Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, March 2, 1995 TAG: 9503030086
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: ANDREA KUHN STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: FERRUM LENGTH: Medium
But none was more important than pride.
``A lot of people were saying the [Old Dominion Athletic Conference] wasn't as good a conference as the Dixie,'' said Susan Brown, the Maroons' senior point guard. ``We felt like we had something to prove, and that was our main motivating factor.''
Roanoke, the No. 5 seed in the South Region, used patience and tight ball handling to open up a big first-half lead and cruise past fourth-seeded Ferrum 87-70.
The Maroons will play Saturday at No. 1 seed Maryville (Tenn.), a 90-72 winner over No. 8 Trinity (Texas). Roanoke beat Maryville 72-66 in Salem earlier this season, the last loss for the Scots (22-4).
Wednesday was the first meeting between Ferrum and Roanoke this season, but the Maroons (23-5) were well aware of Ferrum's dominating presence in the middle. Tamiko Martin, a 6-foot-4 senior center for the Panthers, set the Division III season record for shots blocked this season. She had 160 entering the game.
But intimidation wasn't a factor as the Panthers (18-9) came out in a 1-2-2 zone defense. The Maroons went over, around and away from Martin, who also averages 10.7 rebounds per game.
``A couple of us watched films to see how they played, and we saw that they're a very individualistic team, especially inside,'' Brown said. ``If you take an individualistic team and put them up against a team that plays as a team, we're going to win.''
Roanoke pulled Martin to the high post and was able to score inside easily in the opening minutes. Quick perimeter passing also helped the Maroons open up a 19-8 lead.
``We knew we had to play our game, and the respect we have for Tamiko is immense,'' said Susan Dunagan, Roanoke's coach. ``We knew we wanted to draw her out and get her in foul trouble.''
Aimee Barker, a freshman guard from Bassett, tried to keep the Panthers in it with a 3-pointer and layup to make the score 21-13, but Ferrum went nearly eight minutes in the first half without a field goal.
Meanwhile, the Maroons shot 53 percent (21-of-39) and led 51-29 at halftime.
``The intensity level was just amazing,'' said Amy Athey, a sophomore center from Cave Spring High School who finished with 14 points and seven rebounds.
``It's already a big rivalry, and we wanted to prove we deserved to be here as much as anyone.''
Roanoke was seeded lower than Ferrum despite a better record and was snubbed for a first-round home game. But Dunagan said there was no bitterness, just an intense desire to move on to the second round.
Roanoke is playing in its sixth consecutive NCAA Tournament. A crowd of 577, a Ferrum record for women's basketball, watched the Panthers make their first NCAA showing.
``Nerves. I hate to blame it on that, but ...,'' said Donna Doonan, Ferrum's coach. ``The coaching staff knew that we could get to the NCAAs, but didn't know how far we could go without the experience.''
Wilson finished with a team-high 19 points and nine rebounds for Roanoke.
Barker paced the Panthers with 25 points, and sophomore forward Glossary Smith added 13 points and 15 rebounds. Martin finished with nine points, 14 rebounds and seven blocks.
see microfilm for box score
by CNB