By Sean Hurd
Sophomore guard Hannah Schaible is the women’s basketball team’s X-factor and has been all season long.
Wading in the tall shadows of the team’s identity, frontcourt mates Jonquel Jones and Caira Washington, it was often easy to overlook the contributions Schaible made over the course of the year. But without Schaible, arguably GW’s leader in the backcourt, the Colonials may not have had a reason to gather on NCAA Selection Monday.
As GW prepares for its opening round matchup against Gonzaga in their first NCAA tournament appearance since 2008, Schaible’s contributions may be relied on a bit more as the team plays much more superior defenses who may be capable of containing or slowing down the Colonials’ powerful frontcourt – leaving a window of opportunity for Schaible to make some noise.
Schaible finds herself in a role similar to a five-hole hitter in a baseball lineup who after watching the opponent pitch around the cleanup batter (in the case of women’s basketball Washington and Jones) steps to the plate and makes the defense pay. But the five-hole hitter still needs to produce, and often times, Schaible has done just that for GW.
Although the Colonials are deep and can find production and success from different sources on any given night, it’s hard to predict progress on the national stage without consistent production from their starting three-guard.
Schaible, along with returning guards Chakecia Miller and Shannon Cranshaw, and newcomers Lauren Chase and Brianna Cummings collectively faced the large task of replacing the nightly production of since graduated backcourt tandem of Megan Nipe and Danni Jackson.
On the floor, the group has been led by Schaible, and together the collection of GW guards have done an impressive job of replacing the two sixth-year guards and erasing the notion that there was any doubting the backcourt in the first place.
Schaible alone has made huge strides since her freshman campaign, where she has seen an increase in points per game, assists, steals, blocks and field goal percentage – all while averaging close to a minute less than she did a year ago.
Schaible is a stat sheet stuffer, a player that has the ability to fill multiple roles for head coach Jonathan Tsipis and perform exceptionally in different aspects of the game. And while she doesn’t dominate a particular category, she does everything well. Within that has come her identity on the floor: a hard working, scrappy, blue-collar player who more often than not gets the job done.
Schaible’s role on the Colonials may be a bit of a change of pace from what she’s used to. The 5-foot-9 Orlando native was a standout performer at her high school where she was not only a star basketball player but an exceptional flag football player (her high school coach calling her “Hannah Joe Montana”), who led her team to a state title and back-to-back state finals.
Schaible’s proficiency in other sports has translated to her versatility on the court as Schaible has seemingly brought her physicality from the gridiron to the basketball court. If Schaible is not driving into the lane or pulling up for a mid range jumper she’s diving on the floor for loose balls or mixing it up in the paint and crashing the glass for a rebound.
Her numbers reflect her all around play. Schaible is the only player on the roster to average at least nine points, five rebounds, 2.2 assists, and 2.1 steals per game. She ranks only behind Jones for games where a player has scored at least 10 points, grabbed five rebounds and dished two assists – Schaible’s done it five times this season. In addition, Schaible is the only GW guard to record a double-double, she has two.
Schaible came up big for the Colonials in Richmond in the Atlantic 10 tournament, playing a big role in the Colonials three-day journey toward its first tournament win since 2003. Over three games, Schaible averaged 12.3 points, eight rebounds and 2.7 assists. Schaible, along with Jones and Washington were awarded All-Tournament Team honors.
Schaible’s versatility allows her to focus on other areas of her game if another aspect isn’t particularly clicking on a given night – making it rare for her to have a “bad day” on the floor. This was no better illustrated than GW’s tournament championship against Dayton. Despite shooting 3-12 from the field and totaling just seven points, Schaible dominated on the boards – grabbing a game-high 11 rebounds.
Schaible, along with Jones and Washington, were awarded All-Tournament Team honors.
Schaible’s All-Tournament honors was the first time she was recognized in tandem with her teammates Jones and Washington, but if her all around play continues to help drive the play of the Colonials, she’ll quickly become a regular focus of conversation.
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