But there also was a bit of sadness knowing what the trio would be taking with them when they eventually walk out the door.
“They have been given lot of opportunities. They play a lot of minutes and all of them have started every game for us,” Hoffman said after Cleveland State overpowered the undersized Raiders, 81-55.
“But oh man, they are leaving quite the hole … a massive hole … but that’s the way you want it. You want them to go out that way.”
Scott was part of Hoffman’s original six player recruiting class. The other five are gone: four transferred to other schools and one quit basketball altogether.
A 5-foot-7 grad student, Scott has played in 123 games as a Raider and scored 858 points, even though she’s endured three knee surgeries.
Even more impressive is that she will leave with two degrees and is headed to medical school at Ohio State next fall.
“She chose us when we were in a rough spot just trying to rebuild,” said Hoffman who was hired from Cedarville University in 2021 and promptly saw most of the returning Raiders players leave the program while some of those who remained didn’t hide the fact that they didn’t want to be here.
Scott endured all of that, too.
“She picked us out of faith … and stayed,” Hoffman said. “She fully committed and bought in every day. She led by example and with a communication that I’ve never seen from a player before.”
Henson, a Valley View High product, came to Wright State three seasons ago after a freshman year at Long Island University.
“She told us no the first go around, but the minute she went into the portal, we called her and begged her to come back and she did,” Hoffman said.
“She’s a true gamer as you saw today. She leaves her heart and soul on the floor every time she touches it. She makes a huge impact.
“I call her the ultimate stat stuffer. She always fills up her stat line with how hard she plays.”
Henson, a 5-foot-10 guard who often worked against CSU’s 6-foot-4 Izabella Zingaro Wednesday night, made 10 of 16 field-goal attempts for a team-high 20 points and she added seven rebounds.
With the season at LIU and three here, she’s played in 107 college games and scored 732 points.
Credit: Bryant Billing
Credit: Bryant Billing
Williams joined the team this season after playing her first two years at New Hampshire and last season at Bryant. The Raiders’ leading scorer this year, she’s now scored 1,143 points in her three-school career.
“What an impact she’s made in one year,” Hoffman said. “She has incredible skills and she’s probably the fastest player I’ve ever coached.
“She plays with a spirit. It’s really cool to watch her defensively and offensively. She’s poured her heart into this program and everyone loves her for that.”
A product of GlenOak High in Canton, the 5-foot-9 guard didn’t think of Wright State when she first went off to college, but now realizes she didn’t know what she was missing:
“I’ve never been so close with a group of girls before,“ she said. “I feel I’ll have lifelong friends who I can talk to about anything. They are really like family at this point.
“I love these girls so much and I feel their love coming back. It’s the same thing with the coaching staff. They’ve all given me the confidence to play as I have been.
“Honestly, I am playing my best basketball here and l’m truly grateful.”
Williams (12.8), Henson (10.5) and Scott (8.8) are the three leading scorers on a Raiders team that dropped to 10-20 and has one regular season game left at Robert Morris Saturday.
But neither Wednesday night’s lopsided score, nor this season’s disappointing record tell the true story of these three, who are accomplished on the court and off.
All three have graduated and Henson is about to get her MBA. She said she hopes to play professional basketball overseas next year as does Williams.
Scott plans to be a doctor: “I’ll come out of four years here with two degrees but more than that, it’s just the friendships I’ve made.
“I managed to figure out basketball and I figured out life. That’s a big testament to my teammates and coaches. I’ve grown a lot as a person here and I’m very thankful for all Wright State has done for me.”
COMING SATURDAY: The story of the unrivaled Raider, Lauren Scott
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