Connecticut Sun guard Cori Chambers was up early on Friday morning for a close encounter with one of the beluga whales at the Mystic Aquarium & Institute for Exploration.
A former University of Georgia star returning for her second season with the Connecticut Sun, Chambers joined WFSB Channel 3 morning meteorologist Scot Haney during a live broadcast from the Aquarium, where the name of a new sea lion pup was revealed.
Donning waders, Chambers stood in waist-deep water with Haney as two members of the Aquarium staff took turns feeding the whales. At one point, Chambers was encouraged to reach into the mouth of one of the beluga whales.
“How does that feel?” Haney asked.
“Wet,” Chambers responded sarcastically.
Haney and Chambers were judges in a name-the-sea-lion contest that drew over 3,000 submissions during a three-week period. The winning name, unveiled during the broadcast, was Boomerang. The sea lion arrived at the Mystic Aquarium & Institute for Exploration five months ago from a stranding facility in California. The pup had become too accustomed to humans, and it was decided that it could not be released back into its natural habitat after several attempts failed.
Chambers and the rest of the Connecticut Sun open camp on April 21st. The Sun play their first preseason game at Minnesota on May 1st, and also have preseason home games with Phoenix on May 4th and Houston on May 9th. Connecticut opens the regular season at home against Atlanta on May 17th.
