LOUISVILLE, Ky. —
Chancellor Dugan attained her legendary victory.
And it came on an instantly-legendary shot by
Erin Toller.
In what may have been the most improbable of Dugan's 500 career victories, the Bellarmine University women's basketball team erased a five-point deficit with 8.3 seconds left Thursday night as Toller buried a pair of miraculous 3-pointers, the last of which was a buzzer-beater that sent the Knights to a 67-66 win over visiting Chattanooga.
The frenzied celebration included a mobbing of Dugan, the Knights head coach who reached a monumental milestone in the seemingly unfathomable victory. Her 500th career win was her 180th at Bellarmine following 161 at Florida Atlantic and 159 at Southern Indiana over a remarkable 34-year career.
It was poetic that Toller was the heroine on a night in which she recorded the 1,000th point of her college career, most of which came over her previous two seasons while being an NAIA All-American at Georgetown (Ky.) College. The explosive scoring capability of the junior guard was in full effect in the second half, when she scored all 19 of her points in leading Bellarmine (9-2) back from a double-digit fourth-quarter deficit against Chattanooga (4-7).
Bellarmine extended its Division I-era program-record winning streak to six, and while three of those have featured the Knights overcoming double-digit deficits in the last quarter, this one took the proverbial cake.
With 8.3 seconds left, BU trailed 66-61. Bellarmine would need a miracle. And, as ESPN+ broadcaster Jack Kizer pointed out afterward, the Knights got three.
The first came when Toller banked in a 3-pointer from closer to the midcourt Knight head logo than the 3-point line to get Bellarmine within 66-64.
The next came on the ensuing inbound when a low pass was mishandled by the Mocs and rolled out of bounds to give possession back to the Knights.
And then, with 3.3 seconds left, Bellarmine's final prayer was answered when senior guard
Ashlee Harris inbounded to Toller deep beyond the arc on the left wing, and Toller made a half-pump fake to free herself from a defender before taking a quick dribble left and unloading from near the sideline.
She didn't need any help from the backboard on this one. Her shot was true. She drilled it before the buzzer sounded. Hysteria engulfed Knights Hall.
Immediately, though, the officials blew their whistles. They consulted the monitor and put 0.8 seconds back on the clock.
The collective breath of those in Knights Hall was then held when Chattanooga's Gianna Corbitt made a heave near halfcourt that was on target. And there was a unified exhale when the shot hit off the front of the rim and bounced away.
The last 10 seconds was simply the outrageous capper to an already wild game. Bellarmine led 24-14 in the second quarter. But by the third, Chattanooga had built a 12-point lead.
Bellarmine was down by 11 with 8:35 left in the fourth when the Knights began their stunning comeback. They surged into the lead with a 12-0 run, but Chattanooga quickly retook the advantage, setting the stage for the breathtaking finale.
Toller's 19 points were a game high. Senior guard
Hope Sivori canned four 3-pointers in scoring 16 points, and senior forward
Skylar Treadwell contributed 12 and six rebounds.
Bellarmine will play at 2 p.m. (ET) Sunday at Indiana.
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