ASHLAND, Ohio — Hanging banners, filling trophy cases and adding 2023 to their National Championship banner is the goal of the Ashland University women's basketball team as they prepare for the championship game in Dallas Texas against Minnesota Duluth—but winning the title would also mean history for the leader of the Eagles.
From the very first game, the Eagles have been on a tear. Their dominance all season long has led them to their ultimate goal.
"We started the season 1-0, now we're 36-0 and looking to finish it out 37-0," said guard Savaya Brockington. "That's the dream—I don't think you can ask for too much more."
Last week, the Eagles took down UT Tyler in the Elite Eight, advancing to the Final Four where they defeated Glenville State, sending them to the National Championship game on Saturday where they will face Minnesota Duluth.
"We know that we have to make a few tweaks. Duluth is a really good team and we have to dominate those tweaks. But at the end of the day, they also have to prepare for us and we're a really good team," said head coach Kari Pickens. "I want us to go down there with a ton of confidence knowing that we've put together a great season and this next game is no different than any other that we've played. We just have to go out and play 40 minutes of Ashland basketball and I think that we'll be in a great spot."
During their final practice inside Ashland's Kate's Gymnasium before heading to Dallas for the big game, the Eagles stayed hard at work. Fundamental drills, running plays, and most importantly, supporting each other—the team has kept the same mindset all year long.
"One more game. It's hard to believe we got our 91st practice today and our last one at Kate," Pickens said. "It was a great one, which I was excited for, and now we're ready to hit the road."
The lead up to this final matchup is one that every single player has been looking forward to all season long, but one the staff feels just as strongly about.
"It's such a crazy feeling. I actually was a player for the last four years, so we've been talking about winning a national championship for the five years that I've been here and obviously before that. So it's such a surreal feeling to actually be in this position," said graduate assistant Erin Daniels. "And although I'm not a player anymore, it's still just as exciting to be a coach in coaching in the national championship."
While Daniels has been eyeing the title for herself for the last five years, she's being led by someone who knows what it's like to make it to that final win. Pickens has won a national championship before, multiple times in fact, and while she looks to add another as a head coach—it also is a chance to make NCAA DII history.
If the Eagles beat Minnesota Duluth on Saturday and win a national championship, Pickens will become the first woman in DII history to win a national championship as a player, assistant coach and a head coach.
Pickens transferred to Ashland from Dayton for her final two years of college ball, winning the title as a player in 2013. After her playing career, Pickens began her coaching career and won a national championship as an assistant coach in 2017. Now, she's eyeing a win on the next level—head coach—to make history.
"We're like, 'coach, you're incredible.' And she is so humble about it. She's like, 'guys, stop, stop, stop,'" Daniels laughed. "We don't bring it up too much, but we're in the presence of one of the best coaches in the history of Ashland women's basketball and in Division II and women's basketball in general."
Pickens' players also acknowledge the potential accomplishment and for them, it adds to the already immense respect they have for her.
"I have all the love for Coach P. She's honestly, truly the best," Brockington said. "Everything that she's done, that just adds to her and who she is as a head coach."
When Daniels and the players say Pickens doesn't read into the potential history-making feat, they mean it. Pickens turned the attention to her players when asked about what winning as a head coach would mean to her and reiterated that she really doesn't think about the feat.
"It genuinely is, it's another game, and we have to go down there and treat it like another game. If we win, I'm going to be pumped, but I'm going to be pumped more for my girls than I am for anyone else because no one's put as much work in as they have," Pickens said.
Still, the head coach does see deeper meaning in achieving such a goal. For her, it's being a leader for the next generation and helping blaze trails like the women who came before her.
"I've had so many women who have come before me who have led a path of excellence that I have wanted to pursue and follow. And I hope that this team and what the staff has been able to do can also leave a legacy of excellence that other people want to follow," Pickens said. "The amount of female mentors and role models that I've had in my life is tremendous. They've helped make me who I am today, and I hope that I can be a small part of that for someone else who's watching."
Pickens and her team will look to make that history and bring home a national championship trophy Saturday in Dallas at 2:30 p.m. local time. For more information on where the game will air, click here.
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