Written by Eldridg Chavez

It’s February 23, 2007. We’re at the Nat Holman Gymnasium, City College of New York. Third-seeded Lehman Lightning, against top-seeded and defending champions Baruch Bearcats in the CUNYAC Women’s Basketball Championship. There’s two seconds left, the Lightning holding on to a one point lead 52-51. Senior guard Jody Trapp has the ball for Baruch, she drives into traffic shooting for the win. Before we see what fate each team has, let's see how this classic came about.
 
Last season the Bearcats earned their first CUNYAC Women’s Basketball Championship in program history, defeating Staten Island 73-46. Led by the 2005-06 Player of the Year, Chiresse Paradise, the Bearcats finished the ‘06 campaign 23-7 and a perfect 13-0 in conference play.
 
Paradise ranked 2nd in the league in scoring (18.0 ppg), sixth in assists (3.52 apg), and seventh in steals (3.05 spg) spearheading the Bearcats to the NCAA Tournament, falling short against Bridgewater in the second-round. It was the first time a CUNYAC women’s basketball team made it past the first-round.
 
After 14 games in the ‘07 season, the Bearcats entered their matchup against City Tech at 8-6. A loss the previous night against Desales 76-74 saw a late rally come just short. This sparked a run for the Bearcats, winning eight-in-a-row and 10-of-the-last-11 games. The Bearcats wrapped up the ‘07 campaign 21-9 once again going 13-0 in conference play. In the last three seasons, Baruch held a 37-2 record against CUNYAC opponents.
 
In the playoffs, Baruch made quick work against City Tech and Staten Island in the quarter and semifinals respectively. One win away from back-to-back championships.
 
Under the tutelage of ninth-year head coach Eric Harrison, the Lightning all-time winningest coach in program history, came off a rebuilding year in ‘06 having nine returning players and a cast of exciting newcomers ready to take the next step in the ‘07 campaign.
 
Reigning CUNYAC Rookie of the Year Sally Nnamani added to her trophy case winning the CUNYAC Player of the Year in 2007. The 5’11 forward compiled a team high 20.3 points per game, guiding the Lightning to the CUNYAC playoffs.
 
Lehman took six of the last seven games down the stretch making a run to capture the second-seed but a loss to Baruch on February 7 dropped them to the third spot. Lehman finished the ‘07 season 19-10 with a 9-4 record in conference play.
 
In the semifinals against John Jay, the Lightning led 55-47 with 8:41 remaining in regulations. They let the lead slip away with tight defense by the Bloodhounds and with nine seconds left and John Jay up one, Nnamani drew a foul putting her on the charity stripe with a chance to send Lehman to the finals. She hit the first tying the game at 58 but before she could let go of her second attempt, John Jay called timeout, freezing the sophomore and ultimately missing her second free throw sending the game to overtime.
 
In OT, Nnamani scored the first five points giving Lehman the lead and never looked back. Lehman went on a 6-0 run to close out the game winning 71-61 and a berth to the CUNYAC Finals.
 
In the championship game, Baruch dictated the pace in the first half. Leading by as many as 11 points and holding onto a nine point lead 49-38 with under 12 minutes remaining in regulations. There was no reason to believe that the script would go unchanged and that Baruch would once again be champions.
 
Baruch and Lehman had already faced off twice during the regular season. The aforementioned loss in February and early in the season Baruch made easy work of Lehman at the Lightnings’ home court 71-54. The Bearcats outscored Lehman 134-104 in the two regular seasons games and that confidence carried over into their third and final match.
 
Lehman senior guard Katherine Santiago, a CUNYAC Second Team All-Star, sparked an 8-0 run with a lay-up off a drive down the middle, followed by a steal and a lay-up by Nnamani shortly after. Lightning junior guard Kim Kelly, added a basket with 9:29 to go and sophomore forward Monique Sampson wrapped up the run with a jumper off the glass to cut the deficit to just three points, 49-46, with 7:44 left.
 
Baruch finally ended its scoreless skid with a pair of free throws from junior guard Naesha Tyler-Moore, increasing the cushion to 51-46, at the 6:34 mark. Sampson again sliced the margin to three points, 51-48 with a lay-up. Santiago made a steal and breakaway lay-up to pull Lehman to within one point, 51-50. Her next basket, with 4:36 to go, put the Lightning ahead 52-51 for their first and only lead of the night.
 
Trapp with two seconds left and the ball in her hands, drives up the middle, looking to cap off a season with another title, to win the programs second-straight CUNYAC Championship. For Lehman, Sampson whose energy down the stretch fueled the Lightning’s comeback scoring 10 points and grabbing nine rebounds jumped up with Trapp. What started as a championship game instantly has become a classic. Sampson blocks the shot, Lehman wins their first CUNYAC title in program history and Baruch becomes part of history.