added Mack, who led Colby by playing an average of 28.1 minutes per game last season: "We have really high hopes for the season. The first couple weeks of practice have been great. We're so much further along than we were last year. We're just all focused on the same goals."

To help the Mules take that next step, McBride asked Mack to work on a couple of things. First, Mack needed to get stronger and gain stamina.

"Last year I thought there were games where she just disappeared a little bit. And I think part of that was due to the kind of adjustment to the college game," McBride said. "She was getting pounded on game after game and we asked her to do pretty much everything. I think it took its toll."

Mack hit the weight room in the summer, and ran to increase her stamina. When Mack came back to school, the work was noticeable.

"She's in excellent shape. She's gotten a lot stronger. I think she's going to be a much bigger presence," McBride said.

The other thing the coach stressed to Mack was simple: Shoot more from the outside. Mack was just 0 for 1 from 3-point territory last season, but McBride feels the three can be a dangerous shot for Mack, who would add another dimension to the Mules' offense.

"She's a great shooter. I think she just needed someone to tell her that she could have the green light," McBride said. "That will help open up our offense a little bit. Draw the defense out she can take them off the dribble."

Added Mack: "That's something we talked about last year that I needed to work on over the summer, because if I'm able to hit shots at the trail position, it opens up things for the players inside."

Mack thinks her greatest improvement has come on the defensive end, particularly when it comes to playing team defense. "Communicating. Coach McBride helped me a lot with that, helping other people see, talking more and working together," Mack said.

Travis Lazarczyk -- 861-9242

tlazarczyk@centralmaine.com

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