Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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I Sports analyst High By Michelle Burchette Assistant Sports Editor When the women's IbasKeioail leam opens its season at the end of this month, several faces will be missing from the lineup. Six players from last year's 30-6 team will not be back for another season at Carolina. Cynthia Jacobs, the 6-2 center from Orlanda, Fla. will not return because she Pam Parsons graduated. Cindy Rawl and Maryann Chibbaro, the two walk-ons from last year's .1V|U(1U ticticu IIUl IU LI y UUl for this year's team. Starting forward Suzanne Woolston and former cocaptain of the team Jean Walling ' oth transferred to ' Old Dominion University. Junior point guard Cheryl Alltrv ha? Ir.'incforrpH tn thn I University of Georgia where I she hopes to finish out her college basketball career. These girls will become part of history. Their names and faces will remain in old Lady Gamecock basketball programs, but the shock over their decisions not to return will be short lived. rs( FANS HAVK grown accustomed to a high turI nover rate on the women's I basketball team. Since the arrival of head coach and women's athletic director I'am Parsons in 1977 the basketball program has lost at least 15 players ? an average of more than four players a season. The question is why have so many players left a program which has become more successful each season? Why, especially, did Woolston, Walling and Autry, three players who n:iu/ rvlotrinrt *'? ?? vwuoiviv'i uuiv; piaj 1115 time last season, leave the third-ranked team in the country? One reason for the departure of so many girls from women's basketball programs is the AIAW transfer rule which allows players to be actively recruited during the season. I Pep Railv Today 5 p.m. Russell House Patio s turnove If a girl decides to. transfer schools she does not have to sit out a year but may not receive any scholarship monies during her first year. In the case of Jean Walling, however, such a ruling would not be beneficial. Walling, a scholarship player for USC, transferred to Old Dominion as a senior. She gave up her scholarship and three years of playing with USC to try her chances on another squad. ANOTHER REASON for such a high turnover rate relates to the rapid growth of women's basketball. In just a few short years women's basketball has grown from the deDths of tho unknown to national prominence. National sports magazines have done articles on teams and their players. NBC-TV has covered the AIAW national basketball championships for the past two years. Such rampant exposure has stepped up the level of competition at an unbelievable rate, making it difficult for some players to continue playing ball at a major university. All things considered, however, South Carolina still has the highest turnover rate among some of the top twenty teams in the country, as compared with figures given by the sports information departments at the other respective universities. ACCORDING TO OLD I DOMINION University, ranked number one at the end of last season, only two players have transferred to other schools from their program, since the 1977-78 season. Since 1976-77 the University of Tennessee has ^ lost eight nla Vf?rs fnr rpavnns - -0? I J other than graduation, two of whom transferred. Rutgers University, ranked fourth in St reef & Smith's preseason poll, has had only two players transfer out since the 1975-76 season. Kentucky has had two players leave since the 197879 season, while Texas has lost six players since 1977. None of the players from Texas transferred from the program. Both Texas and Kentucky are ranked in the top twenty by preseason polls. The University o t Maryland, a top ACC contender, has had eight girls leave since 1975-76 while r rate fo their rival N.C. State has had five players leave since the same season. By Gamecock calculations, the Lady Gamecocks have lost 15 players since the 1977-78 season. Carolina has been ranked sixth in the country by the Street & Smith's preseason poll. According to several former Carolina players, however, their departure was directly related to Coach Parsons pprsnnniitv V...VJ conflicts and their inability to work with her as a coach were their main reasons for leaving. "The whole thing comes down to a personality conflict between Coach Parsons and her players," Woolsten said. "It wasn't specifically anything she did to me as a player as much as it was an accumulative thing that happened over the two year period I was there. "She did not specifically single me out and heap abuse on me personally," Woolston added. "The past two years it was upsetting to me to see my teammates emotionally shattered. It happened so often to my teammates. It was really hard to stand around while these players were being verbally torn apart." WALLING WAS ALSO Hey, You! I***. : i .in K m !