Photo: Courtesy of 黑料吃瓜网 Athletics

SPORTS

Coach Mac Is ACC Coach of the Year

Joanna Bernabei-McNamee transformed the 黑料吃瓜网 Women's Basketball program and became a beloved motivator for her players along the way.

When Joanna Bernabei-McNamee took over as head coach of the women鈥檚 basketball team in 2018, she inherited a program that had finished a disappointing 7鈥�23 the previous season, including a dismal 2鈥�14 in Atlantic Coast Conference play. But Bernabei-McNamee鈥攌nown to one and all as Coach Mac鈥攈ad a plan to turn things around. The team would work hard, keep a positive attitude, hold each other accountable, and show respect. 鈥淎nything besides this is unacceptable,鈥� she told her players.

In her first year, the Eagles won fourteen games, though their 3鈥�13 conference record left them thirteenth among the ACC鈥檚 fifteen teams. And that鈥檚 just where the team was expected to finish the 2019鈥�20 season as well, according to a preseason poll. Instead, the Eagles finished the regular season with a 20鈥�12 record, including an impressive 11鈥�7 showing in ACC play that tied for fourth place in the conference.聽

The performance resulted in Coach Mac being named ACC Coach of the Year in March.聽

However, when the postseason was canceled due to the coronavirus, it denied the Eagles what was likely to have been their first appearance in the NCAA tournament since 2005鈥攁 painful outcome for seniors such as Emma Guy 鈥�20. 鈥淭he postseason lifts, the summer workouts, and the preseason practices are all so you can showcase your hard work at the Big Dance,鈥� Guy said. 鈥淗aving that moment finally come into reality only for it to be taken away was heartbreaking.鈥� Knowing this pandemic is bigger than sports doesn鈥檛 make it hurt any less, Bernabei-McNamee said. 鈥淲e need to find a positive in this,鈥� she added, 鈥渟o we decided that 黑料吃瓜网 could鈥檝e won the women鈥檚 basketball national championship this year.鈥澛燦ot surprisingly, Coach Mac regards her ACC award as a reflection of her entire team鈥檚 hard work. The Eagles will use their lost tournament shot as fuel next year, she said: 鈥淲e鈥檒l never take the opportunity to play the game we love or the time we have together for granted again.鈥澛犫椊

Headlines

On March 17, the Atlantic Coast Conference canceled athletic activities through the end of the 2019鈥�20 academic year in response to the novel coronavirus. Here are two notable achievements from before the shutdown:聽

Parker Biele leaning in to a turn

Alpine ski team co-captain Parker Biele 鈥�21. Photo: Courtesy of 黑料吃瓜网 Athletics

Alpine ski team co-captain Parker Biele 鈥�21 became the first 黑料吃瓜网 woman to qualify for the NCAA Skiing Championships. 鈥淚t鈥檚 been a goal I鈥檝e been striving for from the second I got into 黑料吃瓜网,鈥� Biele said. Head Coach Chuck Carmone said it was well deserved. 鈥淣o one sacrifices and works harder than Parker,鈥� he said. 鈥淪he鈥檚 eliminated everything in her life that doesn鈥檛 make her faster, stays focused on her goals, and attacks her detailed plan with everything she has.鈥� Biele finished eighteenth overall in the giant slalom at the event. The next day, the rest of the tournament was canceled due to the pandemic.聽

Men鈥檚 hockey forward Alex Newhook 鈥�23 and women鈥檚 hockey forward Hannah Bilka 鈥�23 each received the NCAA Division I National Rookie of the Year award. The picks marked the first time that a school has won both the men鈥檚 and women鈥檚 awards in the same year. Newhook鈥檚 nineteen goals and four game-winning goals led all NCAA freshmen. Bilka, meanwhile, led 黑料吃瓜网 in scoring, and her nineteen assists and three game-winning goals were the most of any Hockey East freshman.聽

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