Greatest Moment No. 10: March 1, 2009
You've made the nominations and have cast your votes. Now it's time to start unveiling the 10 Greatest Moments in Oglethorpe Athletic History as voted on by Stormy Petrel fans and alumni across the country. Every Friday we will announce the Top 10 moments starting today with moment number ten until revealing the number one moment during Alumni Weekend April 16-18.
Without further ado, here is the 10th Greatest Moment in Oglethorpe Athletic History:
March 1, 2009 - The Oglethorpe University women's basketball team secures the school's first Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference title in any women's sport by toppling the Trinity Tigers, 82-65, in Conway, Arkansas in the SCAC Women's Basketball Championship Game.
The title clinching victory over Trinity was the culmination of four years of hard work by the women's basketball class of 2009 who compiled a staggering 96-26 overall record while on campus and made four straight trips to the NCAA Tournament. That's quite an accomplishment for a group of young ladies who arrived on campus in the fall of 2005 to play for a program that had never recorded more than 12 victories in a season.
The Petrels barnstormed their way into the 2009 Championship Game by dispatching Millsaps in the quarterfinals (70-56) and dismantling Centre in the semifinals (71-51). Oglethorpe took to the floor in the title game boasting a sparkling 24-3 overall record but one of those defeats had come at the hands of the Trinity Tigers in San Antonio, Texas on January 25, 2009 by the score of 85-72. The Tigers held the Petrels to 31% shooting (26-83) in that contest so Oglethorpe knew if they wanted to hoist the trophy and exact revenge, they'd have to play well.
And play well, they did. The Petrels flipped the script on the Tigers from their January defeat, sinking 17 of 27 first half shots (63%) on their way to building a 40-33 halftime lead. The shots continued to fall in the second stanza as well (16-29) and Oglethorpe pounded out a 20 point second half cushion before winning rather easily, 82-65. The Petrels shot 59% (33-56) for the game and out-rebounded the substantially taller Tiger squad, 34-25.
The senior class for Oglethorpe dominated the title winning game, scoring all but 3 of Oglethorpe's 82 points. Anna Findley (who was later named a D3hoops.com All-America) led the charge by knocking down 11 of 16 shots, including 5 of 9 from downtown, en route to a game-high 27 points. Katie Kulavic (who was later named a State Farm All-America) connected on 9 of 13 shots on her way to 24 points and 3 steals in the watershed victory. Tina Grace converted 8 of 13 from the field and posted a double-double with 18 points and 10 rebounds while teammate Biz Richmann controlled the glass with a game-high 15 rebounds. Fifth starter Hannah Brooks showed her steady, all-around game by leading the team in assists with 6, grabbing 5 rebounds and forcing a steal.
The accompanying photo shows the senior class hoisting their championship hardware and cementing themselves in Oglethorpe athletic lore with the school's first conference championship in any women's sport.
