Women qualify for 1st national tournament

Arizona Daily Wildcat Freshman guard Felecity Willis makes a layup during the Wildcats' matchup against Monmouth last fall. The team finished up the season with the best record in school history.

How the men's basketball team finished up is no mystery, but the what the women's team accomplished will literally go down in the record books.

With a single senior, who didn't start, and red-shirt freshman point guard who never played in a college game before this season, the Wildcats recorded their best record in school history and were selected into the NCAA Tournament for the first time. Capitalizing on its 8th seed, Arizona defeated Western Kentucky before being eliminated in the round of 32 by regional host Georgia.

The 1996-97 Wildcats broke or tied 19 school records on their way to a 23-8 season and second post-season selection in two years.

Not bad for a team that was overlooked the year before by the NCAA tournament selection committee was considered a year away at best by coaches around the conference.

With three of the starting five having started two games or less going into this season, the team's success could be considered a surprise, but don't tell the players.

"We have been second guessed, overlooked and almost laughed at since I have been here," junior All-Pacific 10 forward Adia Barnes said. "But looks who's laughing now."

Head coach Joan Bonvicini, who was nominated for coach of the year by the Associated Press had her team rolling from the beginning. Arizona was 12-1 after two months of the season, their loss at the hands of No. 11 Louisiana Tech.

The Wildcats finished tied for fourh in Pacific 10 Conference with a 12-6 record and were in contention the entire year.

Freshman point guard Lisa Griffith set the Pac-10 record for three-pointers made with 85 and was named to the All-Freshman team. Barnes became the school's all-time leading scorer on Jan. 23 finishing the season with over 1,400 points in her career.