Marist's Cinderella Run Ends with 65-46 Loss to Tennessee
MAAC Sports
DAYTON, Ohio (AP) - Marist fans held signs that read ``Believe.'' Candace Parker and top-seeded Tennessee were simply unbelievable.
Parker hit her first eight shots and the Lady Vols used a 14-0 first-half run to take control, ending Marist's great tournament run with a 65-46 victory Sunday in the NCAA Dayton Regional semifinals.
Parker roamed the lane, frequently leaping over the smaller Red Foxes, for 16 points. Shannon Bobbitt and Sidney Spencer each had 11 for Tennessee (31-3), which improved its record to 22-4 in regional semifinals. The Lady Vols, a part of all 26 NCAA tournaments, ran their record to 95-19 in the tournament.
Meg Dahlman had 16 points and Rachele Fitz 13 for Marist (29-6), which had never won an NCAA tournament game until last weekend. The Red Foxes stunned fourth-seeded Ohio State 67-63 in the first round and fifth-seeded Middle Tennessee 73-59 in the second round, ending the Blue Raiders' 27-game winning streak.
The 4,000-student school in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., was just the third No. 13 seed to make it to the round of 16 in NCAA history.
Tennessee looked crisp and exacting while tuning up for a regional championship against Mississippi or Oklahoma on Tuesday night.