The American University women’s basketball team became the champions of the Patriot League tournament on March 13, securing their spot in the NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Championship.
The Eagles took on the Bucknell Bison in their last round of the tournament, keeping fans on the edge of their seats.
“This was a hard fought game from both sides,” said Eagles head coach, Megan Gebbia.
Fans showed up at Bender Arena for the Eagles, packing the stands and bringing energy that was unmatched by Bucknell’s fan section.The game included a performance of the national anthem by AU cheer team captain, Miranda Lynch.
AU Senior, Jade Edwards, scored within 20 seconds of the games start but was quickly outscored by bucknell, creating a growing sense of tension in the arena.
“I thought it was a rough start but I knew that Bucknell was gonna come out hot, that’s how they’ve been all year,” Gebbia said about the opponent.
After a time out, Emily Johns hit the court, quickly scoring a three for American. Gebbia said, “She hit a three and it was kinda like we could take a sigh of relief.”
Gebbia applauded Johns for this saying, “Sometimes you need that energy off the bench to get you back into it, somebody that’s not afraid of the moment and E.J. (Emily Johns) is not afraid of the moment.”
Edwards followed with another three and Taylor Brown tied up the Eagles and the Bison with her free throws at the end of the first quarter, with Gebbia saying, “Once we tied it by the end of the first quarter it seemed to flow a little bit better for us.”
This statement rang true as the Eagles stayed hot, ending the third quarter with 46 points over Bucknell’s 41.
The fans anticipated a victory coming their way in the third quarter and went crazy when the clock hit zero and the Eagles reigned victorious 65 to 54 over the Bucknell Bison.
“The crowd was huge, even when we started poorly in the first quarter they had our backs and that carried on into the end of the game,” said Edwards.
The team and coaches ran in for a dogpile, before receiving hats and t-shirts, receiving the patriot league tournament champion trophy, and cutting pieces of the nets to keep as a reminder of their success.
Gebbia looked back on Buckenells previous win against American saying that her team told her, “Coach that’s gonna be us one day,” and it looks like that day has come for the Eagles.
“I was so focused on getting this senior class to win the championship,” said Gebbia. One of her goals was to get the seniors to this moment. She said, “They listened, they bought in, they understood, and they executed,” leading the Eagles to this big moment.
“We wanted to get it so bad, and it took 4 years but we did it,” said Brown.
After the game, AU Senior, Emily Fisher, was announced as the Most Valuable Player of the Patriot League Tournament and was presented with her plaque.
Fellow senior, Edwards, said, “She’s definitely the toughness of our team, we go how she goes and in the biggest moment she showed up,” about Fischer.
The AU Eagles are set to take on Michigan on March 19 at 3:30pm.
Fischer said, “We won’t be looked at as highly and I think we can take that, run with it, and really surprise people.”
Congratulations Eagles, and keep up the surprises.