‘We did this for you’: Winston-Salem State wins CIAA title for past and present players
Led by Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association Coach of the Year Tierra Terry, the Rams defeated Fayetteville State to earn their first championship
BALTIMORE – In her first season leading the women’s basketball program at her alma mater, Winston-Salem State University head coach Tierra Terry delivered a moment over half a century in the making for the devoted “Ramily” fan base.
Winston-Salem State (25-3 overall, 14-2 CIAA) continued its historic season by winning the program’s first Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) women’s basketball tournament championship, defeating Fayetteville State University 60-43 on Saturday at CFG Bank Arena.
The victory felt even more profound with Kadis “Mama Kay” Hingleton Hull, who played on Winston-Salem State’s team in 1975 and was in attendance in Baltimore.
“When I hugged her, [I told her] you know, ‘We did this for you guys.’ Without women like that, we wouldn’t be here right now,” Terry said. “So every woman that’s been a part of the program has pushed the needle. … We were just the ones that were blessed enough to come in and get that banner first.”
Hingleton Hull, who has attended every Rams women’s basketball game since 2014, has followed the program for five decades.
When she played for WSSU in the late 1970s, the program didn’t have a full-time women’s basketball coach, and she said legendary Winston-Salem State men’s coach Clarence “Big House” Gaines would give the women’s players tips.
Hingleton Hull said she knew the current team could win a championship after she observed how Terry’s strict coaching and calm demeanor would bring out the best in the players.
“We continue to stand on each other’s shoulders, and now we’re at the top, and I believe we will stay there,” Hingleton Hull said. “They know what it feels like. They know what hard work is and what needs to happen. They persevered, and now they have the success that they were looking for.
“To take that back to Winston-Salem State University, I think Big House Gaines would be very, very pleased to know that a group of women came along to do the things that he wanted them to do.”
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From the opening tip, the Rams controlled the game’s tempo, building a double-digit cushion they never surrendered. Winston-Salem State suffocated Fayetteville State’s offense and denied the two-time reigning champions an opportunity for a third consecutive title.
Forward Nevaeh Farmer led the charge for the Rams in the first half, scoring 18 points and shooting 4-of-6 from beyond the 3-point arc. Farmer finished with 24 points and won Player of the Game for the Rams. Guard Makayla Waleed added 14 points and was named the CIAA Tournament MVP.
This Rams season has been a drastic improvement from last year, when Winston-Salem State finished 7-20 overall and 3-13 in the conference. After the game, WSSU alumnus and Basketball Hall of Famer Earl Monroe called Terry and the team to offer his congratulations.
Hailey Gipson and Dajha Williams were among dozens of former players who came to Baltimore to watch their former program make history and build upon the foundation they built as student-athletes.
“It is just amazing to see the buildup of the program from where we left it to where they are now,” Gipson said. “We didn’t have a standard before. Now that we have a championship, the standard is set.”
“It’s just the beginning,” Williams added.
Terry, who has lupus, an autoimmune disease that causes the body’s immune system to attack healthy tissue, said after the game that she experienced a flare-up during the tournament.
“I just fight through. But it means even more to me because I’m in an active flare, and I have been coaching, doing pretty bad physically and trying to push myself through,” Terry said. “So for them to play that hard for me, I mean, sometimes you don’t see that these days, but those young women really, really love us, and we really love them.”
The Rams will now turn their attention to the national stage. Currently slotted as the No. 3 seed in the NCAA Division II Atlantic Region, Winston-Salem State awaits its official placement in the NCAA tournament bracket.
Fayetteville State men earn second CIAA title in 5 years
Hours after Fayetteville State’s women’s basketball team fell short of a CIAA title, the men’s team made sure the Broncos left Baltimore with a trophy in hand.
After trailing by as many as 14 points in the first half of the CIAA men’s championship game, Fayetteville State (23-6 overall, 14-2 CIAA) engineered a comeback. The Broncos defeated Bluefield State 71-68, earning the program’s second conference tournament title in five years.
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For head coach Devin Hoehn, the victory carried significant meaning.
Last season, as the head coach of Bluefield State’s program, he was the CIAA tournament runner-up. This season, Hoehn’s first leading the Broncos, he secured the program’s third CIAA tournament championship.
“Super happy with these guys. We fought through a lot this year. A lot of people probably had us out, and we were down 28-14 early,” Hoehn said. “These guys have been resilient all year. And I’ve said it over and over again. I keep saying it – these guys make us look good at the end of the day.”
Guard Terrell Williams, a member of the Bluefield State team that lost in the championship game a season ago, finished this year’s title game with 29 points and won player of the game and CIAA tournament MVP honors. Forward Larry Howell and guard Travon Cooper II took home all-tournament team honors and finished with 14 points and three points, respectively.
The Broncos’ five starters Saturday were all on Hoehn’s Bluefield State team last season, and when fighting to cut the lead in the second half, they relied on the memories and experiences from losing in the CIAA championship game a year ago.
“We were supposed to get it [last year], but it wasn’t written,” Howell said. “We worked our butts off all summer, preseason into the season, to win right now. I’m just overly grateful.”
Fayetteville State, the CIAA Southern Division champion, backed down Bluefield State slowly over the second half, taking its first lead with 5:48 left to play.
Hoehn said the difference-maker this year was the Broncos’ No. 1 seed in the tournament. They had to play only three games to cut down the nets, while Saturday’s matchup was Bluefield State’s fourth game in five days. When fatigue set in for the Big Blue, the Broncos took advantage.
“We wanted a championship. It was that simple,” Hoehn said. “If we played like we did in the first half in the second half, we weren’t gonna get that. So we knew we had to change it, and we did.”
Fayetteville State guard Ezekiel Cannedy finished his senior year with two rings. After the Broncos secured the victory, he proposed to his girlfriend, Broncos cheerleader Mariah Boyd, on the court.
The Broncos have earned the conference’s automatic bid into the NCAA Division II tournament and await their first-round matchup.
“We’re gonna rest up for the next couple days, for sure,” Hoehn said. “The guys could definitely use a couple days off; then, we’re gonna get back to it. Just do what we do and be us. It is not done yet.”