1993 Women's Basketball Season

[CAHoya07]

After the women's second round exit from the NCAA Tournament a couple days ago, I cannot help but think back to the women's only other NCAA appearance to this point, which was in 1993. The women made it to the Sweet 16 that year, and I imagine it must have been a pretty unexpected, incredible run. I also believe that was the last time the ladies have beaten UConn.

Does anyone have any memories from that women's season? I think some former Pep Band members have posted fondly about it in the past, but I'd love to hear more about it here. Thanks!

P.S. I doubt it will be another 17 years before the women's next NCAA appearance. The team looks like it is set up to be a year-in, year-out NCAA powerhouse. I'm looking forward to both the women's and men's seasons next year already...

[williambraskyiii]

<crickets>

On another note, I hope that the women establish themselves as annual contenders, but I just took a look at the Girls Top 150 for 2010 and GU doesn't have ONE commit on the list? That seems a bit odd considering we just got a McD AA. Does anyone know about the incoming women's recruits?

[kchoya]

Women's basketball? Never heard of it.

[CAHoya07]

Ha, will and kc. But hey, it's worth a shot...

[HoyaSinceBirth]

I think part of it is the number of people already on the team. The sophomore class has 7 people in it plus 3 freshman and a junior we already return 11 people. We're losting 3 seniors who were all very good, but we have a lot of high quality pieces returning. So playing time issues may come into play with recruiting.

insider.espn.go.com/ncw/recruiting/tracker/school?schoolId=46&season=2010&action=upsell&appRedirect=http%3a%2f%2finsider.espn.go.com%2fncw%2frecruiting%2ftracker%2fschool%3fschoolId%3d46%26season%3d2010

here's what i could find on our recruits. They don't seem bad. outside the ESPN top 100, but not bad by any stretch.

reading some more. seems like powell may be under the radar since she didn't play as many high profile AAU events.

We'll have talent for years to come with our boo williams pipe line

[theexorcist]

Mar 24, 2010 9:54:34 GMT -5 kchoya said:

Women's basketball? Never heard of it.

You've done this on two separate threads. Really, give it up. It's immature.

I loathe the WNBA with every fiber of my being and hope that it will go away. But the women here are representing Georgetown, they're getting on TV, and they're doing very well. There's no reason to actively denigrate them.

[1789]

Loved that women's team.

An absolute pleasure to watch. I've run into Nikki Reid and Coleen "the mad bomber" Hanrahan at a couple Men's games.

[TC]

Mar 24, 2010 11:35:08 GMT -5 theexorcist said:

Mar 24, 2010 9:54:34 GMT -5 kchoya said:

Women's basketball? Never heard of it.

You've done this on two separate threads. Really, give it up. It's immature.

I loathe the WNBA with every fiber of my being and hope that it will go away. But the women here are representing Georgetown, they're getting on TV, and they're doing very well. There's no reason to actively denigrate them.

Lighten up, I'm sure it doesn't show through the post, but he's been to more Georgetown women's games than 99.9% of the posters on the board.

Remember also, in 1993, the Men were in the NIT playing godawful games against UTEP so arguably the women were the bigger draw. I don't remember much from that season other than that Penn State might have had two twin sisters on their team?

[tgo]

i was a freshman in 92-93. a lot of the players on the girls team played regularly at yates so i knew a few of them a little bit. colleen hanrahan was a great shooter on that team and is now the head of the fast break club which is the womens version of HHC. i recall that people were excited about the team doing so well, especially since it was the first time the men had been relegated to the NIT since the 70s. i dont remember it being a HUGE deal around campus though.

while it is fashionable to put down womens hoops i think people here go way over the top.

If you complain that womens hoops gets more coverage than it merits relative to the interest in it or that it is annoying when a mens game could be on but we get a womens game on espn instead, or ask why ncaa womens scores are on the bottom of the screen as often as the mens then i am right there with you, but the trashing of the entire concept by those of you who like to be so crass and outspoke about their distaste for it is childish.

the benefits from participating in sports for girls has been proven over and over again to be huge as girls become women.

I encourage you to think for a second about when you have a daughter some time down the road, and assume that she likes to play ball, are you going to tell her to give it up and get back in the kitchen since her passion for sports is laughable?

also think about the girlfriend or wife who has played sports and appreciates them and can watch a game with you instead of getting mad that you disappear for the month of march or that you dont want to go somewhere with her during the big game, is that a bad thing?

