One got the sense all season that the SU Women's Basketball Team's success was only the beginning of a new era in the team's history. Let us all hope we are right, because hopefully we'll look back on the disappointing 59-55 loss to Hartford in the first round of the NCAA Tournament as a learning experience.Hartford's MaryLynne Schaefer hit a three-pointer with 13 seconds left and then added a pair of free throws to ice the game for the 10th seeded Hawks. They'll move on to play #2 seed Texas A&M in the 2nd round while the Orange return home with bruised egos and the sting of knowing they still have zero NCAA wins in the history of the program, but hopefully they also return home with some valuable lessons learned.
Erica Morrow led the Orange with 17 points, Fantasia Goodwin added 15 and Chandrea Jones added 12 points and 12 rebounds.
One of the moments that stands out most from the game was Quentin Hillsman's technical foul. In what was apparently his first of the year, it came at a crucial time with 3:00 left in the game and SU trailing by 1. Hillsman got in the face of the scoring table and got T'd up, a charge he didn't seem to agree with but wasn't about to blame for the loss either.
"The explanation was that I was too animated," Hillsman said. "Obviously, the referees haven't watched enough tape on me. What do you say to that? Somebody gives you a technical in the coach's box, it is what it is."So the season ends on a down note but the 2007-2008 Women's Team will go down in history as the team that kicked off a fantastic era at Syracuse. Coach Hillsman will return with Erica Morrow and many other playmakers from this season while also welcoming in some top recruits. While this season is now over, his excitement for next year is already evident. When asked what he told his team in the locker room after the loss:
"I tell them to make sure we will be back here. I told them we will be back here and be strong."(AP Photo/Patrick Dennis)