One of the biggest stories of last season was the Windsor Lancers. They turned three losses in the first half of the season to just one down the stretch. An 18-4 record gave Windsor the division in 2024 and a cherry on top in the quarterfinal with a divisional win over Guelph put them back in the OUA semifinal for the first time since 2017-18.
They fell to the eventual OUA champion Gee-Gees but last year felt like Windsor had a base to once again be a top four team in the OUA for years to come.
What that base was built off was depth that afforded relentlessness. The different ways they could play you, the energy everyone on the team had, they were a nightmare to go against last season.
They had the combination of Kali Grootenboer and Vanessa Budimunda in and around the paint playing both with their back to the basket and controlling the glass. They had many guards contributing in the facilitation and execution of the offence. They would swarm you defensively if you tried to condense the defence.
They had the standard 'you're not pushing us around' mentality that you would expect from a Lancers team defensively going back even to their dynastic run in the early 2010s, and they added to it with an offence that beat you in the screen game, post-ups and speed off the catch.
Restless and relentless. Windsor physically wears you down and going into this year they should keep that same identity. They've lost Vanessa Budimunda, but a majority of the core from last year is returning, meaning a continuation of the style they've built.
Mya Iriah, Julia Chiarot, Leah Tate operating the backcourt, Kali Grootenboer operating inside the paint and a group of rookies bolstering the bench. Windsor has kept their deep guard pool that they had last year with four guard recruits, and they've added some experience to make an instant impact with Kaylee Williams coming over from the University of Toronto.
Williams started half of Toronto's games the past two seasons playing 29 and 25 minutes per game, respectively. Another guard who can attack off the dribble, Kaylee's potential in this Lancers system heavily focused on playing off the pass should only assist the execution of the Lancers offence.
One question for the Lancers going into this season is how they will replace the production of Budimunda, specifically offensively. While Kali Grootenboer was the Lancers third leading scorer last season, the combination of her abilities with her back to the basket and Vanessa attacking downhill gave the Lancers a pair inside the paint that were really difficult to deal with.
Who takes Vanessa's place and draws that extra attention inside the paint to give the guards the space they had last year will be a big key to continuing the success they had.
Windsor starts the season in North Bay against the Nipissing Lakers and in Sudbury against Laurentian before they will play their home opener against the Queen's Gaels.
Windsor only lost one game against a divisional opponent last year on the way to their 18-4 record, and they have to be seen as a favourite to win it again with the returning group they have to build on the confidence last year gave.