A hearty congratulations to every member of UMBC?s Retrievers and to coach Randy Monroe for making the NCAA Division I Tournament for the first time. As Coach Monroe said, the team should “enjoy this precious moment.”
It is precious. When hard work and perseverance culminate in winning, it is unlike any other feeling in the world. Buoyant. Unstoppable.
And it means the 2008 Retrievers, seeded 15th in the Midwest Region, set a new and higher standard for the school and returning and future players. UMBC students should be excited. More spring break trips to watch basketball are in store. Winners beget winners. We envision this as the beginning of a long and increasingly competitive series of teams for the school, in part because winning is lucrative. And more resources make it easier to recruit top players and staff and craft winning teams.
Earning a spot secured a $25,000 bonus for the school and seven shares of money distributed to teams playing in the tournament. Shares will increase based on how far a team advances. It also drives up ticket and merchandise sales ? just as losing drives them down. (Just ask the Orioles.) And it is a proven way to drive alumni fundraising.
But the time to focus on is now. We wish the team success against second-seeded Georgetown. And we?re excited to say it is not the only underdog from Maryland to make it to the postseason. Coppin State University and tiny Mount St. Mary?s also make Maryland proud by earning spots.
We?re proud to be able to cheer for all three men?s teams at this tournament, and on the women?s side, the University of Maryland?s Terrapins and Coppin State?s Eagles.
On another congratulatory note, kudos to UMBC?s Alex Broadwater, younger brother of Examiner reporter Luke Broadwater, who won the National Collegiate Wrestling Association title Saturday in Lakeland, Fla., with a 7-5 overtime victory in the finals against a wrestler from Newman University in Kansas.
