Hofstra women look to make statement

What more can you ask of a team that seemingly has everything it takes to win?

That's the question Hofstra women's coach Krista Kilburn-Steveskey faces every day in practice.

The Pride goes two-deep at almost every position, returns AP All-American honorable mention selection Shante Evans and has a schedule built to make an impression on the NCAA Tournament selection committee.

But no one at Hofstra is ready to start tournament dancing just yet.

"On paper, it looks like we can't go wrong,'' senior guard Nicole Capurso said. "So I feel like we're going to be our own destruction or success.''

Capurso returns along with fifth-year senior point guard Candice Bellocchio. The two have played in a combined 190 games for the Pride.

Other key returnees from last season's 19-14 squad include sophomore forward/guard Kate Loper and senior forward Candace Bond.

The Pride gets an added bonus with the return of talented senior center Marie Malone, who missed all but four games last season with a torn ACL.

With so much firepower, everyone from Kilburn-Steveskey to the last player on the roster is convinced the talent is there.

But can the Pride, picked fourth in the CAA preseason coaches poll, handle the pressure?

"There's always going to be pressure, but we have to own up to it,'' Evans said. "We know what we can do and we know what we have."

The non-conference schedule includes games against 2011 tournament teams St. John's, Gonzaga, Kansas State and Princeton and possible matchups with Marist or Auburn at the Pride's holiday tournament.

"All these teams were picked for a reason. We want to make a statement,'' Bellocchio said. "The only way we are going to do that is to beat the best of the best.''

The Pride opens its season at Gonzaga on Friday.

"We're going to come out of the gate with someone testing us in every aspect,'' Kilburn-Steveskey said. "The chemistry is there and the work ethic is there, but we're still working out the kinks.''