I notice that in softball and soccer, the coaches don't seem to use redshirts when they could for a player who, for example, is injured and doesn't play her freshman year. Yet the player isn't redshirted and so is listed as a sophomore entering her second year. It may be because soccer and softball simply don't have enough scholarships to make redshirting players worthwhile.
That is not the case with women's basketball, however, which, in fact as too many scholarships. You have 5 years to play 4, and so why not redshirt a player who has potential but isn't going to play much as a freshman, say, or who would benefit from another year to mature physically, emotionally, adjust to college life, etc. Football uses the redshirt liberally because it helps the team: with redshirts you effectively stockpile talent. It's harder with basketball, because of the far smaller squad size, but it certainly could be done with players who have the potential to be good but aren't quite ready for real playing time. Jones might have qualified for a medical redshirt last year--did the team ask for one, get one? I can't remember.
If a coach doesn't think a player is going to help the team significantly or might be recruited over, he or she is not going to redshirt a player. I agree that Nia Moore is a good example of someone who'd benefit from a redshirt--give her a year to get stronger, etc--though one could make the opposite case with her, too--that she simply isn't going to help us enough at any time to justify a redshirt. You wouldn't redshirt a player like Nared, however, who played a lot as a freshman and will have a key role on the team going forward. She's too important to the team now. Meme Jackson would, in my mind, be a candidate for a redshirt--has talent/athleticism but probably won't play much this year; would benefit from a year to improve her shooting and offensive gam. But I don't see Warlick doing it, for whatever reason.
