Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Milestone Season Catapults Hoyas Onto National Stage

It’s hard to call the Lady Hoyas an underdog. That term is reserved for the lovable. No, the 2009-2010 women’s basketball team was never a lovable team. They were young, yes, and undersized. Picked to finish eighth in the conference, the Lady Hoyas, in the shadow of the men’s program, were just finding their legs, fresh off their first postseason appearance in 16 years. They found themselves placed in the same conference as the best women’s team in the history of college basketball, the still-undefeated UConn Huskies. Nobody – the press, the students, Jack the Bulldog – was demanding that this team be a contender come March.

No coverage by ESPN, CBS or even The Washington Post. This team wasn’t an underdog. It was just plain ignored. Two losses in three games to start the season were an issue only for the players and their coaches. With 10 underclassmen, three of them starters, inexperience seemed to plague Head Coach Terri Williams-Flournoy’s squad.

A November tournament at Purdue came and went. The Boilermakers, then ranked No. 23 in the country, were upset on their own home court by a team that had played three days straight. Still no one noticed. December came and went, and without anyone blinking an eye, Georgetown entered the national rankings for the first time since 1993.

Then, in mid-January, the Hoyas entered the national spotlight, but not for their success. A pre-game fight between the Hoyas and the Louisville Cardinals, resulting in the suspension of two Hoyas, led to the Georgetown women landing on a “Pardon the Interruption” segment with full coverage by the Post. No, the Hoyas were certainly not going to be perceived as lovable.

Small and undersized, the Hoyas fought for every offensive board. Quick and agile, they suffocated ball-handlers with their trapping defense. When spectators realized the Hoyas had set a school-record 16-game winning streak, Georgetown went from flying under the radar to having a target on its back, and the big guns of the Big East had to deal with a surging team that was not afraid to fight for every win.

Syracuse fell. So did Rutgers, St. John’s and Pittsburgh, then finally the defining victory of the season – a 10-point victory over Notre Dame in front of a packed house at McDonough Gymnasium, which included a huge Notre Dame contingent.

Suddenly, with the entire team standing at mid-court, smiling and waving after a huge victory over the No. 4 team in the nation, the Hoyas became Georgetown’s team. Flowing with chemistry and bubbling with talent, the women turned their focus to the highest level: the NCAA tournament.

Despite falling to Final Four-bound Baylor in the second round, the Lady Hoyas achieved more than anyone could have imagined, breaking more records and achieving more firsts than any team this year.

Picked 12th in the nation for next year, the Hoyas will not be ignored again. That’s fine. The Hoyas’ attitude won’t change, but campus perception should. Pride is important to all Georgetown students: It defines us and it drives us. This season, the Lady Hoyas made all Hoyas proud. That might be their greatest achievement.

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