As the basketball seasons for both the Men's and Women's Basketball teams at AU come to a close, the two teams say goodbye to individuals who have had large impacts on their respective programs.
Before Sunday's game against Colgate, AU said goodbye to senior guards Chanel Spriggs, Angel McNatt, Courtney Spellacy and Kaitlin Schuyler on the women's team and to senior guard Andres Rodriguez and forward Jernavis Draughn on the men's team.
Although the players haven't played their last games in the AU blue and red, they have most likely played their last home game. Barring good fortune in their respective Patriot League tournaments, it doesn't look as if either team will get a home game in the PL championship.
As manager of the men's team, I've had the good fortune of getting to know both Rodriguez and Draughn. I've watched them work their butts off in practice since October, consistently pushing the team to get better. Even when injured, neither player complains, they just bring their best effort to the floor every day.
Rodriguez established himself as one of the best point guards in the PL, and put up great numbers, including the third-best assist total in the nation. That puts him above many point guards who will end up in the NBA next year, pretty good for a kid who didn't even plan on playing basketball when he transferred from Louisville to AU in the middle of his freshman year.
Schuyler is the only four-year player on the women's side, yet she finds a way, game in, game out, to make sure the Eagles are competitive. With the help of her teammates, Schuyler has put the Eagles in a position in which they could play for the PL championship. That's quite an accomplishment for a player who fractured her hand sophomore year.
Spriggs and Draughn both played for different schools within the past four years, but will end up donning the Eagles colors for their final collegiate games. Spriggs was averaging 9.7 points per game prior to the weekend's games, which place her in the top 20 in the PL. That's quite a stat for a player who probably wouldn't consider offense her specialty. It's easy to understand why she doesn't consider offense her specialty, when you see her defensive statistics.
Spriggs' 3.6 steals per game puts her fourth in the nation. She will average more steals than most players who will end up in the WNBA next year.
Draughn, on the other hand, will leave huge shoes to fill when he graduates. The Eagles will desperately miss his 6.8 rebounds and 11.6 points per game. Never a man of many words, Draughn speaks with his play on the court. Rarely dunking, he simply gets the job done every game, putting up double doubles on a regular basis. Draughn's play is sometimes forgotten about because he isn't the flashiest player, but teammates notice the hard work that the undersized power forward displays every game. He recently put an exclamation on the recent victory over Navy, finishing the game with a thunderous baseline dunk that brought the bench to its feet.
As the six seniors get ready to put on their jerseys for the last time in their respective careers, they need to be remembered for how much they brought to the floor every night. Every time they stepped on the court, the seniors brought what any team needs every night - heart, effort and commitment.
After the Navy game, in which he broke the NCAA season record for assists in a single game (19), Rodriguez said he would have been content if he had only handed out one assist and the team had won. It's statements like these that show the true character of the seniors.
If you had to sum up the seniors in one statement it would be - they were more preoccupied with carrying out the team game plan and trying to help their teams win then with their individual stats - a statement that any player, coach or fan would be proud of.
