Despite not making it a ‘Final Four double,’ UM’s women take solace in historic season

The parking lot outside the University of Miami’s Watsco Center was buzzing around 3:45 a.m. early Monday morning.

The Hurricanes’ men’s basketball team had just arrived from its triumphant trip to Kansas City, Missouri, where hours earlier it clinched the school’s first ever trip to the Final Four.

Coach Jim Larranaga talked to reporters, took some pictures with fans, and then quickly sped off, knowing there was little time to rest before he and his players needed to gear up to face UConn this Saturday in Houston.

Unfortunately for the UM women’s hoops team, which arrived roughly three and a half hours later, it couldn’t make it a double celebration.

The Hurricanes’ women were denied the chance to make their own Final Four debut this weekend when they dropped a 54-42 defensive struggle against LSU late Sunday night in Greenville, South Carolina.

Cold shooting haunts Canes as LSU ends UM women’s dream season in Elite Eight, 54-42

Still, as a sleep-deprived Hurricanes coach Katie Meier and her players got off the buses, they took solace in the fact they accomplished some long sought-after school history themselves.

“It was so great,” Meier said. “You know I’m all about people that have been part of our lives. It was so great to see so many alumni there and families, my family, the families of our players there, people I’ve coached with and coached at other programs. It was one of those validation moments to see the support of so many people.

“That’s what made it so memorable, not just the three wins, but seeing how people rallied around us and our players. It meant a lot.”

Meier and her players would soon get a chance to exhale and rest a bit after a flight delay due to some inclement weather in the Greenville area caused them to arrive a little later than planned Monday morning in Coral Gables.

But the longtime Hurricanes coach, who just completed her 18th season at Miami, would have loved to put up with more sleepless hours if it meant prolonging the best season in the program’s history.

Meier, who took over for longtime UM women’s coach Ferne Labati in the 2005-06 season, said she thoroughly enjoyed Miami’s first ever run to the Elite Eight and first time the Hurricanes had made it past the second round since Labati’s 30-2 squad in 1992.

Meier had coached talented teams that came up short in the second round of the NCAA Tournament six times prior to this season’s breakout campaign.

Miami Hurricanes headed to first Final Four in school history after comeback win over Texas

“I’m tired right now, but really happy for our men and wish we could have made it a double,” Meier said. “I told those players I’m very grateful to this university, but the university is also very lucky to have a great group of young people like them to represent this place the way they do with their grit and determination and never say die attitude.”

All those qualities helped the Hurricanes defy the odds and do something few teams in general have been able to do in the NCAA Tournament as a No. 9 seed, beating three higher-seeded teams in a row to reach the Elite Eight.

“We fought through everything and overcame the odds,” UM forward Lola Pendande said. “We were competitive and we fought through every game and it was fun to do it with our teammates.”

Miami, which was picked to finish sixth in the ACC in the preseason and was not even receiving votes in the rankings entering the postseason, took down Indiana - the No. 1 seed in its region - on its home floor in the second round.

The Hurricanes proceeded to beat No. 4 seed Villanova, which had one of the best scorers in the country in Maddy Siegrist.

“It was pretty special. We made some history,” UM guard Karla Erjavec said. “It is hard to sit back and think about it since we lost yesterday, but we have to see the bigger picture and we accomplished something that had never been done in Miami women’s basketball. We have to be proud of ourselves and carry that every day.”

Despite the Hurricanes putting forth an outstanding defensive effort against LSU on Sunday night, holding Tigers forward Angel Reese to a season-low 13 points on 3 for 15 shooting, Miami was unable to muster enough offense to score another upset and join their male counterparts in Texas this weekend.

“I learned a lot and that it’s all about matchups,” Meier said. “We had some really incredible games and I thought this last matchup was really good for us too. We did something that no one had done, holding them in check, but unfortunately the little round thing just didn’t go into the big round thing enough for us. It was frustrating but it wasn’t from a lack of effort or preparation. It was just one of those nights.”

Meier loses a couple of key contributors in Erjavec and forward Destiny Harden, who was vital to numerous Miami victories during her career including the wins against Indiana and Villanova.

But the Hurricanes have a strong potential core of players still with eligibility next season including Pendande and transfer guards Haley and Hanna Cavinder, who made a big impact this season. If Miami is to build off this season’s success, it will be up to them and players such as sophomores Jasmyne Roberts, who scored 22 points against LSU, Ja’Leah Williams, Lashae Dwyer plus any other potential additions they make this offseason.

“(Roberts) was just incredible in big moments,” Meier said. “Every time she saw a mismatch she figured it out and she was so efficient and an incredible performance by her. She carried the team. She really did.”