For one half, the Marist women Red Foxes looked like they belonged on college basketball’s biggest stage. Trailing just 29-27 at halftime, and with their defense keeping the LSU Lady Tigers from getting many good chances, it looked like the Foxes might once against don Cinderella’s glass slipper.
But perennial title contender LSU put the pedal down in the second half, ending Marist’s most successful season in school history – but taking nothing away from the hard work that the Marist players and coaching staff poured into their historic season. The Red Foxes ended the year 32-3, setting a team record for victories in a single season, and had a roster full of talented and selfless athletes. Women like Rachelle Fitz, a sophomore who led the team in scoring and rebounding and absorbed a ton of punishment underneath the basket in the LSU game. Women like Julianne Viani, a sharpshooter all season long who shined under the bright lights of the NCAA Tournament. Women like point guard Nikki Flores, a defensive team leader and a senior who was at the helm during the most successful stretch of women’s basketball in Marist College history. Good examples all, and further proof of the value of our colleges – and their students – in the community.
For as overblown as athletics have become at larger schools, it’s refreshing to see a team like Marist push itself into the upper echelon through hard work and sheer force of will. Credit the college’s administration – and coach Brian Giorgis and his assistants – for teaching the team to play the game the right way. That effort, coupled with the talent that they’ve been able to recruit for the past several seasons, has made the Red Foxes the model of consistency in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference and a fixture in the women’s NCAA Tournament.
In particular, the tournament selection party held last week at Shadows on the Hudson emphasized how much this team matters to the community. St. Patrick’s Day revelers aside, the restaurant was packed with red-clad Marist supporters and well-wishers. Young girls and their parents waited, along with the players, to find out where the team would be heading. The atmosphere was as electric as anything you could find at a school 10 times Marist’s size, reflective of the team’s accomplishments this season. If anything, the team needed more community support – too often this season, the men’s team easily sold out games, while the women, who put together a 22-game winning streak prior to the LSU loss, struggled to captivate fans’ collective interest.
But their accomplishments can’t be ignored, and losing to an NCAA power like LSU takes none of the shine off this team. Maybe Marist won’t ever compete for a national title, but they’ve done Poughkeepsie – their college, their fans and their supporters – proud.