Cavaliers Are Right Back in It

After making 20 consecutive NCAA tournament appearances, the Virginia women's basketball team had missed three of the last four, but the Cavaliers are back this season, as the No. 4 seed in the Greensboro Region. Virginia (23-9) plays No. 13 UC Santa Barbara (23-7) on Sunday night in Norfolk.

"Very pleased. We were all really surprised to see our name come up so early," point guard Sharnee Zoll said. "We were expecting a five or six seed."

Virginia went 10-4 in the ACC to finish fourth in the league. The Cavaliers lost to North Carolina in the ACC tournament semifinals, but that setback didn't diminish their resurgent season. After reaching the 20-win mark during the regular season for the first time in four seasons, Virginia moved into the Associated Press rankings earlier this month.

Should Virginia advance to the second round, the Cavaliers could meet intrastate rival Old Dominion. The two teams didn't have their typical regular season meeting this season. The fifth-seeded Lady Monarchs play another Virginia team, No. 12 seed Liberty, in the first round.

Zoll said this accomplishment carried special meaning not only for them but for Coach Debbie Ryan. Ryan, in her 31st season as Virginia's coach, will be inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in June. This will be her 22nd NCAA tournament.

"It feels really great [to be back in the tournament] not just for us, but for Coach [Debbie] Ryan," Zoll said. "She had a really long streak of going to the tournament. We are really happy we can bring back some respect for her and the program."