Friday, March 19, 2004
Goal of Quakers' motto
within program's reach
NCAA Division III: Rochester vs. Wilmington
By Colleen Kane
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Jerry Scheve hung a sign in Wilmington's locker room about 10 years ago that summarized his goal for the Quakers' program.
"Practice and play with the poise and intensity of a national championship team."
Now, the Quakers are two games from giving that sign real meaning.
Wilmington (25-6) plays Rochester in the Division III NCAA women's basketball Final Four at 3 p.m. today in Virginia Beach, Va. The winner moves on to the national championship game against the winner of tonight's Bowdoin-Wisconsin-Stevens Point game.
"Our goal from Day 1 is to win a national championship every year," said Scheve, who is in his 14th year as Wilmington's head coach. "We write (the saying) on our grease board on the bench every game. It's the last thing we want them looking at before every game."
This is Wilmington's first trip to the NCAA Final Four in any sport. The women's basketball team made it to the Sweet 16 last year and the Elite Eight two years ago.
"We're glad we got here, but we're not going to Virginia just to say we made it to the Final Four," senior guard Emily Cummins said after beating Puget Sound Saturday to advance.
Cummins, who was named the Most Valuable Player of the sectional tournament last weekend, is one of four seniors who have led the Quakers on their national title quest. Forward Tara Rausch leads the team with 18.8 points and 11.1 rebounds a game, and guard Amy Kincer adds 12.7 points and 5.0 rebounds this season. Senior Brittney Morris was also a force for Wilmington before tearing an anterior cruciate ligament two weeks ago in the Ohio Athletic Conference Tournament.
Rochester (24-4) finished fourth in the nation last year and returns as the only team in last year's Final Four to make this year's field. The Yellowjackets received an at-large bid to the tournament after finishing third in their conference.
Rochester is led by senior guard Erika Smith's 14.3 points and 6.4 rebounds a game.
Top-ranked Bowdoin (29-0) is the favorite to take this year's championship.
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