Women’s Head Coach Dan Burt, pictured during the 2016 NCAA tournament, said that he is glad that DU has the opportunity to showcase women’s basketball to the region when it hosts the A-10 Championship.
Adam Lindner | Sports Editor
08/23/2018
Following a disappointing loss in the quarterfinals of the 2018 Atlantic 10 Women’s Basketball Championship, Head Coach Dan Burt and the Duquesne women’s basketball team received some delightful news earlier this week: The 2019 A-10 women’s tournament will be held at the Dukes’ own A.J. Palumbo Center.
After five consecutive seasons of playing the tournament at Richmond Coliseum in Richmond, Va., the A-10 announced on Aug. 21 that Duquesne will play host for the 2019 tournament, while the University of Dayton and VCU will host in 2020 and 2021, respectively.
“The ability to bring to [sic] our women’s basketball championship back to campus and to three outstanding host institutions, allows us the opportunity to continue to grow the championship throughout the Atlantic 10 footprint,” A-10 Commissioner Bernadette V. McGlade said in a release.
Per the conference, the return to a campus host site will not alter the tournament’s structure. The current first-round format of six games hosted by seeds 3-8 at home venues will remain, as will the top two championship seeds receiving a bye to the quarterfinals. The quarterfinals, semifinals and championship will be played Friday-Sunday, per usual, on March 8-10, 2019. The first round will be held March 5.
“Any time an administration can put one of their programs in a position to host a postseason tournament at home you have to chase it,” Duquesne Athletic Director Dave Harper said in a release obtained by The Duke. “Our team did a great job creating an appealing bid to host, and we are pleased the A-10 selected us to host.”
“The incredible support by our university to host the Atlantic 10 Women’s Basketball Tournament clearly shows the level of commitment that our athletic administration has for Women’s Basketball,” Burt said. “We are incredibly happy to be hosting the tournament this year with a very strong, veteran team returning.
“Being able to sleep in your own bed, shooting on rims that you know well, playing in front of your hometown friends, fans and family all add up to a special experience for our student athletes.”
Burt’s team went 25-8 (13-3 A-10) in 2017, and participated in the WNIT, where the team beat both Miami (Ohio) and Georgetown before falling to St. John’s (N.Y.).
The Dukes return their top eight returning scorers from last season, including its entire starting lineup. Star senior guards Chassidy Omogrosso (17.3 points per game) and Julijana Vojinovic (15.3 ppg) headline a starting cast that also includes senior forward Kadri-Ann Lass (10.9 ppg), senior guard/forward Conor Richardson (7.7 ppg) and redshirt junior guard/forward Paige Cannon (5.7 ppg).
