Does the date March 10, 2012 have significance for you?

    Well if you are a fan of the Idaho State women’s basketball team it should, as that was the day the Bengals won the Big Sky tournament championship 49-46 over Northern Colorado in front of 2,202 Bengal fans in Reed Gym.

    While most of us know the NCAA Tournament game against Miami was not the team’s best performance, it did not take anything from a fantastic season that saw the Bengals go 24-7 overall and 14-2 in the Big Sky Conference.

    Believe it or not, the Bengals begin defense of their title Sunday with the opening of fall camp in Reed Gym.

    Reigning Big Sky Coach of the Year Seton Sobolewski enters his fifth year at the helm of the Bengals, poised to go out defending the conference title.

    He also may have the most experienced team he has had during his time at ISU.

    The Bengals lost just one player to graduation after the 2011-12 season, guard Chelsea Pickering.

    While there is no doubt it will be tough to find a player as tough and gritty as Pickering was or who will bring her scoring and defensive capabilities, Sobolewski has depth and experience in his favor.

    Looking at the roster as it stands today, the Bengals have five seniors, six juniors, two sophomores, one redshirt freshman and one true freshman giving the Bengals what may be the deepest roster in the league.

    Sobolewski also has four of his five starters returning this season led by seniors Kaela Oakes and Ashleigh Vella.

    Oakes runs the motion offense for Sobolewski and may be the quickest player in the conference.

    Numerous times last season, Oakes sliced up opposing defenses on the way to earning first team All-Big Sky honors.

    While Oakes is known for her ball handling skills, she is also one of the top three point shooters in the conference. After averaging 41percent from behind the arc, teams will have to find away to slow her down.

    Luckily for the Bengals they have plenty of other weapons for Oakes to distribute the ball to.

    Two of those options are post players Vella and junior Cydney Horton.

    Vella earned an honorable mention nod from the Big Sky last season and, after earning a bronze medal for Malta during the European Championship for Small Countries, Vella is ready to finish off her career at ISU with another title.

    No player on the roster made bigger strides than Horton did last year.

    After struggling with rebounds and on defense as a sophomore, the 6-foot-1 forward blossomed last season.

    Horton averaged 6.9 rebounds and 1.5 blocks per game, leading the team in both categories and becoming the interior player the team has desperately needed in years past.

    Rounding out the returning starters is junior guard Lindsey Reed.

    Reed has played a lot of minutes over the last two seasons and the biggest concern coming into to this season is whether her body take a third year of heavy playing time. The short answer is probably, but I have a feeling Sobolewski will find ways to get her breaks early in the season.

    Reed is the team’s best shooter and needs to be healthy for the offense to be as effective as it has been.

    The bench is led by Kara Jenkins, Blaire Brady, Taylor Floyd and Jessa Jeppesen, each of whom played significant minutes last year. Jeppesen tailed off after a strong start, but the other three seemed to progress as the season went on. Each will be counted on for significant time again this year, and Jenkins could be a top candidate to replace Pickering in the starting lineup.

    Sobolewski brought two new players into the mix during the recruiting period in freshman forward Anna Lee Policicchio and junior college transfer Alissa Willard.

    It will be interesting to see what each of these players brings to the table and how much they will contribute.

    Last season was one many fans will not forget, but this year’s Bengals will be focused on improving for this season when they hit the floor for the first time Sunday.

    While football in full swing and baseball in the stretch run, ladies and gentlemen it’s time for Bengal basketball.