WAUKESHA, Wis. — "Happy Days for Carroll, Wisconsin!" the announcer says.
It's a Pioneers party. The Carroll University women's basketball team finds out they are in the NCAA tournament, and the Pioneers will host Puget Sound on Friday.
"It's huge for Carroll. Such a small school with such a great community. It's, the energy is going to be unreal. Playing at Van Male. It's something special," junior guard Olivia Rangel says.
In NCAA Division III women's basketball, UW-Whitewater, UW-Oshkosh, UW-Stout, Ripon College and Wisconsin Lutheran join Carroll as the other Wisconsin schools in the postseason.
Rangel says there are so many connections for the team to the area, and it speaks highly of the state of women's basketball.
"I mean I've been saying this since high school, Wisconsin is one of the greatest states as far as women's basketball. We've got great competitors at any level. It's just a tremendous place to play," she added.
Head coach Lindsay Schultz says she and the team are excited about hosting the first-round matchup.
"We felt like we really put in a lot of hard work this season. Got a lot of tough wins. The CCIW this year was one of the best women's basketball conferences in the country," Schultz said.
This is the first team in Carroll history to win both the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin regular season title and tournament in the same year. A big step from the rookie season coaching for Schultz.
She says it has felt like a longer time than since she took over the program eight seasons ago, when the Pioneers won one game.
"So this is my eighth season. It probably feels like 20," Schultz says. "It is actually really surreal. I know I keep saying that."
Carroll is the host school, meaning there will be a game at Van Male Fieldhouse on Friday, with tip-off at 8 P.M. And if the Pioneers win, they will host Saturday, potentially a second-round matchup against another Wisconsin school, in UW-Stout.
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