Editor’s Note: This feature story was originally written on May 2, 2024, for a student project, and has since been modified for publication with Center Field.
At 11:00 a.m., the film room brims with energy as the Marist women’s basketball team meticulously dissects their upcoming opponent’s game, absorbing every nuance of their skills, tendencies and strategies. This thorough analysis sets the stage for a focused and productive practice session.
Around the same time, a handful of students eagerly exit their lectures, driven by the desire to engage in physical activity and push their limits.
By 11:45 a.m., the women’s basketball teams transitions to the main gym, ready to warm up before diving into the day’s rigorous training. Coaches gather around, finalizing the practice plan with a keen focus on strategic matchups and areas for improvement.
Meanwhile, on the court, the group of students is now clad in “Marist Women’s Basketball” gray shirts and is already hard at work. Stretching diligently and honing their skills, these dedicated participants await further instructions.
Assistant coach Kiah Gillespie then gathers the group, explaining an intricate plan: who each student is to emulate and which shots to practice, leaving no details unaddressed. The anticipation builds as the players and students huddle one final time, ready to execute the meticulously crafted strategy.
At the blow of the whistle, the gym erupts into action as intense head-to-head matchups commence. It becomes clear that these dedicated participants, who seamlessly integrate with the team, are not just any students.
No, they are not random kids who wandered into the arena. No, these students are different; they went through a selection process to showcase their commitment and support for the women’s basketball team’s preparation efforts; and they are male.
Marist women’s basketball is a historically dominant program. Since their first Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference title in 2004, the team has accrued a conference-leading 11 championships. Although the women’s basketball players have received their flowers, another group of individuals also deserves their praise: the male practice squad.
The Red Fox practice team has a long history of whipping the women’s team into shape during every season. Made up entirely of male students regardless of age or class, hundreds of faces have matched up with the greats the program has put forth.
“We’ve had practice players since I was on the team. There weren’t as many, but, I remember there were three guys when I was on the team,” said head coach Erin Doughty. “I don’t know what the rules were then because it wouldn’t be allowed now, but they were [also] on the football team.”
Doughty was once a player for the Red Foxes, having walked on to the team in 2002. In her time as both a player and coach, she has seen time and time again just how effective the practice team can be.
“In the offseason, they came to practice and worked with us,” said Doughty. “We’ve had them for quite some time.”
Male practice teams are not uncommon within women’s college basketball. Teams across the country have their designated crew that suits up to give the athletes a more physical matchup they can learn from.
None are more well-known than the University of South Carolina’s practice team, known as “The Highlighters.” Their role is to act like each opposing matchup, taking the liberty of acting like the opponent’s best players.
“They’re ‘The Highlighters’ because they actually are the main reason why we are as successful as we are,” South Carolina women’s basketball head coach Dawn Staley said in an interview with ESPN. “They’re students, they’re male practice players. They come here, they’re committed, when we win championships, they get rings.”
Marist employs a similar mindset; each member is given their designated role for each practice to give each athlete the best look possible at their upcoming matchup.
Being a member of this team takes a lot more than one would think. At the forefront, a student who wants to become a member needs to demonstrate a keen understanding of basketball. Whether it be running an offense or playing hounding defense, excelling at the fundamentals is required.
Once that initial scouting report has been completed, then comes phase two.
“They have to be on our roster and go through the same certification process,” said Doughty. “They have to be a traditional student academically and get their physical and all that stuff.”
When all of that is taken care of, a new practice team member is added. Concerning last spring’s squad, there were at least five members–sometimes more and sometimes less–that went to practice multiple times a week.
“Everybody on the practice team this year was a really talented basketball player. But I think before talent comes the IQ of it,” said practice team player Jared Regan. “You need to have a high IQ to understand the different nuances of the game like playing help defense and where you have to be on defense and then offensively.”
Regan, a recent Marist graduate who studied human biology, played basketball his entire life. His mother and father played it throughout their lives which inspired him to pick up a ball at a young age.
“I had a few school division three schools asking me to come play, but Marist was the best opportunity for my education,” said Regan.
Regan tried to walk on to the men’s basketball team during his sophomore year. Although he did not make it, he heard about the practice team from a friend.
“I was looking for the men’s coaches to get them to sign a form to say that I’m trying out, and I found some of the women’s coaches up there and they said, ‘Oh if you don’t make it, you should come play with us’,” said Regan. “I didn’t think about that at all; for that whole year. But then the following year, I knew that my friend Connor Lee–who has a sister [junior center Morgan Lee] on the team now–was doing it and he told me that they were looking for somebody.”
Since then, he has loved every second of it. Having already had friends on the practice team, he had gained an even bigger circle, including Carl Molinaro.
Molinaro, a media studies and production major with a film and television concentration, joined the team in a similar fashion. Having played intramural basketball with a friend on the practice squad, he was convinced to try and join.
“I didn’t even know it was a thing until I came here. I didn’t know what to expect,” said Molinaro. “What would it be like? How involved are you in practice? When I got there the first day it was just good vibes. Everybody’s super friendly, the coaches are awesome, and we got to play a lot which I wasn’t honestly wasn’t expecting.”
Having to play against men is a challenge for the women’s team due to their physicality and athleticism, but that challenge only motivates the women’s team to want to work even harder.
“It’s hard to guard them. They’re quicker than a lot of the competition we’re going to play against,” said redshirt junior guard Lexie Tarul. “They jump higher than a lot of the competition we’re going to play against and some of them can dunk.”
A typical practice consists of the women’s team warming up, with the practice team running their own drills. Gillespie took the practice team under her advisory, giving them drills to run and making sure they knew what was expected of them each session.
“We’ll go into some sort of scout, so that’ll be where the guys will come in, and they’ll either do the other team’s offense or defense and we’ll go against them,” said Tarul. “Then after that, we’ll usually break up for free throws, and then we’ll go back into a segment of shooting and then we’ll do another segment of breakdown with the guys.”
Although the match-ups can get intense, it is not the job of the practice team to show up the women’s team. Rather, they are there to make the team the best version of themselves they can be.
“You gotta get used to it,” said Regan. “So when I first started practicing with them, it was something that I needed to pick up on and watch the other guys do. Like, ‘Okay, this is how intense they’re playing,’ or, ‘This is how physical they’re being.’ It all comes with different matchups.”
“You have to keep in your head the whole time that you’re not there for you,” said Molinaro. “Even though we’re playing basketball and we do have to compete and there’s some level of pride in that, you have to understand we’re not trying to hurt anybody.”
Even after a tough shot was made or a hard bump is taken, both practice teamers and women’s players boost each other up.
“There was one guy, Jacob,” said Tarul. “He came in kind of late and I would hit a shot in his face and he was like, ‘Wow, Lexi great shot,’ and high-five me and I’m like, ‘You’re not supposed to’.”
“I definitely see them as good friends of mine,” said Regan. “And even with the coaches, too. They’re always telling me to reach out if I have anything or to ask anything.”
The experiences these practice players have gained in their time with the team have changed the way they view the game for the better. Some, like Regan, would even consider coaching later in life.
“Whether it’s coaching my kids while they grow up, or I’ve helped out back at my local high school with the JV and varsity team, coaching is definitely something that I want to get into,” said Regan.
Edited by Luke Sassa
Graphic by Raegan Van Zandt
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