Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, February 27, 1995 TAG: 9502280052
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: RANDY KING STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: BLACKSBURG LENGTH: Medium
Led by the senior class that has propelled the program to the next level, Tech captured its first Metro Conference regular-season championship with a 67-60 victory over Louisville at Cassell Coliseum.
``We said all along this season that our goal was to win the regular season and the Metro Tournament,'' said Jenny Root, Tech senior center.
``Looking back, it feels pretty good to come in here after a horrible freshman year [10-18] and turn this thing around. The pinnacle of our careers so far is this regular-season title.''
Besides a second straight NCAA Tournament bid, which now appears to be a lock, the Metro regular-season crown had been the one missing link in the Tech seniors' chain of success.
In 1992-93, they were part of the first Tech team to win 20 games. Last season, they were the backbone of a club that won a school-record 24 games, captured its first Metro Tournament championship and made its first trip to the NCAA Tournament.
``These guys have really accomplished a lot in their careers ... about the only thing they didn't do was win at Tulane,'' said Tech coach Carol Alfano, whose 20-7 club finished 10-2 in the Metro, one game ahead of Tulane.
``These seniors weren't the most talented players in the world. They're talented, but what they have is the unique ability to make each other better. They play for each other and not with each other. And they always bring out the best in each other.
``They always talk in terms of we, not I. They've had that unique quality since the day they got here.''
Playing in front of 1,759 fans and their parents on Senior Day, Root & Co. weren't about to let Louisville spoil their party.
It wasn't a piece of cake, however. After an emotional pregame ceremony honoring Root, Christi Osborne, Lisa Leftwich, Angela Donnell and Stephanie Carter, Alfano said her troops had a hard time finding their flow.
``When they called Angela's name [in pregame],'' said Alfano, ``I looked over and she couldn't see ... she was crying. Then that made Lisa cry. Then that made Stephanie cry. It was like boom, boom boom.''
Said Donnell: ``It being my last game and wanting to go out giving my all ... wow, it was so emotional that I was bouncing off the wall, basically.''
Down 33-29 at halftime, Tech's experienced cast gathered itself in the last 20 minutes. The Hokies held the Cards without a point for six minutes, turning a 37-31 deficit into a 43-37 lead.
Louisville closed to 59-58 with 2 minutes, 15 seconds left, but Donnell scored on a stickback and Root scored on a lob inside to put Tech out of danger with 1:02 left.
Root, Osborne and Leftwich then iced it at the free-throw line, combing to hit 5 of 6 down the stretch.
The five seniors had all but 14 of Tech's points. Donnell led the way with 18, while Root had 17 and Osborne 12.
``Something would have been missing if we hadn't won this regular-season title,'' Root said. ``If we hadn't won today, we wouldn't have accomplished everything we wanted to do.''
By winning the regular-season race, Tech gets the luxury of a first-round bye in the Metro Tournament, to be played March 8-10 in Louisville, Ky.
No matter what happens in Louisville, Alfano said she thinks Tech will make the NCAA as an at-large qualifier.
``I think we're in,'' said Alfano, whose club posted its third straight 20-win season.
``We've got a good win over Virginia and we've got what I guess you could say is a quality loss against North Carolina [57-52]. And throw out Tennessee [which hammered Tech 66-33 on Wednesday]. They're killing everybody.''
``Whether we're home or not [in the first round], I don't know. Hey, I'm not worried about that. Remember, we used to have to worry about just getting in the thing, much less where we're going to play.''
LOUISVILLE (60)
Mattox 4-9 0-0 9, Scott 9-17 1-1 19, Martin 0-2 0-0 0, Cloudy 0-2 1-2 1, Inman 5-13 2-2 13, Ludwig 4-9 0-0 8, Smith 1-4 0-0 3, Glanton 3-6 1-1 7, McGrath 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 26-62 5-6 60.
VIRGINIA TECH (68)
Osborne 4-12 3-4 12, Donnell 6-10 6-6 18, Root 5-7 7-10 17, Garland 1-1 3-5 5, Leftwich 1-4 3-4 5, Carter 1-6 0-0 2, Banks 2-6 0-1 4, Lee 0-0 0-0 0, Hollister 1-4 2-2 5, Melton 0-0 0-0 0, Gray 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 21-50 24-32 68.
Halftime-33-29, Louisville. Three-point goals-Louisville 3-13 (Mattox 1-6, Inman 1-3, Smith 1-4), Virginia Tech 2-5 (Osborne 1-3, Banks 0-1, Hollister 1-1). Technical fouls-Louisville bench. Rebounds-Louisville 34, Virginia Tech 36. Assists-Louisville 10, Virginia Tech 15. Total fouls-Louisville 25, Virginia Tech 13. A-1,759.
by CNB