by Dan Collins, Journal Reporter, By Dan Collins JOURNAL REPORTER , Winston-Salem Journal

Point guard Brooke Thomas was at her best at the end of last season. 2. Mike Petersen says that Wake Forest can be very good if some parts mesh.

The Deacons climbed out of the ACC cellar to win more games (19) than they had in the past 20 years, more ACC games (5) than they had

in the past eight years and an ACC Tournament game for the first time in five years. They also advanced to postseason play for only the third time in 20 seasons.

The performance got Petersen's program up and going but didn't get it where Petersen wants it to go.

"I really feel like last year was a good year - it wasn't a great year," Petersen said. "It was an accomplishment. It wasn't the accomplishment we wanted.

"We won 19 games and through some things that were in our control and some things that weren't in our control, it could have been 22 or 23 or 24 probably pretty easily. But it has helped us in regards to this team in that this year's team comes back, I think, with a sense of having achieved something last year, a sense of some confidence and also a sense of that wasn't enough.

"We set the standard high and raised the bar, so to speak, and have to make sure we don't hit our head on it."

Two who helped get the Deacons that far, Alex Tchangoue and Corinne Groves, can help them get no further. Both were seniors, and their contributions - Tchangoue averaged 13.5 points and 7.2 rebounds; Groves averaged 13.7 points and 5.6 rebounds - will be missed, as will their leadership. But Petersen does have six players - Brittany Waters, Secily Ray, Camille Collier, Brooke Thomas, Courteney Morris and Tiffany Roulhac - who started at least 10 games last season and a recruiting class of six that should increase the team's depth and athleticism.

And he has, in Thomas, a point guard who survived her baptism under fire last season to emerge down the stretch as one of the best in the ACC.

"What she did in our games in the ACC Tournament against North Carolina State and Maryland was really phenomenal," Petersen said of Thomas, who had nine points and seven assists in 34 minutes against State and 15 points and 11 assists in 40 minutes against Maryland. "You go back and look at the Maryland tape, and she dominated that game as much as any player on either team did."

What Petersen doesn't have is a player who averaged more than the 10.4 points a game Waters averaged last season. He's convinced the firepower is there, pointing to the fact that Collier, Waters and Ray all scored at least 24 points in a game last season.

"I think we've got a really high ceiling with this team," Petersen said.

"I think this team can be very, very good, but there are some moving parts that have to come together, that have to all mesh for it to accomplish what it's capable of accomplishing."

The five scholarship freshmen are 5-9 Lakevia Boykin of Raleigh, 6-3 Sandra Garcia of Hollywood, Fla., 5-11 Patrice Johnson of Washington, 6-0 Mykala Walker of Duluth, Ga., and 5-11 Asia Williams of Durham. Guard Patrice Baptista of Hickory is a walk-on.

"That's one of the big differences from last year to this," Petersen said. "Last year we kind of knew who we were early, because we had all five returning starters, and we only had two freshmen. This year we've got a lot of kids back that started and a lot of kids who have played a significant role, but we've also got a lot of new faces."

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