CNU DENIED SPOT IN HISTORY
Injury-plagued Captains fall short of first NCAA title and a D-III sweep, are outscored 8-3 in final minute
Christopher Newport’s women’s basketball team landed just short of making basketball history Saturday.
Tied entering the final minute of the Division III national championship game, the top-ranked Captains got outscored by five points down the stretch and fell 57-52 to No. 2 Transylvania of Lexington, Kentucky, at American Airlines Arena in Dallas.
A victory by the Captains (31-1) would have made Christopher Newport the first school in Division III history to win men’s and women’s basketball national titles in the same season. CNU’s men beat Mount Union of Ohio 74-72 on March 18 on Trey Barber’s basket at the buzzer.
CNU’s women surged into position for similar heroics by rallying from a 13-point second-half deficit to tie the score at 49 on Gabbi San Diego’s driving layup with 1:04 remaining. But the Pioneers (33-0) won the first Division III final between unbeaten No. 1 and 2 teams by making all of the big plays from there.
The first was a layup by Dasia Thornton on a nice lob from Laken Ball that put Transylvania ahead 51-49 with 43 seconds to play. San Diego (11 points) drove to the right side of the lane for a second consecutive possession, but her layup with 20 seconds remaining rolled off of the rim.
The Captains were in trouble when Thornton (13 points, 10 rebounds) pulled down the rebound because they had committed only three team fouls and could not immediately send the Pioneers to the line by fouling. The Pioneers’ best shooter, Madison Kellione (17 points, 5 for 5 on free throws), got there anyway on a bizarre call with 13.4 seconds remaining.
Kellione was not shooting, nor was she facing the basket while dribbling, when San Diego committed CNU’s fifth team foul. Kellione was nevertheless awarded two shots and made both to increase Transylvania’s lead to 53-49.
CNU All-American Sondra Fan attempted to launch a 3-point shot with about 10 seconds to play, but got stripped of the ball by Kennedi Stacy (eight steals). Stacy was fouled, made both free throws and the championship trophy was Transylvania’s.
“I’m extremely proud of my group,” CNU coach Bill Broderick said. “I think we fought and competed through a lot of adversity this year, and we didn’t stop fighting until the final buzzer went off.
“The score didn’t go the way we wanted it this time, but it doesn’t make me any less proud of this group of 17 young ladies that gave me, their fans and their families everything they had this year.”
Adversity included trying to overcome the absence of All-American Anaya Simmons — the national leader in field-goal shooting percentage — and defensive ace Katy Rader. Both seniors sustained knee injuries during the NCAA Tournament.
Incredibly, the Captains almost lost Fan, another All-American,
in the first quarter Saturday, when she sprained her left ankle. Fan returned four minutes later, but was not as effective as usual. She made just 2 of 12 field-goal attempts — her six points far below her average of almost 15 per game.
“I think it definitely affected her mobility,” Broderick said. “It took her a little while [to get] going.
“Eventually, by the end of the fourth quarter, I think some adrenaline kind of kicked in and she was able to play a little bit better. I think it definitely slowed her down, but she gave it everything she’s got.”
The Captains nevertheless started well, stretching an early lead to 15-6 on a 3-pointer by Hannah Kaloi (13 points) with 3:23 left in the first quarter. Their “Captains Chaos” defensive pressure had the Pioneers in an early funk, but then the tables turned.
Transylvania turned CNU over 13 times in the first half, 12 on steals, and forced the Captains into 9-of-32 shooting to lead 23-21 at intermission. Ball twice fed Thornton on high-low passes for layups, a harbinger of their hookup on the big late basket.
Transylvania stretched its lead to 36-23 with a 13-point run culminated by Thornton’s stickback with 4:48 left in the third quarter, but CNU rallied. Consecutive baskets by Kaloi launched the comeback that culminated in San Diego’s layup to tie the contest with 64 seconds to go.
“I’m just really, really proud of our team,” San Diego said. “Every single game in the NCAA Tournament was just a battle for us, especially doing it without two senior starters who are a big part of what we do.
“To get to this game was something I’m just incredibly proud of them for.”
Broderick said, “I wish we were national champs, but you know what? National runner-up, that’s pretty good, too.”