VCU and UR women prepare for postseason play

Different feelings, same preparation VCU, UR women put emotion behind them as they train

The women's basketball teams from Virginia Commonwealth University and the University of Richmond crossed paths, briefly, while dealing with the powerful emotions spawned on Selection Monday.

VCU, bound for the NCAA tournament for the first time in the program's 34-year history, yesterday began its descent from the heights of elation. And descend it must. The Rams, 26-6 and seeded 10th in the Oklahoma City Region, have drawn a first-round date with seventh-seeded Rutgers on the Scarlet Knights' home floor.

Rams coach Beth Cunningham said the opportunity that awaits Saturday in Piscataway, N.J., should be sufficient to bring her club back to earth.

"When we practice this week, we'll be practicing for the first time as a team that is getting ready to play in the NCAA tournament," Cunningham said. "Right there, that's great motivation. So often when you come to the gym to practice, it's just another day in a long, long season, and the goals you set for yourself back in the summer - they seem so far away.

"But not now. Now the goal is right there. This is it. This is what drives you in the summer when you're in the gym by yourself, shooting all those extra shots. This is what keeps you going during preseason conditioning. Usually it seems so far down the road. But now, it's right there in front of us."

Cunningham said the Rams, winners of a program-record 52 games the past two seasons, have flourished because of their ability to "bear down and focus and take care of business when it's time to do so."

Rams guard Kita Waller agreed. She said she intends to approach Saturday's game, NCAA aura notwithstanding, the way she approached each of the 32 games that preceded it.

"When you think about it, every game is the same," she said. "The rules don't change. The court doesn't change. The referees call the same things. The 3-point line is always in the same place."

That being so, Waller said, neither should the Rams' preparation change. "When we get back to practice, we're going to work hard - which is what we've been doing all season long."

Richmond (23-9) is climbing from the depths of NCAA rejection. The Spiders, passed over by the NCAA despite their runner-up finish in the Atlantic 10 tournament, accepted a berth in the WNIT. Richmond drew a first-round bye and will play host Sunday to American or James Madison, who play Friday.

Spiders coach Michael Shafer said his players were "pretty disappointed [Monday night]. And to be honest, I think they had a right to be."

But the sting seems to be subsiding. Shafer said yesterday's early-afternoon practice "was our best in maybe three months." He said his club's mood is changing from sodden to defiant.

"The thing we've tried to do all year long is prove that we belong - to ourselves and to other people, too," Shafer said. "This is another opportunity to do that. It's an opportunity that a lot of people don't have right now - an opportunity to continue playing basketball."