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Notre Dame Women’s Basketball: The fresh faces on campus

By Jordan Small

LAS VEGAS, NV - MARCH 10: Basketballs are shown in a ball rack before the championship game of the Western Athletic Conference basketball tournament between the New Mexico State Aggies and the Grand Canyon Lopesat the Orleans Arena on March 10, 2018 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Sam Wasson/Getty Images)
LAS VEGAS, NV - MARCH 10: Basketballs are shown in a ball rack before the championship game of the Western Athletic Conference basketball tournament between the New Mexico State Aggies and the Grand Canyon Lopesat the Orleans Arena on March 10, 2018 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Sam Wasson/Getty Images) /
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With the 2018-19 season quickly approaching, here at Slap the Sign we will be previewing the different classes of the defending National Champions (how great does that sound?) Notre Dame Women’s Basketball team. To start, we’ll take a look at the fresh faces of the freshman class.

Notre Dame Women’s basketball is bringing in its biggest freshman class in quite some time with this group. With three of the four being guards, it will bring some much needed reinforcements for years to come. The group shows a lot of promise, with Jordan Nixon even picking up newcomer watch list honors in the ACC.

Jordan Nixon – Guard/5’8” – New York City, New York

Of all the freshman, expect Jordan Nixon to have the biggest impact on the Irish in her first year. Nixon, a point guard, fills a void that Notre Dame is faced with this season.

After Lili Thompson tore her ACL last season, the Irish were forced to play Marina Mabrey at the point, a position she had never played in college. While it ended up being enough in the long run, there were many games where this hurt the Irish.

Mabrey will start the season at the point, and probably most games this season, but expect Nixon to be thrown into the fire very early on.

Katlyn Gilbert – Guard/5’10” – Indianapolis, Indiana

There is a long list of great Irish players that have hailed from the state of Indiana, and Katlyn Gilbert has the opportunity to join that group.

Gilbert has a very good shot and also is not afraid of playing a little defense. Head coach Muffet McGraw has compared her to former guard Kayla McBride. When Jackie Young needs a break or gets into foul trouble, expect Gilbert to find her way onto the floor.

Abby Prohaska – Guard/5’10” – Liberty Township, Ohio

When you need a big bucket or a big stop, Abby Prohaska is the guard for you. She is a well rounded player that can do a little bit of everything.

A shooting guard, Prohaska will give the Irish another look on offense if one of the upperclassmen is out of the game. If you compare Prohaska to any former Irish players, Madison Cable is a good comparison.

She is high energy, a good shooter, a strong defender, and not afraid of going up for a rebound.

Danielle Cosgrove – Forward/6’4” – Holbrook, New York

Danielle Cosgrove is exactly what you look for in a modern day big. She can score from anywhere and has the length to grab a crazy amount of rebounds.

In high school, she broke the 1K mark in both points and rebounds.

What is most impressive about Cosgrove is her range. Cosgrove can post up and score under the basket, step out and take a shot from outside the key, and even venture out past the three point line for a few deep threes.

Next. Keeping up with Sam Brunelle. dark

She plays a similar game to Jessica Shepard in the fact that she can pass, shoot, and defend. When you have some bigs that can pass the ball well, it adds a whole ‘nother dimension to the offense.