[81alum]

Actually we had several top 10 players in that downturn.  Chandra Benton being one.  She didn't appear to be top 10 when she played her of course, and then had to leave the team.  Now a school teacher at a HS in Oregon.

Nicole Powell came in as a freshman in 2000-01 and started the climb out.  Candice came in as a freshman the year after Nicole graduated, and the string of WNBA stars was continuous from 2000 until Chiney graduated in 2014.  2000-2014 is not a bad run for that kind of talent.

After 1997-8 we graduated Folkl, Olympia Scott, and Vanessa Nygaard and we did not get Nicole Powell until she came in as a freshman in 2001.  So 1998-99 and 1999-2000  were the two years devoid of WNBA type talent, and it showed.  In 99-00 we were 21-9, 13-5 in conference.  We lost to ASU, Washington, Oregon, UCLA, and Arizona--but we also beat all those teams.  We lost a relatively close game to Tennessee earlier in the year, and followed that up with a disastrous road trip in which we lost to Massachusetts and St. Joseph's.  After our mediocre conference play, we got to the NCAAs where we beat Michigan in OT and got crushed by Georgia in round 2. 

The main starters that year were:

Carolyn Moos 12.3 ppg  A 6'6" center.  One of six finalists for the high school Naismith and played for the USA junior Olympic team before Stanford. At Stanford she went over 2000 pts and 1000 rebounds.   Also became Jason Collins' fiance, but Jason called off the wedding a month before the wedding date for reasons that are now clearer.

Milena Flores 11.3 ppg  Point guard.  Currently an assistant with Princeton.  Cousin to Mike Cordova.  A very good Seattle area player in high school but not nationally known.  One of our assists leaders.
http://articles.latimes.com/2000/feb/06/sports/sp-61760

Jamie Carey 11.0 ppg.  Brilliant three point shooting guard and broke our three point shooting records, but even this year she was becoming injury plagued, leading to her eventual retirement, transfer to Texas, and renewel of her career.  She did play in the WNBA for several years in what has to be considered one of the more foolish risks for an underpaid athlete.
http://www.gostanford.com/ViewArticle.db...=208085755

Bethany Donaphin 9.6 ppg.  A very good NYC area high school player but no national awards.  A good rebounding power forward.  She did play in the WNBA for a year and then in Italy. 
http://www.paloaltoonline.com/weekly/mor...SHOOP.html

Lauren St. Clair 9.3 ppg.  A Parade 2nd team All American in high school.  Good three point shooter. 
http://www.sfgate.com/sports/article/St-...809453.php

In looking this team over, I think its overall talent level might be roughly comparable to our team today.  Moos is probably on par with McCall, St. Clair  or Jamie Carey similar to Karlie, Milena to Lili, Bethany probably similar to Kaylee--all these comparisons not on the basis of their style or body types, but on the basis of their high school reputations.  That team had some serious early season setbacks similar to us--it lost to Tennessee, we lost to Texas; it lost those two east coast games, we lost to Santa Clara.  It scattered five losses in the league,  we seem to be about on roughly the same track.  Let's hope we get at least one game further into the NCAAs than they did. 

In short, I think we have been here before--not an exact comparison, but there are quite a few similarities.

[81alum]

Actually we had several top 10 players in that downturn.  Chandra Benton being one.  She didn't appear to be top 10 when she played her of course, and then had to leave the team.  Now a school teacher at a HS in Oregon.

Nicole Powell came in as a freshman in 2000-01 and started the climb out.  Candice came in as a freshman the year after Nicole graduated, and the string of WNBA stars was continuous from 2000 until Chiney graduated in 2014.  2000-2014 is not a bad run for that kind of talent.

After 1997-8 we graduated Folkl, Olympia Scott, and Vanessa Nygaard and we did not get Nicole Powell until she came in as a freshman in 2001.  So 1998-99 and 1999-2000  were the two years devoid of WNBA type talent, and it showed.  In 99-00 we were 21-9, 13-5 in conference.  We lost to ASU, Washington, Oregon, UCLA, and Arizona--but we also beat all those teams.  We lost a relatively close game to Tennessee earlier in the year, and followed that up with a disastrous road trip in which we lost to Massachusetts and St. Joseph's.  After our mediocre conference play, we got to the NCAAs where we beat Michigan in OT and got crushed by Georgia in round 2. 

The main starters that year were:

Carolyn Moos 12.3 ppg  A 6'6" center.  One of six finalists for the high school Naismith and played for the USA junior Olympic team before Stanford. At Stanford she went over 2000 pts and 1000 rebounds.   Also became Jason Collins' fiance, but Jason called off the wedding a month before the wedding date for reasons that are now clearer.

Milena Flores 11.3 ppg  Point guard.  Currently an assistant with Princeton.  Cousin to Mike Cordova.  A very good Seattle area player in high school but not nationally known.  One of our assists leaders.
http://articles.latimes.com/2000/feb/06/sports/sp-61760

Jamie Carey 11.0 ppg.  Brilliant three point shooting guard and broke our three point shooting records, but even this year she was becoming injury plagued, leading to her eventual retirement, transfer to Texas, and renewel of her career.  She did play in the WNBA for several years in what has to be considered one of the more foolish risks for an underpaid athlete.
http://www.gostanford.com/ViewArticle.db...=208085755

Bethany Donaphin 9.6 ppg.  A very good NYC area high school player but no national awards.  A good rebounding power forward.  She did play in the WNBA for a year and then in Italy. 
http://www.paloaltoonline.com/weekly/mor...SHOOP.html

Lauren St. Clair 9.3 ppg.  A Parade 2nd team All American in high school.  Good three point shooter. 
http://www.sfgate.com/sports/article/St-...809453.php

In looking this team over, I think its overall talent level might be roughly comparable to our team today.  Moos is probably on par with McCall, St. Clair  or Jamie Carey similar to Karlie, Milena to Lili, Bethany probably similar to Kaylee--all these comparisons not on the basis of their style or body types, but on the basis of their high school reputations.  That team had some serious early season setbacks similar to us--it lost to Tennessee, we lost to Texas; it lost those two east coast games, we lost to Santa Clara.  It scattered five losses in the league,  we seem to be about on roughly the same track.  Let's hope we get at least one game further into the NCAAs than they did. 

In short, I think we have been here before--not an exact comparison, but there are quite a few similarities.