By Brian Ojanpa
Free Press Staff Writer
MANKATO — Jake Robasse, dripping sweat, took a water break the other day at a practice session of the Minnesota State women's basketball team.
Robasse, a senior from Buffalo, played basketball in high school. He's over 6 feet tall, well-built, and knows how to handle himself under the basket.
But since he began playing against women, he admits that his perception of female basketball players has changed.
"I didn't think they'd be as physical as they are," he says.
Robasse is one of a half-dozen males that the women's team utilizes as practice players. Their purpose is to provide a stiffer challenge to female players than other women can provide.
"They're quicker and stronger than us, to be honest with you," Mavericks coach Lori Fish says. "And they've been great. They don't try to show us up, and they do what they're asked."
The use of male practice players, also known as scout teams, is commonplace in women's collegiate programs. The use of males began at perennial national power Tennessee. Now, male players are regarded as so vital they receive scholarships at NCAA Division I schools.
At a Division II school such at Minnesota State, male scout teams are utilized to a lesser extent, but are no less integral to a program's success.
Even so, the NCAA's Committee on Women's Athletics apparently has misgivings about the practice. A subcommittee has been appointed to determine whether use of male practice players reduces opportunities for female students to play a role in college sports.
But coaches who use males appear to be solidly against eliminating the practice.
Michigan State coach Joanne McCallie said the NCAA's assertion is "ridiculous (and) fundamentally bogus," while Minnesota coach Pam Borton said male players are valued for the most elemental of reasons - they make female teams better.
Fish agrees, saying that even though male players usurp some of the practice time that otherwise would go to female reserve players, the upshot is a positive.
"I think they help us, because everybody on the team gets plenty of reps, and it's more about the quality of practice than the quantity of it."
The Mavericks' scout team practices with the squad a minimum of twice a week, and isn't used for practices on days before games.
The male players were recruited informally by Mavericks assistant coach Lisa Kannegieter.
"She saw us just shooting around one day and asked if we wanted to help out," Robasse says.
In addition to providing male quickness and strength, the scout team is routinely used to replicate the style of play of upcoming opponents.
"It's good exercise, it's socializing with the team, and you kind of feel like you're a part of the team, like you're making a difference," says scout team player Mike Alberts, a senior from Maple Grove.
Alberts, who would like to coach some day, says the experience is also valuable from a career standpoint.
"It gives you a chance to see how a live college practice is conducted," he says.
At the start of practices last fall, the scout team was instructed to throttle back.
"We were told to go 85 to 90 percent," Robasse says. "We don't want to make them feel bad, block their shots."
But then he laughs - another instance of an initial perception that didn't quite square with reality.
"But we probably wouldn't do that anyway, because they make most of their shots."
Though the scout team toils in relative anonymity - "I yell at them, and hope I yell out the right names," Fish says - their job is not thankless.
Do the Mavericks players ever express their gratitude for helping to make them better?
"Every day," Alberts says.