[madbomber]

Its the Mad Bomber here. That 1993 team was amazing and a wonderful group of women who I am proud to call my sisters. As an avid follower of Coach Flo's program, however, I have to say that this team is significantly more talented than we ever were. And they are so enjoyable to watch. It breaks my heart that these young women were not afforded the opportunity to play in front of more fans this year. Even in 1993, we struggled to draw crowds to McDonough until we hosted our first round game against Northern Illinois. Of course, it did help that year when the men failed to make it to the NCAAs but folks really missed an opportunity back then to see fantastic players such as Kris Witfill (still the all-time GU leading scorer and Big East Player of the year in 1993 - beating out Rebecca Lobo) and Lenni Wilson.

It would be shame for students and true basketball fans to miss the opportunity to follow this very young and exceptionally talented group in coming years. They play with such intensity that it truly makes me proud when they take the floor. And bigger things are coming.

[DFW HOYA]

Thanks for sharing the post. I'm still waiting for a women's-men's doubleheader at Verizon Center, but that could take a while.

[ohiohoya99]

Mar 24, 2010 12:03:06 GMT -5 madbomber said:

Of course, it did help that year when the men failed to make it to the NCAAs but folks really missed an opportunity back then to see fantastic players such as Kris Witfill (still the all-time GU leading scorer and Big East Player of the year in 1993 - beating out Rebecca Lobo) and Lenni Wilson.

Hey Mad Bomber!!! Great to her from you. Yes Kris and Lenni were great players, but you were the best on the team in my opinion. You could light it up from 3 like nobody's business.

I agree that the GU community should come out and support the current women's team. They play with an intensity and defensive presence that would make Pops proud. And the more people that come to the games, the easier it will be for Coach Flo and the others to get uber-talented recruits like Sugar, and thus the program continues to grow. In a couple of years, UConn won't have anything on GU!

[theexorcist]

Snip.

Mar 24, 2010 12:03:06 GMT -5 madbomber said:

And bigger things are coming.

Hee hee hee.

[GUJook97]

Sadly, for me, and probably a lot of other folks, the two times I watched the team play must have been their worst games by far this year. Which is a shame. The Rutgers BE qfinal and the Baylor 2nd round game. Hopefully, their success this year will get them on the map. I would think we'd get UConn at home next year, too, right?

[jgalt]

Mar 24, 2010 12:30:05 GMT -5 GUJook97 said:

Sadly, for me, and probably a lot of other folks, the two times I watched the team play must have been their worst games by far this year. Which is a shame. The Rutgers BE qfinal and the Baylor 2nd round game. Hopefully, their success this year will get them on the map. I would think we'd get UConn at home next year, too, right?

I think UCONN is at home next year. And yeah i would say that Rutgers and Baylor were two of the worse performances (though baylor seems to be because of that shot blocking machine they have).

I was at the ND game. That may have been their best game of the year. McD was packed (with many ND fans, but all the better to rub it in their face), and there was a great atmosphere.

I think that there is going to be a difference between those that see the women on TV and those that go to the games at McD (of course it is not possible for everyone to go to McD). I dont want to say it has a HS bball feel, because that wont do it justice, but the feel is much more organic than at the mens games where so many of the non student/non alumni dont cheer much. At the women's games it seems that everyone who is there wants to be there and they are loving it.

[theexorcist]

Mar 24, 2010 12:41:42 GMT -5 jgalt said:

Mar 24, 2010 12:30:05 GMT -5 GUJook97 said:

Sadly, for me, and probably a lot of other folks, the two times I watched the team play must have been their worst games by far this year. Which is a shame. The Rutgers BE qfinal and the Baylor 2nd round game. Hopefully, their success this year will get them on the map. I would think we'd get UConn at home next year, too, right?

I think UCONN is at home next year. And yeah i would say that Rutgers and Baylor were two of the worse performances (though baylor seems to be because of that shot blocking machine they have).

I was at the ND game. That may have been their best game of the year. McD was packed (with many ND fans, but all the better to rub it in their face), and there was a great atmosphere.

I think that there is going to be a difference between those that see the women on TV and those that go to the games at McD (of course it is not possible for everyone to go to McD). I dont want to say it has a HS bball feel, because that wont do it justice, but the feel is much more organic than at the mens games where so many of the non student/non alumni dont cheer much. At the women's games it seems that everyone who is there wants to be there and they are loving it.

Not to burst your bubble or inflate expectations too much, but the other games I went to besides the ND game had a very subdued feel (one elderly couple shot me a nasty look as I cheered too loud for their tastes).

With that said, McDonough has certain advantages that Verizon never will. One of those is that even one person cheering is audible. The other is that, if more people cheer, the place becomes very loud and intimidating (the men's team played Missouri in the early 80s, and the TV camera apparently shook from the force of the chants and foot stomps.

