Day 9: Bucknell Bison at Delaware State Hornets

Women’s Basketball
Memorial Hall Gym (capacity 3,000)
Dover, Delaware

Women’s Basketball? Why Not?
I took some ribbing from a few friends when they saw a women’s basketball game on my 10 Games, 10 States, 10 Days itinerary. You know who you are, and I hereby publicly admonish you.

My respect for female athletes goes back to my early youth. When I was a very small child, my family began taking me to basketball games at Immaculata College, my mother’s alma mater and then an all-female school. The Mighty Macs made history, winning the first national collegiate basketball championship in 1972. Since those days, I’ve never looked down on an athlete because she’s a woman.

As I planned my itinerary, I hoped for a game in Delaware on this night. When I discovered the Lady Bison would be playing in Dover, I didn’t hesitate for a second.

Our presence was clearly appreciated. The players gave us a friendly wave as they left the court, and head coach Kathy Fedorjaka came to the bleachers to thank us for coming.

The Result: Bucknell 53, Delaware State 42
It’s often said that basketball is a game of runs, something that rang true in Delaware State’s Memorial Hall gym tonight. After the Bison raced to a 7-0 lead, the Hornets battled back to tie it at 11. Bucknell then put together a 9-0 run and, later, a 13-0 burst to help keep the Hornets at bay. Bucknell’s Jacquie Seawright played a spark plug role off the bench, contributing 10 points, six rebounds and several hustle plays that aren’t reflected on a box score.

Venue Rating: B-
Facility: B-. Delaware State’s home court is a gym at its purest. It gets points for having bleachers comprise all its seating, even if they are made of hard plastic. The floor was my very favorite of the tour so far: A large hornet logo at center court is complemented by a honeycomb pattern inside the three-point lines.

Attendance (275): B-. The crowd, which looked larger than the official figure in the box score, grew steadily as the game progressed and was larger than I expected. Perhaps it’s the fruit of the team’s recent success, as the Hornets have advanced to the MEAC championship game in four of the last six years.

Basketball Environment: B-. There was no pep band, cheerleaders or dance team to liven things up at Memorial Hall Gym. Not even the usual time-out entertainment with fans competing in races or free throw contests. And while the crowd was a decent size, they weren’t very revved up until the Hornets' final last run. Fortunately, a certain Hornet supporter took matters into his own hands and kept me smiling all game (read on).

Fan Face-Off: Stand-out Fan Carries Del State to Victory
We postioned ourselves behind the Bucknell bench and cheered throughout the game, but didn’t keep pace with a young Hornet fan seated just to our right. He was loud, rowdy and entertaining for the full 40. “All I want for Christmas is a Delaware State win!”, he announced early on. He continued the theme, nicknaming Bucknell’s Jacquie Seawright “Mrs Scrooge” after she hit a three-pointer in the first half. “Mrs Scrooge isn’t going to ruin my Christmas!”

He was a bundle of energy, taunting the Bison with humor, as he did when the Bison called a timeout during a Hornet run: “You’re scared! You’re scared! Who’s scared? You’re scared!” He stood for most of the second half, and got part of the crowd to join him in a “de-fense” chant with his foot stomping the bleachers.

The rest of the fans were pretty lackluster, but like the potential Fan Hall-of-Famer that he is, he put them on his back and carried his fans to a cheering victory.

Best Mascot: Hornets.
I’m not sure how much the Bucknell women like being compared to North America’s largest mammal. “Hornets” wins as a more flattering mascot for female athletes. Their mascot imagery is quite menacing, too.

Graduation Success Rate: Bucknell 93%, Delaware State 80%
For the Hornets, a loss with a silver lining—they came the closest of any of the three 10-10-10 teams that dared to challenge Bucknell basketball academically.

Life on the Road
My mother and brother, Wanda and Sean McGlinchey, joined me for tonight’s game. We enjoyed a nice pre-game dinner at the Macaroni Grill on Concord Pike in Delaware. As usual, we had lots of laughs, many of them with our able server, Kristy.

This morning my mother and I went into West Chester, Pa, my hometown, for some business and then lunch at Teca, a great Italian restaurant on Gay Street. We also drove a lap around my high school, West Chester Henderson, so I could check it out following a major expansion and renovation.

Since I am flying back to Texas tomorrow, I also returned my rental car this morning. Between my 10-10-10 travels and earlier trips to Penn State and Yale for Bucknell games, I put more than 2,700 miles on my “Toyota Corolla or equivalent.”

With my visit to the northeast lasting three weeks, I think my wife, Pattie, has been a little nervous that I may want to move back here. But after pumping gas in breezy, 23-degree weather tonight, I think she can stop worrying.

Total Miles To Date: 2,386

Next Game: Tomorrow I return to Texas for the grand finale: Texas Christian at the University of Texas-San Antonio. Wife Pattie and sons Patrick and William will join me, and I’ll be the halftime guest on the UTSA radio broadcast.