In the early days of the season, the Idaho Women’s Basketball team sat at the bottom of a mountain no one believed they could climb. The polls had spoken. The Vandals were picked eighth in the preseason poll. The players knew something the world didn’t, and they weren’t here to be predictable. They weren’t here to follow the script. They were here to write their own.
“When we started the season, we had that mentality, okay, we were picked eighth in the conference. We have something to prove. Nobody knows us and nobody believed in us, besides us,” Head Coach Arthur Moreira said.
With Idaho in control of its own story, the team has silenced every doubter and preseason voter. They are 16-7 (8-4) and third place in the Big Sky Conference with six regular-season games left.
The Vandals came into the 2024-25 season with question marks, as Idaho had its third head coach in three years with interim coach Moreira taking the reins.
The coach for the Vandals, however, wasn’t the biggest question the Vandals had to answer; that was who was going to suit up for the Vandals and how they would perform.
The Vandals welcomed 11 new players, nine transfers and two freshmen, with only three players from the previous season returning. This influx of new talent presented a challenge—to unite as one team and demonstrate the true potential of the Vandals to the world.
Of those transfers, five have been starters that have started in all 23 games for the Vandals, including Rosie Schweizer, who transferred from the University of San Francisco, sophomore guard Hope Hassmann, a California State Fullerton transfer, graduate forward Jennifer Aadland, who came from Augustana University, graduate guard Olivia Nelson from Central Missouri and junior guard Anja Bukvic, who came from Louisiana Tech University.
With all the new players, the Vandals needed to build a culture and some team chemistry before they hit the court for the season, and that place was the Washington mountains.
To build team chemistry, the team went on a team retreat that included movies, pickleball and a lot of friendly competition, with the focus of coming together as a team.
“It was super fun,” graduate forward Schweizer said. “It got very competitive. It was a fun weekend with the coaches and players. That was fun, getting to know each other really well.”
As school began, the bond and chemistry continued to grow as their season approached. All that chemistry was put to the test when the team ran onto the court of ICCU Arena for the first time, taking on Lewis and Clark State College.
In that game, Idaho showed flashes of potential, giving the Vandal fans hope that this team could be special with the new players, coach and style of play that the Vandals were eager to showcase.
The Vandals kicked off the season with two major Division I opponents, BYU and Washington State. Despite the losses, they showcased their potential to be a force in the Big Sky, setting their sights on the Big Sky championship in March.
Idaho finished non-conference 8-3 and rode that wave of momentum when they traveled to Montana. The Vandals split the series, losing to Montana State and defeating Montana in Missoula for the fourth time.
The Montana trip stood out to Schweizer, who transferred from the University of San Francisco and had never been to Montana.
“I’d never been there, and they’re cool arenas to play in,” Schweizer said. “They were good, competitive games to start off the year and good crowds, which is always the best part about it.”
The Vandals’ confidence and chemistry grew even more on and off the court, which has been a key to their success.
“It’s been good, that chemistry, building it block by block,” Schweizer said. “That’s what makes us such a good team—because we want to spend time with each other.”
There are going to be ups and downs within a season, and for the Vandals, the downs finally hit them in January. After being on cruise control for most of the season, the Vandals ran into a roadblock. The first roadblock was when they faced Northern Arizona. Even with one of their best offensive performances of the season, they were defeated by 30 points and gave up 106 points, the most they have given up all season.
Since then, the Vandals have lost three of their last five and must regain the fire and edge they lost over the last few games before they head to Boise at the end of the month.
“Do whatever it takes to prepare us to win the conference championship,” Moreira said. “I want to win all six games if we can, but I also want to gain some experience so that if we face it in March, and even during the postseason, we’re going to be able to overcome it. Whatever we need to do to be playing our best basketball in March is what we got to do.”
Even though the season is not over yet, Schweizer, who has just a few games left in a Vandal uniform, reflects on the season and her time as a Vandal as they try to bring home the Big Sky championship.
“We are a great group,” Schweizer said. “We came, built up that culture, that foundation of who we want to be as a team, starting from starting from the top. That’s the unique thing about this team; the buy-in has been great.”
“I love playing in the nice arena we have here. But what good is having a great arena if you don’t want to play with your teammates or for your head coach,” Schweizer continued. “I’m lucky I got to play for [Moreira]. He’s the kind of coach that makes you better, but also, he’s great to be around and a great guy to have as a head coach.”
As the Vandals look to write the final chapter of a season that still has all its goals within reach, they are six games away from the ultimate prize: the Big Sky Championship.
This team has defied the odds and silenced the doubters, transforming from an overlooked underdog into a squad hungry to lift the trophy and bring it back to Moscow. The journey has been one of resilience, and now, with everything on the line, they are ready to prove they belong at the top.
Jayden Barfuss can be reached at arg-news@uidaho.edu.