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Metro bows out of big dance
Women's basketball team falls to Regis in NCAA tournament
By Eric Lansing
lansing@mscd.edu

Photo by Amie Cribley • acribley@mscd.edu Metro forward Carolyn Dennee is heavily guarded by a Regis defender March 4 in the RMAC title game. Metro lost to Regis 67-66 March 9 in the NCAA Division II tournament in Grand Forks, ND.

The Metro women’s basketball team made a quick entrance and exit March 9 in the NCAA Division II tournament, losing to Regis 67-66 in the first round at the Engelstad Sioux Center in Grand Forks, N.D.

“It was a back-and-forth ballgame,” Metro head coach Dave Murphy said. “We made some mental mistakes and we paid for it. Their big-time players scored down the stretch, while we turned the ball over too many times.”

The Roadrunners had a second chance at redemption in facing the Rangers for the fourth time this season. After a disappointing loss to Regis in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference title game March 4, it was Metro’s chance to take it to their crosstown rivals in the game that mattered most.

After failing to keep the game interesting in their last matchup with the Rangers, the Roadrunners led for most of the first half in their NCAA tournament match. Senior forward Rianna Harris, who played in her last game as a Roadrunner, scored 12 of her game-high 24 points in the first half.

Regis took over after halftime, going on a 17-8 run that gave the Rangers a nine-point lead with 14:37 left in the game. Forward Diana Lopez scored seven points in the run and finished the game with a team-high 17 points.

With the score at 46-37, Metro went on a run of their own, scoring 14 of the next 21 points to take a one-point lead. Five Metro players contributed to the run, as the ’Runners held a 54-53 lead at the 7:18 mark.

Metro’s lead got as high as four points with 3:15 left on the clock before Regis forward Stevi Seitz hit a 3-pointer and forward Denise Lopez made a layup to take back the lead at 65-64. Harris headed to the free-throw line after being fouled by Regis guard Breanne Burley, but could only make one of the two attempts, leaving the game tied with 1:10 left to go.

The Roadrunners, who had troubles defending the paint all game and allowed the Rangers to score 34 points in the box, forfeited a layup to Denise Lopez that gave Regis a two-point advantage. Metro gave up 13 layups to Regis.

With 38 seconds remaining in the game, Metro guard Danielle Ellerington got fouled by Diana Lopez and went to the free-throw line. She made one of two attempts, putting the score at 67-66.

Metro had a chance to win the game after Burley turned the ball over with nine seconds left to go, and the ’Runners took a timeout to set up a play. Metro forward Cassondra Bratton took a 3-pointer from the corner but missed, giving Regis the one-point victory and a pass to the second round of the tournament.

Murphy said his team met a lot of their goals over the past season, but it was a good possibility they just ran out of gas during the final weeks of the season. He added that they are “disappointed but not displeased,” as his team qualified for the RMAC tournament for the sixth straight year, and the NCAA tournament for the second time in three years.

The Roadrunners finished the season with a 24-7 record, with three of those losses coming from Regis. The season was a strong one after putting together six transfers, losing 6-foot-4-inch forward Breanna Lien to a season-ending injury and having only one senior, Harris, on the team. Losing Harris’ 10.7 points per game and 5.9 rebounds per game will be tough, but the 2007-2008 season looks promising, as the ’Runners return four starters and a deep bench that had opposing defenses reeling this season.

“We should be a heavy-led senior team next year,” Murphy said. “Our whole next season rests on how they do in the summer. We are anxiously waiting to see what they do this summer in training and their determination. There are no guarantees that we will get back to the NCAA tournament, but we look forward to next season to make a strong run.”