Who Has Sweeney, Or Does It Even Matter? Pirates’ Star Overcomes Injuries To Lead Surging Whitworth Team

During a Whitworth women’s basketball game earlier this year, a member of the opposition asked her coach before checking into a game: “Who do want to have guarding Sweeney?”

Her team hopelessly trailing, the opposing coach responded: “Does it matter?”

In the case of Whitworth’s Annette Sweeney, more often than not, it doesn’t.

Sweeney is the Northwest Conference of Indpendent Colleges leading scorer, averaging 17.5 points per game. Many of those points are coming from behind the 3-point line.

The 5-foot-9 senior guard is 62 for 176 from behind the stripe. All of the Pirates’ opponents combined have made 56 3s.

Sweeney has also made more than half the total of 3-pointers the Whitworth men’s team has made. And no one on the men’s team has close to that many. She scored a career-high 39 points against Pacific two weeks ago, making 8 of 11 from 3-point land.

“She’s a true scorer,” Whitworth coach Helen Higgs said.

Indeed, Sweeney isn’t just a shooter. And the distinction is important due to the fact that she has the ability to create her own shot for a basket.

When the opposition plays her for the shot, she calmly steps back and buries it. If the opponent tries to take the shot away, she can handle the ball and maneuver in traffic to get another shot off.

Against Gonzaga earlier this season, with Bulldogs guard Ivy Safranski hanging all over her, Sweeney dribbled to the left baseline after getting bumped by the GU star.

The momentum from the shove took Sweeney behind the backboard, where she launched a shot over the backboard from 10 feet and about a foot out of bounds before crumpling to the floor as a result of the foul.

“She uses screens and moves so well without the ball that it really is hard to stop her.”

Sweeney credits her success to her past.

“I’ve always had good coaches in high school and college,” Sweeney said. “I used to shoot with my dad all of the time growing up. But I can’t say I’ve ever had a season like this.”

Two years ago, such a season would have been merely a dream in her head.

Surgery on both knees sidelined her for all of 1992-93. Sweeney played last year, but this year she has been remarkable.

“My teammates have really helped me this year,” Sweeney said. “They set good screens, they look to get me the ball, and if I miss some shots, they tell me, `Hey, don’t worry, keep shooting.”’

Like the men’s team, the Whitworth women are on a roll.

After its first 10 games, Whitworth was 3-7. The Pirates have gone 10-4 since and are in first place in the NCIC with a record of 7-2. Now Sweeney and the Pirates have their sights set on nationals.

Whitworth plays Saturday at home at 6 p.m. against Whitman before finishing the season on the road against Pacific and Lewis & Clark.

“This season has been a lot of fun,” Sweeney said. “It’s always been a dream of mine for us to make it to nationals.”

And in that dream, you better believe Sweeney is squaring up from deep behind the 3-point line, knocking down another basket.