BALTIMORE, MD – The Saint Augustine’s University women’s basketball team took off its Cinderella slippers in the CIAA Tournament, falling to Elizabeth City State 64-60 on Wednesday afternoon.
The final score, 64-60, is one indication of how the upstart program pushed the defending CIAA champion after taking down Lincoln University on Tuesday.
SAU finished with a record of 15-13, marking its first winning season since it won 19 games in 2011. Head coach Ebony Tanner and her team did this as the school has made headlines for its financial issues which caused it to miss payroll, causing a number of issues for faculty, staff and students. Its long-term issues have led to the school’s accreditation with the SACSCOS being removed in December and confirmed on Tuesday.
“We tuned out the noise and we kept showing up every night. The things going on around us don’t involve us. Our job is to win basketball games and give our heart on the floor And these young ladies did exactly that,” Tanner said after the game. “Saint Aug took a chance on me as a first year head coach And for that we are very proud. We are thankful and we showed up for our HBCU. “
Tanner’s players echo’d their coach’s sentiment. Lauren Banks said St. Aug was the only school that gave her a chance to play basketball out of high school.
“So for me to play for them and get my heart on the court, that’s the least I could do. And I’m very appreciative for the four years that they gave me,” she said. “I hope I gave them back a little bit of what they gave me. So that was nothing. I give – playing my heart out the court – because I got a free education they gave me. They were the only school that offered me that. Of what the future holds for Saint Aug, well, I don’t know. Nobody knows. We were really focused on the tournament just trying to win. We weren’t focused on what is going on in Raleigh.”
No one is sure of what will happen next with Saint Augustine’s University, let alone its athletics department. But one thing that can be said about this year’s team – it fought until the end.
“We’re going to fight for each other,” Tanner said. “We’re going to go to war for each other day in and day out, day in and day out. And I couldn’t ask for any more.”