Drexel wins CAA Championship, headed to the NCAA Tournament!
Brett Fischer
Issue date: 3/13/09 Section: Sports
James Madison's Courtney Hamner picked up her fifth foul with 21.1 seconds remaining and Marisa Crane, who had eight points, went to the line for two free throws to seal the win, but missed both.
With JMU down four, Evans missed a three, the ball was held up and called for a jump ball, giving the possession back to Drexel.
Marginean was fouled on the inbound pass and made both free throws, giving Drexel a 64-58 lead, good enough to win the championship.
"Obviously you want to put the ball in the hands of the player who is most comfortable," Drexel head coach Denise Dillon said. "To get her to the foul line, you don't want to say it's a guarantee, but today it was."
As tears of elation flowed from Drexel players in celebration of their historic win, the Dukes could only wonder what could have happened had they been able to win on their home court.
"I didn't even try to look on the court," Evans said in reference to the postgame celebration Drexel had. "The realization that they were cutting down our nets on our court [was too much]."
JMU head coach Kenny Brooks would not even allow his players to watch the Dragons celebrate for he knew they had been through enough already.
"That was my decision," Brooks said. "As a father, you want to protect your kids."
After play had concluded, while the Dragons were celebrating at midcourt, Marginean was the only Drexel player to meet James Madison for a handshake for the postgame tradition.
"That's good sportsmanship," Marginean said. "We finished the game, but we still have to congratulate the other team. It's the right thing to do."
Heading into the title game, all the talk was regarding the matchup between Evans and Marginean. But the difference maker was not solely Marginean. It was her fellow teammates who stepped up at the most needed times.
"I can't tell you how happy I am for this group of girls," Dillon, the CAA Coach of the Year said. "They worked start to finish."
With JMU down four, Evans missed a three, the ball was held up and called for a jump ball, giving the possession back to Drexel.
Marginean was fouled on the inbound pass and made both free throws, giving Drexel a 64-58 lead, good enough to win the championship.
"Obviously you want to put the ball in the hands of the player who is most comfortable," Drexel head coach Denise Dillon said. "To get her to the foul line, you don't want to say it's a guarantee, but today it was."
As tears of elation flowed from Drexel players in celebration of their historic win, the Dukes could only wonder what could have happened had they been able to win on their home court.
"I didn't even try to look on the court," Evans said in reference to the postgame celebration Drexel had. "The realization that they were cutting down our nets on our court [was too much]."
JMU head coach Kenny Brooks would not even allow his players to watch the Dragons celebrate for he knew they had been through enough already.
"That was my decision," Brooks said. "As a father, you want to protect your kids."
After play had concluded, while the Dragons were celebrating at midcourt, Marginean was the only Drexel player to meet James Madison for a handshake for the postgame tradition.
"That's good sportsmanship," Marginean said. "We finished the game, but we still have to congratulate the other team. It's the right thing to do."
Heading into the title game, all the talk was regarding the matchup between Evans and Marginean. But the difference maker was not solely Marginean. It was her fellow teammates who stepped up at the most needed times.
"I can't tell you how happy I am for this group of girls," Dillon, the CAA Coach of the Year said. "They worked start to finish."
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DAC Pack
posted 3/16/09 @ 2:13 AM EST
We're champions! We won!!!!!! We're the best!!!
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