Dancing With Drexel's CAA Stars - Dragons NCAA Bound

By Mel Greenberg
INQUIRER STAFF WRITER
Drexel's stars are going dancing to the NCAA women's basketball tournament as first-time participants.
The Dragons captured their first-ever Colonial Athletic Association regular season title Sunday with a gritty 64-58 victory over host James Madison in Harrisonburg, Va., to gain an automatic bid.
Drexel also won the regular season title for the first time since beginning CAA competition in 2001-02.
Coach Denise Dillon's team led by as many as 16 in the second half but had to withstand a fierce rally by the Duchesses (23-9) down the stretch.
Gabriela Marginean, the CAA player of the year, finished with a game-high 26 points, including a 14-for-14 effort on the foul line.
Drexel (24-8) matched its all-time win streak set in 1989-90 by taking its 16th straight.
A day earlier, the Dragons bested their all-time season win mark set that same season when Drexel toppled perennial CAA power Old Dominion on Saturday.
The Monarchs had been 51-0 with 17 straight titles in conference play.
Richmond was the last non-ODU team to win a CAA crown in 19991 and Drexel associate head coach Amy Mallon played on that team before she transferred to St. Joseph's.
The Dragons by winning the bid made sure they did not have to suffer the selection day agony of the men's team two seasons ago when Bruiser Flint's group was bypassed for an at-large bid.

-- Back later with much more -- Mel