UCONN Lady Huskies: A Championship Program

The University of Connecticut women's basketball team, has won their sixth national championship. In their final game, the Lady Huskies beat the Louisville Cardinals for the third time this season, winning 76-54. The Huskies ended the 2009 season undefeated, going 39-0. The other UCONN teams to go undefeated were, the 1995 and 2002 squads. Coach, Geno Auriemma, has cultivated a powerhouse program at the University of Connecticut, as evident by his record, including three undefeated seasons.

Along with the University of Tennessee, the University of Connecticut has helped increase the popularity of women's basketball, with both schools having some of the best fans in the country. With women's college basketball, and the WNBA, it's nice to see women athletes get the coverage they deserve. The lady Huskies not only get well deserved recognition for the team, their spotlight spills over to the UCONN campus, a light that shines on the entire state. As a life long Connecticut resident, having UCONN bring a championship home, is exciting. Residents of every state should get to experience this feeling.

UCONN's championship is especially rewarding for a state that's lost the Hartford Whalers, a state that was heart broken when the deal to bring the Patriots to Hartford fell through. We dealt with the disappointment by embracing the University of Connecticut even more, they were and are, our teams. In a time when our state, along with most states in the country are dealing with difficult times, seeing Renee Montgomery hold up the championship, froze time for a moment and made you feel good, made you feel proud.

It's a joy to watch these women grow from freshman to seniors. After every senior night, you wondered how the team would be able to replace a player like, Rebecca Lobo, Nykesha Sales, Jennifer Rizzotti, Shea Ralph, Diana Taurasi, Sue Bird and now Renee Montgomery. It was a joy to see Renee Montgomery, a senior, finally win the championship. Montgomery was one of three seniors on the Huskies championship team this year, the others were, Tahirah Williams and Cassie Kerns.

UCONN will return a talented team to begin another tournament run next year, led by all-stars, Tina Charles and Maya Moore. A big piece will be missing, Renee Montgomery, who was selected with the 4th pick, by the Minnesota Lynx in this years WNBA draft. Montgomery will join former UCONN player, Charde Houston in Minnesota. Connecticut's loss, will be Minnesota's gain. Though the Huskies will assuredly miss Renee Montgomery when they take the floor next season, new players will step up, and begin to create their own legacy.

Sources:

http://www.courant.com/topic/hc-a1uconnbox0409.artapr09,0,3474616.story
http://sports.espn.go.com/ncw/clubhouse?teamId=41
http://www.courant.com/sports/college/husky/women/hc-ucwomen-roster-0809-form,0,2226245,results.formprofile?SortBy=cdb_01_num+&PageSize=20&Page=1&turbine_cdb_lib__cdb_02_txt=Sr.&turbine_cdb_lib__cdb_01_txt=
http://www.courant.com/sports/college/husky/women/hc-renee-montgomery-wnba-lynx-draft-0407,0,2906540.story