ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - The Eckerd women's basketball team will attempt to add another first in a long season full of them on Friday afternoon as the Tritons take on Lee (Tenn.) University in the opening round of the NCAA South Region Tournament.
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HOW THEY GOT HERE: The Tritons (26-4) have put together a storybook season, setting numerous program records throughout the year. Â Eckerd laid claim to its first conference titles, winning the Sunshine State's regular season crown before taking home the tournament hardware on Sunday.
Lee's path was a bit more unsure, but the Flames (20-10) made it into the NCAA postseason for the first time garnering the No. 8 seed in the region. Â Lee, a former NAIA powerhouse which finished as national runner-up in 2013, suffered three narrow losses in its last four games to other teams who will play in St. Petersburg this weekend. Â The Flames were edged by GSC tournament champion Valdosta State twice, once in overtime in the regular-season finale and again by three points in the tournament semifinals.
CONFERENCE CROSSOVER: Lee took on two SSC opponents to open the season at the SSC-GSC Crossover. Â The Flames handled Saint Leo in dominant fashion, 93-65, but fell to Florida Southern, 61-45.
Eckerd also went 1-1 against GSC opponents, dropping its season-opener to West Florida, 66-62, before scoring a double-digit win over Valdosta State, 72-56.
ABOUT THE FLAMES: Lee is a strong rebounding team, ranking 24th in the nation in rebounding margin ( 6.9). Â Defense has also been a strong suit as Lee holds opponents to 35.3 percent shooting, 16th in NCAA Division II. Â Erin Walsh leads the team in scoring, averaging 14.0 points per game, and is a dangerous perimeter shooter knocking down 76 3-pointers for the season. Â Carrie Cheeks is a force inside averaging 12.4 points and 8.1 rebounds per game while freshman Abby Bertram averages 12.0 points and 4.1 assists per game.
