April 16, 2008

The UTEP women's basketball team has been rewarded for its record-setting 2007-08 campaign by earning a spot among the top 25 in the final edition of the polls released by the Associated Press and the ESPN/USA Today Coaches' Poll. The Miners were 23rd and 25th, respectively, in the ratings.

The recognition validates just what type of season was turned in by the Orange and Blue. It also is the final accomplishment of what was a campaign for the ages. Consider the lengthy list of achievements below.

2007-08 UTEP Women's Basketball Accomplishments

• Went 28-4 on the year, including 16-0 in Conference USA play to become the first undefeated team in league play in the 13-year history of C-USA.
• Achieved its initial appearance in a postseason tournament in the 34-year history of the program, advancing into the second round of the NCAA tournament
• Won 28 games, to match the highest win total by a basketball team (either men's or women's) at the institution
• Claimed a school and Conference USA record 23 straight games and 27 of 28 contests prior to the setback in the league championship game. The 23 consecutive victories was the longest active streak in the country
• Had two players, Natasha Lacy and Izabela Piekarska, selected in the WNBA draft. Lacy went 28th overall to the Detroit Shock while Piekarska was selected 40th by the Sacramento Monarchs. The duo became the first players in program history to be drafted into the league
• Made their initial foray into the national polls; climbed as high as 18th in the AP and 23rd in the Coaches Poll
• Won the 2008 Conference USA Regular-Season Championship
• Won the first conference championship in the 34-year history of women's basketball at UTEP and only the second league title for women's sports at UTEP
• Keitha Adams was named 2008 C-USA Coach of the Year and was a finalist for national coach of the year
• Sophomore Jareica Hughes was tabbed the C-USA Player of the Year
• Natasha Lacy was selected as the C-USA Newcomer of the Year
• Placed a program-best three individuals on the all-conference squads (Jareica Hughes was a first-team All-Conference USA honoree and Natasha Lacy and Izabela Piekarska were second-squad selections).
• Went 10-3 in road games this year, including a school-record nine straight road victories and 8-0 in C-USA action.
• UTEP was 12-4 in road/neutral site games this year.
• Climbed to a program-best 18th in the AP poll on March 3 and was ranked for six consecutive weeks
• Was 6-4 against teams rated in the top 100 of the RPI
• Improved to 50-12 since the start of the 2006 season.
• Posted an unblemished record of 14-0 at home. Overall, has won 24 of its past 25 games in El Paso
• Registered an average home attendance of 4,796 in eight C-USA games, a 75-percent increase from the 2006-07 season
• Recorded an overall home attendance average of 3,109, a 104-percent increase from the 2006-07 season