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Schedule and Results

By Mark Simon, D3hoops.com

VIRGINIA BEACH — Wilmington has a field trip in its future, one to remember the equivalent of a magic carpet ride through the 2003-2004 season.

“We might take a trip to Indianapolis to see our championship banner,’’ said Wilmington senior Brittney Morris, who was out with a torn ACL, but whose words at Thursday’s championship banquet served as inspiration for her teammates. “That might be the closest to Disneyland that we’ll get.’’

Wilmington won its first national title in any sport, topping No. 1 ranked, previously unbeaten Bowdoin, 59-53 in Saturday's national championship game. The team finished the season on a nine-game winning streak, coming from the No. 3 seed in the Ohio Athletic Conference to win that league, then won six straight games in the NCAA Tournament.

The Quakers won the same way they won throughout tournament, with a second-half comeback that required hitting big shots in crucial situations.

Wilmington went on a game-deciding 11-0 run that began with 3:08 remaining, to overcome a 51-47 deficit. Freshman point guard Samantha Hood, who played poised in both the semifinals and championship game (a combined 13 assists and one turnover) drained a 3-pointer off a feed from Amy Kincer to put the Quakers up 54-51 with 1:42 remaining.

Offensive rebounds were also a key to Wilmington’s success. The Quakers pulled down 23 boards, giving them plenty of second-chance opportunities in a game in which they shot only 29 percent from the field. Tournament MVP, Wilmington senior forward Tara Rausch (19 points, 11 rebounds, 2 blocked shots) had seven, and wore Bowdoin out late in the game. Rausch set the tone with back to back blocks in the opening minute of the second half, had six straight points to cut Bowdoin’s lead from nine points to three with seven minutes remaining, and added two free throws and two of her seven offensive rebounds in the final minute.

“(Offensive rebounding) is about will and desire,’’ said Wilmington guard Amy Kincer, who was named to the All-Tournament team after an 11 point, 10 rebound performance. “We wanted it more. The rims were tight here. We knew there would be a lot of rebounds, long rebounds.’’

Bowdoin had a 28-23 lead at halftime on the strength of eight points from All-American guard Lora Trenkle, but as Scheve noted with a laugh “We had them right where we wanted them. Wilmington made the necessary adjustments in the locker room and came out with more energy and intensity over the last 20 minutes. That showed in offensive rebounding on the stat sheet, but also in little things, like tipped passes and dives for loose balls.

“I realized that something had to change,’’ Rausch said. “The offensive boards were something that we could control.’’

Freshman forward Eileen Flaherty led Bowdoin with 14 points. Trenkle, an all-tournament selection, finished with 12 points and eight assists, but was bottled up defensively in the second half, particularly by Hood in the last couple of minutes.

Big shots in big spots came from the likes of Hood and backcourt mate Emily Cummins, who scored on a four-point play with 4:28 remaining, trimming the deficit from six points to two. Siobhan Zarilla also played tough late for Wilmington, finishing with four points and 11 rebounds.

What might have been Wilmington’s most valuable contribution came from Morris, who was picked by Scheve to represent the team when representatives from each squad got up to speak at Thursday’s dinner. She decided, in a polite but passionate manner, to fire up her teammates. She let it be known that her team was there to win.

“We took that to heart,’’ Rausch said. “It was great to hear her say it.’’

And even greater to perform at the level of a national champion.