Change typically is not easy, but new Northwestern State women's basketball co-head coaches Brooke and Scott Stoehr are looking for competitiveness and toughness in the transition to a new approach beginning with the 2012-13 season.

“My staff and I are excited about the upcoming season and look forward to establishing a culture of competitiveness and toughness,” said Brooke Stoehr. “The season will be a process and we'll work extremely hard each day to continue to develop these young ladies on and off the court.”

Seven letterwinners return this season including seniors Trudy Armstead, Jasmine Upchurch, and Meredith Graf. 

Three redshirt freshman return to the team and four newcomers add to the young Lady Demon squad. 

“This group of young ladies has worked very hard for our staff during the preseason conditioning and individual skills session,” said Stoehr.  Change, as we all know, is not always the most pleasant or easy experience, but we have had a tremendous response from this group.

“Each day we challenge them to be better than the day before and give maximum effort and energy,” said Stoehr.

Armstead started all 29 games for the Lady Demons in the 2011-12 season and averaged 14.2 points and 8.5 rebounds per game. She finished the season ranked fifth in rebounds in the Southland Conference and is the third leading returner on that list.

The Dallas native had nine double-doubles and showed her potential late in the season against Texas-Arlington when she scored a career-high 30 points and finished with 11 boards. 

Her season high in rebounds came against LSU-Shreveport when she brought down 19.

 “Trudy has bought in to what we are teaching and how she can be a winner both on and off the court, and because of that she has been one of our most consistent workers during the preseason,” said Stoehr. “She has made tremendous strides in the classroom and is on track to graduate.  I would love nothing more than seeing her walk across the stage with her diploma in handafter having a tremendous senior season on the court.”

Tiandra Williams, the only junior on the squad, has also stood out to the new staff bringing a “tremendous amount of energy and effort to each and every workout.”

“Tiandra has worked very hard to acclimate herself and her game to our style of play and the culture we are establishing,” said Stoehr. “She has been a vocal leader for us throughout workouts and continues to develop her confidence and grow in this area.  I do not think she is fully aware of what she is capable of on the court.”

Williams played in all 29 games a year ago averaging 3.7 points and 1.1 assists.  Her premiere game came against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi when she scored 20 points with 10 rebounds and two assists.

“She has been extremely receptive to our teaching and expectation level,” said Stoehr. “Tiandra will be a vital part of our backcourt and will be a big reason for our team's success this season.

Natchitoches native Meredith Graf will return for her senior year and her leadership has caught the eye of the new staff.

“Meredith has provided leadership and been a very solid performer for this team in the past,” said Stoehr. “She has proven to be one of the team's best shooters and brings many intangibles on both ends of the floor.”

Graf finished last season with 205 points and 51 assists.  She had off-season shoulder surgery and is expected to return by the conference season.

Jasmine Upchurch, a 6-foot-3 post player, will return under the goal for the Lady Demons after having a good season last year with averages of 11.5 points and 7.9 rebounds.  She has the ability to be a very productive player and could really help solidify the post position.

Sophomore guard Jasmine Bradley, who had a tremendous freshman season in 2010-11, will return to the court this season after having to sit out nearly all of last year with an injury.  She led the team in rebounding and steals two years ago.

Arianne Ausmer also returns for her sophomore season.  She played in 29 games last season and averaged 2.3 points and 1.3 assists in 13 minutes per game.

Among the newcomers, true freshman point guard Janelle Perez has been a standout in preseason and may be the Lady Demons' top ball-handler.

“We will face a very difficult non-conference slate, and we believe it will prepare us greatly for the Southland Conference schedule,” said Stoehr. “I expect for our to team to play a tough disciplined style of basketball and compete every possession. When we are able to do this on a consistent basis we will start to see results on the scoreboard.”