Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, February 27, 1994 TAG: 9402270099
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: D-5 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: ANDREA KUHN STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
The Maroons earned an unprecedented fourth straight Old Dominion Athletic Conference championship on Saturday in their own back yard with an 85-75 victory over Randolph-Macon.
Seniors Kay Caldwell and Kristie Workman finished their ODAC careers with a 77-4 overall record. They were 12-0 in conference tournament games, including the past nine straight victories at the Salem Civic Center.
"I've always been comfortable and enjoyed playing here," said Caldwell, who played in high school championships at the civic center as a standout at Cave Spring. "I've played six years straight here. I kind of feel like this is my home court. And to have won four [ODAC tournaments] in a row here - nothing can touch that."
The Maroons (23-4) finished undefeated in the ODAC for the third time in the past five years. The championship earned them an automatic berth to the NCAA Division III national tournament.
"That was a big motivating factor for us," said junior Crystal Wilson, who had 56 points and 26 rebounds in the tournament and was voted most valuable player. "It definitely made us play a little harder knowing that we pretty much had to win to get to the tournament."
The Maroons have been ranked third in the South Region for most of the season and likely will have to play on the road in the first round on Wednesday. Pairings for the 40-team field will be announced tonight.
Susan Dunagan, who has coached the Maroons to nine ODAC championships and five NCAA appearances in her 13 seasons at Roanoke, knew her team needed a victory Saturday.
"Being third meant that if we didn't win our chances of getting in wouldn't be great, some people said 50-50," she said. "But I wanted them to just go out and win it so we wouldn't have to worry."
Roanoke, the tournament's top seed, opened strong against the second-seeded Yellow Jackets (19-7), bolting to a 23-10 lead.
Randolph-Macon came back with a 20-3 run, including seven points from the free-throw line.
The Maroons shot 48 percent in the first half and led 38-35 at halftime.
The Yellow Jackets cut the lead to one point on a three-point play three minutes into the second half by Stacey Lippert. Lippert drove the lane, was fouled and converted the free throw.
But Roanoke outscored the Jackets 22-8 over the next eight minutes to take a 15-point lead, 65-50 with nine minutes remaining.
Jenn Kohler finished with a team-high 26 points for Randolph-Macon and was voted to the all-tournament team along with Roanoke's Workman, who had five points and 10 assists.
"It's just amazing," said Workman, a Radford native. "I couldn't ask for a better ending to my career. . . . [The award] was a big surprise. It's the first time I've ever won anything like that."
Wilson had 14 points and seven rebounds for Roanoke, Lori Boyd added 12 points and eight rebounds, and Paula Kennedy had 11 points and six rebounds.
The Maroons shot 47 percent for the game and made 24 of 32 free throws, including an 8-for-8 performance by Caldwell.
"This is a very special victory," Dunagan said. "It's something, at the beginning of the season, you aspire to and hope will happen. When it comes together like this, it's very sweet."
Zandar Smith added 16 points and 14 rebounds, and Sandy Crispin had 13 points and eight rebounds for Randolph-Macon.
by CNB