Well, it had to happen somewhere down the road and it did - UST went down to Hope College on Friday night at UW-Whitewater by a final count of 71-61 in the Round of Sixteen. While a return trip to the Final Four may have been a bridge too far for this year's UST squad, you have to send out major props to this team for representing the MIAC incredibly well after they were just treading water back in mid-January. They found a way to flip on the switch and run roughshod over the rest of the conference enroute to their second consecutive MIAC Tournament title and their third in four years. Obviously it will be difficult to replace a great leader in senior Kellie Ring but this UST team has a bevy of great underclassmen ready to step up and grab the mantle and the Tommies future looks incredibly bright. Also want to send out props to Concordia despite the fact that they lost a tough first-round game a week ago against UW-Stevens Point. The Cobbers, who were regular season champs, hung tough all the way and took the lead at one point in the second half only to have it slip away late. They showed that they definitely belonged in the Dance. Losing seniors Emily Thesing (MIAC POY) and Tricia Sorensen will hurt; that leadership they had that was developed in their salad days at Concordia when Erica Nord and Lindsey Schultz were leading the way is impossible to replace but never count a Jessica Rahman-coached team out. They will find a way to get back to the top of the heap again.
Meanwhile, Anoka-Ramsey finds themselves in a familiar position; in the NJCAA Division III National Tournament held in Rochester beginning Thursday (I WISH so much I could be down there for it but will be at the Girls State Tournament at Target Center beginning Wednesday). As the fourth seed, the Golden Rams should presumably get past their first game against #5 seed Montgomery (Maryland) but the next leg in the semifinals would be a daunting task - against #1 and top-seeded Rock Valley College (Illinois). I would never count out a David DeWitt-coached team; they can simply suffocate you on defense and, when the three-point tries are clicking; they can be unstoppable. At the same time, everything will have to go right for Anoka-Ramsey to get over this big hurdle if they want to lay claim to another national championship. But, it is doable for them.
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