February 1, 2009

HOLLINGSWORTH, RAMS TAKE DOWN MONARCHS, 58-51, IN FRONT OF RECORD-SETTING CROWD
‘Q’ tallies double-double with 21 points and 15 rebounds
Box Score

RICHMOND , Va. – On a Sunday where most attention in the sports world is focused on the Super Bowl, the Virginia Commonwealth University women’s basketball team was focused on a big game of its own.

The Rams fan base turned out to support them in the big game as a record-setting crowd saw the Black & Gold take down the Monarchs of Old Dominion for the first time since the 2002-2003 season, 58-51, in Colonial Athletic Association action.

“I’m just really excited for our kids and our program as we’re battling for first place,” Head Coach Beth Cunningham said. “We showed a lot of toughness and a lot of heart, it wasn’t the prettiest game but she showed a lot of fight throughout the game today.”

With the win, VCU remains in a three-way tie for first-place at 7-2 in conference play and an overall mark of 17-4. Old Dominion drops their third-straight to fall to 6-3 in the CAA with an overall record of 11-8.

The crowd of 2,437, a Siegel Center women’s basketball record, saw senior Quanitra Hollingsworth (Chesapeake, Va.) tie a season-high with 21 points and 15 rebounds to lead a balanced attack of four players in double-figures.

“It was just an outstanding turnout by our fans and we as coaches and our players really appreciate the support that we got today,” Cunningham said. “I come to all the men’s games and they have a great atmosphere in here and that’s what we hope to build with our program throughout the rest of the year with our remaining four home games.”

“To me, it’s great to see everyone out there supporting us,” Hollingsworth said. “It’s easy for fans to give us compliments and tell us we’re doing a great job, but to see that many people come out and root us on like that, it was great.”

It was a defensive battle throughout as the score was tied at 5-5 with 11:50 to play in the first half.

Freshman Pryncess Tate-Dublin knocked down a three-point from the wing to cap off a 10-1 Lady Monarch run as Old Dominion claimed a 15-6 advantage with 8:56 remaining before the intermission.

VCU would not back down as two three-pointers from senior Radoslava Bachvarova (Varna, Bulgaria) sparked a 16-9 run to end the first half and send the Rams into the halftime break with a 25-21 lead.

The Lady Monarchs came out of the break firing with Jasmine Parker’s three-pointer capped off a 7-0 run to give ODU a 28-25 with 18:25 left in the regulation.

Hollingsworth’s two lay-ups book-ended an 8-0 VCU run that gave the Black & Gold its biggest lead of the game so far at 33-28 with 15:23 showing on the second-half clock.

Five points from Jessica Canady helped ODU reclaim a three-point lead, 43-40, with just over seven minutes left in the contest.

Junior Kita Waller (Gainesville, Ga.) knocked down a crucial three-pointer and Hollingsworth drilled four-straight free-throws to give VCU a 47-43 advantage with 4:59 to play.

The Rams would not relinquish the lead the rest of the way, going 7-for-8 from the charity stripe to preserve the 58-51 home win.

“Everyone knows that myself and Old Dominion have a lot of history and for the past five years we’ve been through the ups and downs,” Hollingsworth said. “I’ve always had so much passion about this game and throughout my years I’ve learned that the focus I took to this game has to be brought to every game and it should just be treated like any other game. Through the support of my teammates and coaches, I was able to get my head straight and really come out and play well today.”

The frontcourt standout did just that with her 47th career double-double and now sits just seven rebounds away from becoming the first 1,000-point, 1,000-rebound player in VCU women’s basketball history.

It was the first time that VCU has beaten ODU since February 6, 2003 when the Rams topped the Lady Monarch 67-56 at the Siegel Center.

“We as players have always known that we can do it if we play our game,” junior D’Andra Moss (Atlanta, Ga.) said. “But it’s a matter of finally getting that monkey off our back that really helps us go on throughout the rest of the season and hopefully post-season.”

Moss tallied 12 points and six points for the Black & Gold, while Bachvarova added 11 points and a career-high eight rebounds. Junior La’Tavia Rorie (Charlotte, N.C.) was the final Ram in double-figures with 10 points, seven rebounds and four assists.

Tiffany Green was the only Lady Monarch in double-figures with 21 points and 12 rebounds, while Canady added nine points and 12 rebounds in the losing effort.

The Rams return to the hardwood on Thursday evening as they host the Seahawks of UNC Wilmington in a 7 p.m. conference tilt.