_?? I m i Additional' off Wednesd special coui available ii Student Mc While supply r Lady C displeased with Parson's coaching methods. The Barnwell, S.C. native said the feedback she got from Parsons was usually negative. "She'd >tip in practice and say 'OK Jean, you're gonna start.' Then, a few minutes before the practice was over she'd say she'd changed her mind. It was like she'd build me up just to cut my feet out from under me," Walling explained. "For three years that's what I went through. "We'd get in a practice and she'd say you can't do this, you can't do that and I began to wonder what my purpose was on the team. When I'd get in a game I was so frazzled because of the things she told me I wasn't able to do," she added. Jaima Oxley, a key outside shooter for the Lady Gamecocks, left USC after the 1978-1979 season. Oxley transferred to the College of Charleston where she is active in women's athletics. "She (Parsons) just doesn't treat you human," Oxley said. 44 She's only got one thing on her mind and that's being number one. She doesn't care how she does it, or who she steps on, or who she runs over, just as long as she gets what she wants. "It's her way or the plf? ? gt Z^-lf.'-Wrri n t| j^fflj^fiiiitUiil SgSgjg&3i 8B|^HBwWra. - 'BB""^;?': s is -1 h m .^ H i IS ^ ?K \ 6 i&SsSsS' ' ' '' x5 ? V'x^'- '-n &i ?Kf> . ; IHfe^N'.': v ?:&$?$! (\SV a) ,<^BKBBHOik : |HHH 19 it insnni imB m: -: I Hi l 2Em&SBS^^^MHpF v.' ^BHujaS-r. - : BBj|^-\|t^ v v^ copies lay's pon issue are n Rm. 313 RHUI ?dia Center. lasts/ 3ameco highway." Parsons refused to comment on her former players, their accusations, or their reasons for leaving the program at USC, saying only that she felt no one would benefit from her response to these allegations. ACCORDING TO WOOLSTON, one of Parsons coaching tactics she could not agree with was using fear as a motivator. " The whole team was so frightened of Coach Parsons. We won because we were scared to lose." Woolston admitted. "We were frightened to death of the coach. "Fear as a motivator can be taken pretty far. But. in the end fear is not going to get a national championship. You need a stronger base than that." Woolston added that much of the respect needed between coach and player was missing. "I think in everything you do in life, whether it's basketball or not, there is a basic respect for your fellow human being. That should never leave, no matter what you're doing," she said. "1 don't think the players' feelings were really respected at all." Players returning to the Lady Gamecocks this year g&mmgm _ I1:"' ^\?v^5v " 1 m I JHRI :yi-"'^:? - ' hHH : * Bflw ffi ,. * .. SRST sR9B^^^^K^?| - wro ~' ^^^BS5qS&?>? 5',?^ ' Illlilli 111111111 :. . . ' ' ' .. . . ' m ; i . v :*< - ':V,vVl^^^^^B^^B:> .v'c?::<x->:: i> >' * : ; ' V ?cks have a slightly different outlook on Parsons and her coaching style. "I lx?lieve she's a real good coach even though 1 might not agree with some of the things she does." Kvelyn Johnson, freshman standout on last year's team said. "The way she goes about doing things it can mentally break a person down. You have to be strong, mentally strong to handle her and playing basketball Some people are and som?' just can't take it." All-American Sheila Foster said some people misinterpret Parson's actions and coaching style. "When she gets down on some of the players sometimes they can't suck it up." she said. "But il you suck it up and hang in there she's great. She's not there to hurt none of us. If she gets Oil Vftlir t j vmvjv wi r?cifcY 5 something bad to you she just wants you to become a better ballplayer. She's just helping. "Some of them can't deal with Coach Parsons, they can't suck it up." she added. It can't l>e denied that Coach Parsons is a winner. Under her command the women's athletic department has grown by leaps and bounds. But this hot; HU.l I W I Cdllll* without its casualties. immmww I ' M B p \~y^L. j ?i if* > ifl| J8H 14.A* ^ %4i5gP vmmmm ^52__J