The 1993-94 Penn State Behrend women’s basketball team was one-of-a-kind. In coach Roz Fornari’s first season, the Lions earned a bid to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in school history. Behrend won 21 games and captivated the city of Erie during their NCAA run.
The Lions spent the entirety of the year at the top of the Atlantic Region rankings and closed the regular season with a seven-game winning streak.
Academic All-American Anne Bonner led the Lions in scoring and rebounding, averaging 16 points and seven boards per game. Bonner also led the area in free-throw percentage, shooting an astounding 87 percent from the line. Becky Swartz averaged 11.3 points per contest, and Heather Shearer averaged 10.
On March 2, 1994, the Lions hosted their first NCAA Tournament game in school history. Behrend defeated Denison 92-73 at Erie Hall in front of a raucous crowd. Erie Times News sports editor Jim Camp called it “the largest crowd to ever witness an athletic event there”. Wendy Ebinger hit five three-pointers, scoring 29 points in a career night. Though the Lions would fall to eventual-national champion Capital, the 1993-94 team created indelible memories.
Six members of the this squad have been inducted into the Behrend Athletic Hall of Fame.