MADISON, Wis. -- This year's senior class probably means more to coach
Bobbie Kelsey than any class she's had at Wisconsin.
An eclectic group of players -- both on and off the court -- this year's class of
Nicole Bauman,
Tessa Cichy,
Rosanna Gambino,
Michala Johnson and
Dakota Whyte made up Kelsey's first recruiting class at Wisconsin. The group is joined by student assistant coach
Shannon Malone, who also was a member of the class before injuries forced her off the court, as well as student managers Spencer Brink and Ryan Yentz.
"We did come in as freshmen, so to speak, together," Kelsey explains. "That's the first class that came in that we had a chance to recruit, albeit quickly. People just assume when you get the job, you've had four or five years to recruit them. Well, we didn't."
From the time Kelsey was hired in April of 2011, she and her staff had less than seven months to get commitments from their first signing class. It included the Wisconsin Gatorade Player of the Year in Bauman, a Canadian prospect in Whyte and a walk-on in Cichy. They were joined by Johnson and Gambino, who both transferred to UW for their junior seasons.
While the wins haven't come to this group, the players have earned their place in the UW record book. Bauman will go down as the best 3-point shooter in UW history and Johnson is on track to have the highest field goal percentage the program has seen.
"For what they have accomplished, all the school records, all the personal growth and achievements that they have had, maybe not in the 'W' column, but it's a lot of records that these kids have set," Kelsey said.
But the records aren't what this class will be most remembered for.
"For me personally, I'm going to miss their personalities and things of that nature," Kelsey explained. "And they've worked really hard to get from where they started to where they are now."
Johnson was a first-team All-Big Ten pick in 2014 and came back for a rare sixth year this season after missing most of 2014-15 with a torn ACL. Bauman was an honorable mention All-Big Ten selection last season and is a three-time Academic All-Big Ten pick. Cichy also is a three-time Academic All-Big Ten honoree.
All six players will graduate this year, and Kelsey knows they will use the skills they learned as basketball players in whatever follows their college careers.
"They're going to move on to other chapters in their lives and we're going to be there to help them," she said.
