Was it Meg Dahlman, who teamed with Fitz in the post and provided outstanding play on both ends of the floor? Was it Alisa Kresge, who was named MAAC Defensive Player of the Year for the third straight season and provided excellent leadership at point guard? Was it the coaching of Giorgis? The answer could be all of the above, or none of the above. A team that won the MAAC by four games did not have a single first team selection, as Fitz, Dahlman, and Kresge were all second team honorees. For the first time since his inaugural season four years earlier, Giorgis was not named MAAC Coach of the Year. That honor instead went to Joe Logan, whose Loyola team was the only one to defeat Marist in conference play. Iona’s Weber, who was named Preseason Player of the Year, earned the honor following the season as well. For the 2007 MAAC Championship, the double-bye format was scrapped, which meant the Red Foxes needed three wins to secure their third straight championship. In the quarterfinals, Marist scored the first 11 points and cruised to a 55-42 victory over eighth-seeded Manhattan. The following day against fifth-seeded Siena, an early 10-0 run gave the Red Foxes the lead for good in their 71-59 victory. Marist was in its fourth straight MAAC final, and second-seeded Iona loomed. This test proved to be far tougher. The Red Foxes once again jumped out to a sizable first-half lead, which reached as high as nine points, but the Gaels fought back. There were nine lead changes and five ties in the game, and a frenetic final couple minutes. Weber gave Iona a 51-50 lead with 2:01 left, but Dahlman gave Marist the advantage back on the ensuing possession. Two free throws by Lauren DeFalco put Iona up one with 1:15 to go, but Julianne Viani tied the game on a free throw with 52 seconds remaining. Neither team scored on its final possession, and this became the first MAAC women’s championship game to go to overtime. Fittingly, Dahlman’s putback on the first possession of overtime gave the Red Foxes the lead for good in their 64-57 victory. Dahlman ended with 21 points, eight rebounds, and five blocked shots in addition to her outstanding defense on Weber, who was held to 12 points on 4-for-14 shooting. After averaging 21.0 points and 10.7 rebounds per game in the championship, Fitz was named Most Valuable Player. The Red Foxes were headed to the NCAA Tournament for the second straight year, and third time in four years. Their destination for the first two rounds was Stanford. As the Red Foxes’ plane to the west coast went airborne on March 14, 2007, the program’s national profile was about to take flight as well.
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MARIST ATHLETICS
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