By: Mike Still
It was a transition year for the Tigers women’s basketball team, with seven players on the roster who were in just their first or second years of eligibility.
This season featured a similar look, with seven more players joining the team as rookies – two of whom stepped up and made an immediate impact – guard Michele Tchiakoua and forward Robertha Charles.
For the previous three years, the duo had been plying their trade for Dawson College – a Division 1 program in Québec’s CEGEP education system.
Together, they helped lead Dawson to two third-place finishes in three years at provincials and were both active, two-way players. In 2015-16, Tchiakoua averaged 6.8 points per game along with 6.2 rebounds per game, while Charles averaged 7.2 points and 7.8 rebounds and also had 42 steals.
Recruitment process
The duo knew entering their final year with Dawson that they wanted to go outside the province to play university ball.
“In Québec there are five teams [in the RSEQ conference] and you play each team four times, and we had been playing the same girls since high school,” says Tchiakoua. “We needed a change.”
That change came courtesy of the AUS conference.
Tchiakoua had taken a trip to visit Dalhousie in December of 2015 and was interested in what the program had to offer. While she was there, she also talked to head coach Anna Stammberger about Charles.
Stammberger went down to see the pair play at a winter tournament shortly after Tchiakoua’s visit and talked with Charles, who went on her visit to campus in January. A few months later, both had decided that Dal was the right fit.
Adjustments
Each player experienced some form of trial and error when they first hit the court out East.
Tchiakoua was asked to move to point guard, a position she had never played before. She admitted that playing defence, while also rebounding and trying to create opportunities for other players was tough at first, but improved as the season went along.
“It was hard, but with time I’ve gotten better,” says Tchiakoua.
For Charles, playing the “swing” position in university - not being a true guard or post – required diligence. Thankfully, according to Charles, Stammberger was in a similar position herself when she played.
“I can see myself improving with her because she knows how it feels to be in my position and she understands the game really well.”
Starting five
With just four players on the roster having completed more than two years of eligibility, the pair knew they could come in and make an immediate impact for the Tigers. They battled their way through training camp and each earned a starting spot to begin the season.
Both players credited their time playing for a highly competitive CEGEP program as a factor.
“A lot of stuff we already knew coming in here,” says Charles. “It [Dawson] was competitive. It also helped you see the game in a different way.”
The aggressiveness of the duo also played a big role, with Tchiakoua saying assertively that “we don’t get intimidated.”
“I think our physical style of play has really helped us,” says Charles. “Players from CEGEP, most of them are stronger compared to players from high school in Nova Scotia or New Brunswick.”
Key contributors
By the end of the season, Charles had started in all 16 games that she played in, while Tchiakoua played in all 20, starting in 13.
Statistically Charles led the team with 9.1 points per game, while Tchiakoua finished 11th in the conference in total rebounds, with 119.
The duo credits their head coach with instilling valuable trust in both of them, as well as helping them grow as players.
“I’m really happy that I came to Dal to have Anna as a coach, because she’s helped us a lot moving in from Montréal,” says Tchiakoua. “She cares a lot about her players, so I’m really grateful to have her as a coach.”