Women’s Basketball Visits Old Dominion in WNIT Wednesday, Seeking First Ever Postseason Win

Media Information
WNIT First Round
Teams: American (22-9, 13-1 PL) at Old Dominion (18-13, 14-4 CAA)
Date & Time: Wednesday, March 17, 2010, 7:00 p.m.
Location: Ted Constant Convocation Center, Norfolk, Va.
Web: Monarch TV
Click Here for Full Game Notes

The American University women’s basketball team will travel to Norfolk, Va., to play Old Dominion in the first round of the Women’s National Invitational Tournament (WNIT) on Wednesday, March 17 at 7 p.m. The Eagles are looking for their first ever postseason victory.

American (22-9, 13-1 Patriot League) completed conference play as the co-regular season champion, and enter Wednesday’s game winning 16 of its last 18 contests. AU’s only two losses have come at the hands of Lehigh, which includes last Saturday’s Patriot League Tournament Championship Game. American fell to the Mountain Hawks, 58-42, in Bethlehem, Pa., in the PL finals.

Despite the loss, the Eagles have earned their third consecutive postseason appearance with the WNIT bid, which sets a new program-record. This is the fourth overall postseason berth, as AU also reached the WNIT in 1998. American is 0-3 all-time in postseason play, although its last two losses were by a combined three points to Villanova (2008) and James Madison (2009).

The Eagles are led by Patriot League Player of the Year Michelle Kirk, who averages a conference-best 17.5 points per game. Liz Leer and Lisa Strack were each named to the Patriot League All-Tournament Team following their performances in the three-game stretch.

Old Dominion (18-13, 14-4 Colonial Athletic Association) also captured its conference’s regular season title, and likewise, was defeated in the tournament championship game. The Lady Monarchs came up short against second-seeded James Madison in the finals on Sunday by a final score of 67-53, which marked their first ever loss in the CAA title game in 18 appearances. Wednesday’s game will be Old Dominion’s 19th postseason appearance in the last 20 seasons.  

The winner of the American-Old Dominion game will take on the victor in the Providence-Boston University first round matchup, which will be contested on Thursday. Click here for the full 64-team WNIT bracket.

Tickets for the game are available by clicking here. The game will be Webstreamed on Monarch TV.

Click here for the full game notes.