ANNAPOLIS, Md. — As the Navy women’s basketball team returned to Academy grounds on Tuesday afternoon, the smiles on their faces told the story. Their season is still alive.
"It feels unreal. To have that happen, cloud nine," said guard Jennifer Coleman.
She was the central figure in one of the most thrilling finishes you will ever see. It happened on Monday night in Patriot League Tournament quarterfinal at top-seeded Holy Cross. Coleman drained a three-pointer off the glass at the buzzer to give eighth-seeded Navy the one-point win.
"I didn’t even know how to celebrate," said Coleman. "I just belly-flopped onto the floor. It was unreal."
While Coleman said it was the biggest shot of her life, it was also one of the biggest shots in Navy hoops history. The Mids were down by two points with one second to go. Guard Mimi Schrader tossed the perfect in-bounds pass to Coleman. The senior drained the even more perfect shot.
"We executed it pretty much to perfection," said Coleman. "I don’t know if we drew it up going off the backboard but it was executed to perfection."
"That’s what we live for. That’s what athletes dream about," added Schrader. "That’s what you dream about when you lay your head on that pillow at night and it came true."
While Coleman’s buzzer-beater is getting all the attention, and rightfully so, what led up to that moment is almost as amazing.
The Mids were down by ten points with six minutes to go and down seven with 3:02 to play. They drained five three-pointers in the final 3:17, including that last shot of the game, to win it 50-49.
"The one thing I’ve told everybody about our team is they don’t quit," said head coach Tim Taylor. "For 40 minutes we play as hard as we can and we’ll let the scoreboard tell us what happens at the end."
The win was the program's first over a number one seed in the Patriot League Tournament. The Mids were previously 0-6 versus the top seed. Next up is a visit to fourth-seeded Bucknell in the conference tournament semifinal on Thursday.
"The job’s not done," said Coleman. "We want to win it all."
Follow Shawn Stepner on Twitter @StepnerWMAR and Facebook
