UDC Women’s Basketball Team Plays in 2009 NCAA Championship Tournament

The University of the District of Columbia Women’s Basketball Team received an invitation to play in the 2009 NCAA Division II Women’s Basketball Championship Tournament, and was among 42 teams receiving the highly coveted at-large bid. UDC finished their 2008-09 regular season with a 24-4 record, ranked 20th in the country among NCAA Division II Schools, and 8th in the NCAA Atlantic Region. The first round opponent for the No. 8 seed Firebirds was the No. 1 seeded California University of Pennsylvania, a team that they easily defeated in November of 2008.

Things were different playing the Vulcans on their home court, in Tournament play, on March 13, 2009, in California, Pennsylvania as UDC was defeated 73-55. UDC was without the services of their number one point guard DeVaughn Hailey (Camden, NJ), who spent most of the day at a local hospital being treated for an eye infection, and hoping to get enough relief to enable her to play in the game. However, the doctors advised against it, citing the seriousness of the infection. Her absence contributed significantly to the Firebirds being unable to respond to the pressure defense mounted by the Vulcans, as her scoring and ball handling abilities were sorely  missed.

California’s defense held UDC to 4-14 from the field in the early going, and put them in early foul trouble.  UDC continued to miss shots while Cal’s shots found the bucket.  The first California foul was not called until 9:30 in the game.

The Firebirds shot 27 percent to Cal’s 39 in the first half, and trailed, 32-21, at the break. UDC shot 43 percent from beyond the arc and 100 percent from the charity stripe for the half, while Cal shot 30 percent from beyond the arc and 56 percent (5-9) from the free-throw line.

Cal broke the game open in the second half, shooting 12-31 from the field, as the pressure mounted on the Firebirds to respond. All- America point guard Brooque Williams led the Vulcans’ scoring with a game-high 25 points and 7 rebounds.
Three other Vulcans were in double digits, including forward Kayla Smith with a double-double of 17 points and 15 rebounds. Guard Amber Dubyak followed with 14 points, 6 rebounds and 4 assists. Guard Lindsay Johnson added 11 points, 2 rebounds and 4 assists to the win.

UDC center Lillian McGill (Sumter, SC) scored 11 points and grabbed 13 rebounds for her 13th double-double of the season. Senior guard Deyshia Williams (Camden, NJ) added 9 points and 7 rebounds to the efforts, while junior guard Nicole Cooper (Fort Washington, MD) contributed 8 points, 2 rebounds and 1 assist. Although UDC controlled the boards with 41 rebounds (23 offensive), it would not be enough to overcome their lack of scoring power. UDC ended their season with a 24-5 record, while California improved to 27-4 and moved on to the semi-final to play the University of Charleston.