March 7, 2002
Old Dominion tries to further its iron-fisted rule of the Colonial AthleticAssociation as it begins its quest for an 11th consecutive tournament titleThursday against William & Mary in the quarterfinals.
The top-seeded and 15th-ranked Lady Monarchs (22-5) have had absolute powerof the Colonial during coach Wendy Larry's tenure in Norfolk, Va., andcompleted an undefeated season in conference play for the sixth time in thelast seven seasons.
Old Dominion won every conference game by at least 17 points, had an averagevictory margin of 33.3 points in its 18 CAA wins, held every conferenceopponent under 60 points and limited six of those teams to 40 points or fewer.
The Lady Monarchs carry a 15-game winning streak into this game and poundedWilliam & Mary (12-15) last Friday in a 70-36 romp. Senior Lucienne Berthieuhad 22 points and 14 rebounds while fellow upperclassman Hamchetou Maiga added14 points and 12 boards for Old Dominion, which amassed a 44-19 advantage inrebounds.
The Tribe, who finished ninth in the Colonial, advanced to the quarterfinalswith a 77-69 win over eighth-seeded Hofstra on Wednesday. Jen Sobota scored 15of her 25 points in the second half for William & Mary, which sank 8 of 10 freethrows in the final 77 seconds to seal the victory.
"This was one of our best efforts in a while," Tribe coach Debbie Taylorsaid. "It was a big win for us. Im proud of the effort."
Old Dominion also pounded William & Mary on the road this season, rolling toa 105-47 victory at Williamsburg, Va., on New Year's Day. The winner of thisgame will play the winner of the James Madison-George Mason game in thesemifinals Friday.