Bottom line - good season last year, great season this year, potentially greater season next year, McDonough is a fun place to have a basketball game, men's or women's.

[HoyaSinceBirth]

yeah hopefully this year will act as a spring board for better support for the team.

[CAHoya07]

Mar 24, 2010 12:09:11 GMT -5 DFW HOYA said:

Thanks for sharing the post. I'm still waiting for a women's-men's doubleheader at Verizon Center, but that could take a while.

I concur, I'd love to see a women's-men's doubleheader at Verizon. In fact, I'd love to see more joint promotions for men's and women's basketball in general. Even though Verizon would be mostly empty for the women, it would still be an exciting opportunity for them. I would definitely go early to catch at least part of the game, and for big games, the students usually get there a couple hours early, so hopefully many would be there to cheer a little. But at the very least, I think the annual men's McDonough game should be an annual doubleheader for the women and men. It was done in JT3's first year in December 2004, and I don't know why they stopped doing it after that.

Great to hear from a former player on the 1993 team! I didn't realize that we hosted the 1st and 2nd round games in 1993. Did McDonough sell out for those, or come close?

Attendance at women's games is something I'd like to talk about in the off-season, because I think we have a great opportunity here. The team is set up to be very good for at least a few years, so the opportunity is there for big crowds, as long as we promote the program to the right audience. We averaged about 850 fans per game this season (a number I'm sure is inflated), which is a marked improvement over the 500-650 that we've been getting in recent years, but we're still near the bottom of the Big East. I think we can definitely average well over 1,000 next year. 1,200 could be a good goal.

While this is undoubtedly going to lead a discussion on the current state of the women's program, I'd still love to hear more on that 1993 team. How did the course of the season go, what were the expectations, and what were some of the big wins? How big of a surprise was it, and how big of a deal was it, on-campus and locally? Were there a lot of seniors, and what then happened in 1994 and onward?

The best thing is that the 2010 team does not seem to be a flash in the pan. I think the 2011 team can surpass what they accomplished. Expectations will definitely be higher.

[Oh My!]

Mar 24, 2010 12:03:06 GMT -5 madbomber said:

Its the Mad Bomber here. That 1993 team was amazing and a wonderful group of women who I am proud to call my sisters. As an avid follower of Coach Flo's program, however, I have to say that this team is significantly more talented than we ever were. And they are so enjoyable to watch. It breaks my heart that these young women were not afforded the opportunity to play in front of more fans this year. Even in 1993, we struggled to draw crowds to McDonough until we hosted our first round game against Northern Illinois. Of course, it did help that year when the men failed to make it to the NCAAs but folks really missed an opportunity back then to see fantastic players such as Kris Witfill (still the all-time GU leading scorer and Big East Player of the year in 1993 - beating out Rebecca Lobo) and Lenni Wilson.

It would be shame for students and true basketball fans to miss the opportunity to follow this very young and exceptionally talented group in coming years. They play with such intensity that it truly makes me proud when they take the floor. And bigger things are coming.

Bomber: I Love You & You Know It!

As a member of the Class of 1993, I distinctly remember traveling to women's away games, including the BET in Providence & the 2nd Round NCAA game at Penn State. Unfortunately, I had to miss the Sweet 16 game vs. UVA due to a job interview, a job I was NOT offered. Turns out I shoulda gone to Charlottesville all along, but I had a chance w/ a big corporation & they flew me to Atlanta.

More general memories are of the lovely women on that team. I am proud to have graduated w/ Niki, Leni, & Kris. Kris was POY in BE, much to the chagrin of Rebecca Lobo who, reported from multiple sources, is the only person not to applaud Kris's award when it was announced at the BE banquet. Yet another reason to hate UConn.

The trip to State College was extremely gratifying, especially due to the manner of victory. After we beat Northern Illinois at McDonough, the PSU coach admitted she knew little about GU but did say she hoped the game wouldn't come down to Leni Wilson at the FT line (like the NIU game did). Well, sure enough, Leni hit some clutch FTs and we beat the Nittany Lions by 1 on their court!

Even better times at the Nittany Lion Inn w/ fellow alumni post-game. Right before driving back in a snowstorm. A bit challenging on Stefan's tractionless tires.

"Just Shoot, Coll!"

[HoyaSinceBirth]

I'd also like to hear about the 1997 team the only other year to have a banner hanging in mcdonough. apparently they won a division of the big east( the one with out uconn) yet they weren't invited to the NCAAs or NIT? What gives? were the rules for qualifying different then?