Coming off the most successful season in school history, with a 23-7 record, Capital Athletic Conference championship, and advancement to the NCAA Tournament’s second round, the University of Mary Washington women’s basketball team entered the 2005-06 season with high expectations. With a group of five key contributors returning, Sarah Flanagan coming back successfully from knee surgery, and five new talented recruits, the Eagles looked to achieve even more in 05-06, but what happened over the course of the season was perhaps beyond anyone’s expectations.
All eleven players played significant minutes, and head coach Deena Applebury had just one senior on the roster, in school three-point shooting record holder Jenn Olinger. Applebury would need to rely on five freshmen, four sophomores, and reigning CAC Player of the Year – junior forward Debbie Bruen – to offset the lack of a large battle-tested senior class. What unfolded was a miraculous run, which saw the Eagles run the table in the regular season, finishing with a perfect 25-0 regular season mark and remaining as the only undefeated team in the nation for more than a month of the season.
UMW would go on to finish with a 29-2 record, advancing to the NCAA Sweet 16 for the first time ever, and finishing the year ranked in the top 10 in the nation in polls by both D3Hoops.com and the WBCA. Bruen, who again led the Eagles in scoring (12.2 PPG) and rebounding (7.8 RPG), was named as an honorable mention All-America selection by Kodak/WBCA, as well as Atlantic Region Player of the Year by D3Hoops.com. Sophomore center Liz Hickey continued to evolve into one of the premier post players in the nation, earning Third Team All-America honors by D3Hoops.com and honorable mention status from Kodak/WBCA.
The individual awards came in bunches for the Eagles, despite a true team concept that saw every player on the team but one average over 15 minutes per game. Coach Applebury, in just her third season at the helm at UMW, improved her career record to 64-22 and was named consensus regional coach of the year.
The Eagles opened the season with just three home games in its first 13 contests. UMW won the Swarthmore College tipoff tournament after wins over Trinity (CT) College and Washington & Lee University, and then opened the home schedule with another win over W&L. After a 19-point win at Shenandoah University, the Eagles hosted its first ranked opponent of the season in 22nd-ranked Catholic University. Sophomore forward Lisa Tracy keyed a huge second half comeback by netting 17 second-half points as the Eagles erased an 11 point halftime deficit and won, 70-51.
After a 10-point win at Newport News Apprentice School, the Eagles headed for the islands of Hawaii, and defeated Meredith College and perennial NAIA power Concordia (NE) to win the Hoop-N-Surf tournament crown. Hickey was especially dominant in the Concordia win, registering a triple-double with 23 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 blocked shots, en route to all-tournament team honors.
After returning to Virginia, the Eagles handled Christopher Newport University on the road, 71-56, setting up another important test against eventual NCAA Sweet 16 team Bridgewater College at Goolrick Gymnasium. Flanagan’s career-high 26 points propelled the Eagles, now ranked ninth in the nation, to an 85-67 victory. Lopsided road wins at Mary Baldwin and Gallaudet pushed the Eagles’ record to 13-0 after just three home games.
After topping Salisbury University, 77-57, and Goucher College, 87-46, the Eagles would face another test at York College. Freshman Katy Larson netted all eight of her free throw attempts in overtime, as the Eagles pulled out a squeaker, 77-73, to improve to 16-0 on the season. Another freshman, Kaitie Clarkin, hit five three-pointers en route to a team-high 17 points as fifth-ranked UMW downed Marymount University, 55-43, in the next contest.
A 90-47 win over St. Mary’s College set up a rematch at Catholic University. In a back-and-forth battle throughout, the final salvo was fired by Clarkin, who was the recipient of a perfect combination of passes from Jess Shifflett and Bruen to sink the winning shot at the buzzer. The Eagles followed that memorable victory with one-sided home wins against Gallaudet and Goucher, and handled Salisbury by 18 points on the road. Another key win came at home against Frostburg State University, one of the top teams in the region. The Eagles exploded from the opening tip, and won going away, 92-56, against a very strong opponent.
The Eagles then overcame a seven-point deficit in the final minutes on the road to defeat Marymount, 63-59, and closed the regular season with a 75-57 win over York before a packed house at Goolrick Gymnasium. The Eagles ran roughshod over its opponents en route to the CAC Championship game, downing Gallaudet, 95-47, and York, 78-40. The team’s 27-game undefeated streak came to an end with a 62-55 overtime loss to Marymount in the conference championship.
For the first time in the history of basketball (men’s and women’s) at Mary Washington, Goolrick Gymnasium would be host to an NCAA Tournament event, as the Eagles welcomed The College of New Jersey, Wesleyan (CT) College, and Muhlenberg College for first and second round action. UMW proved to be an ill-tempered host following their first loss of the season, and what resulted was a 38-point win over TCNJ (79-41) and a 20-point win over Muhlenberg, 68-48, after trailing by six at halftime.
The team’s first experience in the Sweet 16, or sectional semifinals, saw the Eagles, who were ranked eighth in the nation, visit top-ranked Southern Maine to take on fourth-ranked Bowdoin College in one of the best sectionals in the bracket. Despite connecting for more field goals and more three-pointers, the Eagles succumbed to a 27-6 deficit in free throws, and fell to the Bears, 62-54, closing the best chapter in UMW basketball history.
The complete dominance of the team was evidenced by its placing in every year-end national statistical category. The Eagles ranked fourth in the nation (among 425 competing schools) in winning percentage (93.5%) and rebounding margin (+10.8 RPG), were sixth in the nation in scoring margin (+21.4 PPG), and were eighth in field goal percentage defense (32.3% against). In addition, UMW was ranked in the top 40 nationally in scoring offense, scoring defense, field goal percentage, free throw percentage, three-point field goals per game, and three-point field goal percentage.
Hickey finished second in the nation in blocked shots, with 4.5 per game, and Bruen ended the season fourth in the nation in free throw percentage, at 89.3%. Ten different players led the team in scoring over the course of the season, again evidence of the TEAM concept. The team also broke school season records for victories (29), winning percentage (93.5%), points (2,313), three-point field goals (196) and 3-pt. FG pct. (35.4%), free throw pct. (73.9%), rebounds (1,422), consecutive wins (27), and consecutive home wins (13).