Hens No. 15
Vice President Biden, full house cheer on UD women's basketball
11:35 a.m., Jan. 24, 2012--The University of Delaware's Bob Carpenter Center was filled with a record 5,021 fans -- whose number included the vice president of the United States -- on Sunday, Jan. 22, for a hard-fought women's basketball game.
UD maintained its hold on the Colonial Athletic Association lead and improved its national ranking with a 60-49 victory over conference rival Drexel University.
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The large turnout was part of a successful NCAA "Pack the House Challenge," and the fans who filled The Bob included Vice President Joe Biden, a UD alumnus who spoke to the Blue Hens following the game, and Delaware Gov. Jack Markell.
"Our fans were amazing and it was an honor for Joe Biden to be here," said UD head coach Tina Martin. "The crowd provided so much energy and gave the team such a lift today."
The crowd set a UD single game home attendance record for the Blue Hen women for a game that was not part of a doubleheader. It broke the previous record of 4,772 set against Old Dominion University on Feb. 11, 2005.
The Hens are now ranked No. 15 in the nation in the most recent Associated Press poll. They are 16-1 overall and 7-0 atop the conference standings as they prepare to host Hofstra University at 7 p.m., Thursday, Jan. 26, at The Bob.
In Sunday's game, they were led by junior All-American Elena Delle Donne, who scored 21 points, and Akeema Richards, who had 14 points and 10 rebounds.
For more on the game, see the article on BlueHens.com.
Photos by Mark Campbell and Chris Permar