In the year of the freshmen, Wisconsin got more from its freshman class than any other team. Jessie Stomski, Tamara Moore and Kyle Black were major contributors, and Stomski started and scored in double figures in every Big 10 game on the way to being named league Freshman of the Year. She also broke the scoring record, and tied the rebounding mark of 1998 FOY LaTonya Sims.

Moore played three positions. She began erratically but settled in to be one of the top defensive players in the league after she was moved to her natural position of small forward. Black was the designated scorer off the bench.

The three provided some of the mental toughness that the team sorely needed. Stomski provided stability, Moore intensity and Black an emotional spark off the bench.

But they were freshman and Wisconsin was hampered by the weakest senior class in the league. Jane Albright also has not had a reliable point guard since Keisha Anderson graduated in 1997. The result was that the team struggled, as it has in the past, away from Madison. Before finally breaking out in the second half at Michigan, Wisconsin had lost its first six league road games. They blew away Michigan and finished the season with a win at Minnesota to finish with a poor 2-6 Big 10 road record.

As befitting a young team, Wisconsin improved as the year wore on. The Badgers began the year weak defensively and, despite being the biggest team in the league, as a weak rebounding team. Both of these areas improved significantly as the season progressed. By the end of the season, the Badgers were playing well enough to finish second in the postseason WNIT and to have realistic hopes of following the road Penn State took to Big 10 prominence.

While the freshmen were vitally important to this team, Wisconsin revolved around the soph Sims. Wisconsin lost 1,500+ point scorers Katie Voigt and Ann Klapperich from the 1998 team and Sims was their heir apparent. After a somewhat erratic start, she settled in and proved both willing and able to be her team's go-to player. She ended the season by being the most honored sophomore in the league, being named first team all league by the media and second team by the coaches.

The Badgers' improvement throughout the year allowed them to come within one game of their projected third place finish.

 

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