Before the madness finally ended, a jolt of March basketball excitement surged through the northwest Bronx with the Lehman College women’s team’s victory over top-seeded Baruch College two weeks ago in the CUNY championship.

The Lightning’s thrilling upset win, 52-51, marked the school’s first CUNY Championship and its first birth into the Big Dance – the NCAA Division III National Tournament.

Unfortunately, the Cinderella story ended in the first round as Lehman lost 64-43 last Friday to the University of Scranton (Pennsylvania), the second ranked Division III women’s team in the country playing on their home court.

The loss ended a brilliant run to end the season for the Lightning.

Lehman stormed into the CUNY conference tournament, winning six out of their final seven regular season games.

The team relied on a balanced and deep scoring attack. Six Lehman players averaged at least 10 points a game, and two others averaged nine.

The tough win over Baruch displayed the team’s depth and perseverance. Despite their large fan support, Lehman spent the entire first half of the game down. The second half showcased Lehman’s defensive intensity. Baruch only scored two points in the final 11 minutes as the Lightning scored 14 of the last 16 points of the game.

Senior Kathy Santiago and sophomore Sally Nnamani, the CUNY player of the year, led the Lightning throughout the season, both averaging nearly 21 points a contest. But it was other less heralded players that stepped up in the CUNY championship.

Sophomore Tiara Carroll scored 14 points and made the tournament all-star team, while sophomore Monique Sampson extended her efforts during the conference tournament and earned the most valuable player award.

“We won this game with our heart,” Sampson said. “Along with my teammates, I’ve come full circle from my first two seasons playing for Lehman.”

“The unsung heroes made this win happen for us tonight,” said Lehman coach Eric Harrison, who won CUNY coach of the year honors this year. “Monique Sampson and Tiara Carroll played great in the second half, and we won in spite of a poor shooting night.”

Harrison has guided Lehman for the past seven years and has now been named CUNY coach of the year twice. He consistently attracts local talent and maintains a winning spirit at the northwest Bronx school.

“I want Lehman to be able to contend every season,” Harrison said. “It is a goal of mine to have our student athletes continue to be successful, both in the class and on the court, year after year.”

Lehman’s season ended with hope, even though they were outplayed by Scranton.

In fact, the game was in reach in the first half as both teams struggled with poor shooting. But Scranton was able to gain a rhythm, while Lehman continued to shoot poorly.

Nnamani led Lehman with 13 points, topping the 1,000 point mark for her career. Santiago added 11, but that wasn’t enough to overcome Scranton’s onslaught of second half scoring. Lehman ended its season 19-10, while Scranton moves on to face Hamilton College in the next round.

In the end, Lehman couldn’t find its characteristic late-game surge, but with only two seniors graduating, the Lightning are sure to strike again next year.