National Champions! The Union University Lady Bulldogs captured the 1998 NAIA
Division I basketball crown on their third advancement to the championship game.
For the Lady Bulldogs, this was especially sweet knowing the Union lineup was
made up of freshmen and sophomores. The 1997-98 season for the Lady Bulldogs
ended as only a season should, but the finale came through hard work and dedication
of the entire season. These young Lady Dogs had to overcome the loss of five seniors,
including two All-Americans, to achieve their dream. The team had to cope with
the loss of Alisha Lehmkuhl who suffered a season-ending knee injury in only the
second game of the year.
The Lady Dogs started the season off strong, defeating
their first seven opponents before heading to the Quality Communications Classic
at Oklahoma Baptist, where they suffered two losses. Union went on to win their
next 18 games and earned a number one national ranking in the NAIA polls. The
team never dropped below the number three slot throughout the entire season.
Bouncing back from a homecoming loss at the hands of Lyon College, Union went
on to win their next two games to capture their second consecutive regular season
TranSouth Conference title and their seventh consecutive trip to the NAIA national
championships.
Union faced nationally ranked Lipscomb University in the first
round of the TranSouth Tournament and defeated them 71-57. Union went on to defeat
Berry College 82-61 and Freed Hardeman University 82-57 to capture the tournament
title.
In 1998, the Lady Bulldogs had three players earn TranSouth Conference
honors. Celeste Gholston was named to the first team while Rose Agnoung earned
second team honors. Freshman April Pearson was named to the All-Newcomer team.
Earning the number one seed in the 1998 NAIA, Women's Basketball Championships,
many wondered how this young Union team would handle the pressure. The Lady Bulldogs
defeated Pikeville College in the opening round 78-51, with a spectacular second-half
performance. In second round action, Union defeated Montana State Northern 76-63.
They then had to face Oklahoma Baptist who had beaten Union back in November.
In probably one of the best games in NAIA tournament history, Union came back
from a double-figure deficit to win 99-92 in double-overtime.
Union advanced
to face the University of Findlay in the semifinals, a team who had managed to
upset the No. 13, No. 4 and the No. 12 seeds thus far in the tournament. Unfortunately
for Findlay, their season would end at the hands of Union 80-64. Then came the
four-time defending national Champion, Southern Nazarene, which Union had lost
to in November 77-70. With more than 5,000 fans cheering the Lady Bulldogs to
victory, Union defeated Southern Nazarene 73-70 in the championship contest.
