University at Albany has earned a 14 seed and will travel to College Station, Texas to take on Texas A&M in the first round of the NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Championship, as announced on Monday evening. The Great Danes will take on the Aggies on Saturday, March 17 at approximately 6:30 p.m.(EST). Tip-off of the game will be 30 minutes after the conclusion of the Arkansas-Dayton match-up, which starts at 4:05 p.m.

UAlbany earned the America East Conference’s automatic berth into the NCAA Tournament after winning the program’s first-ever league championship title on Saturday with a 69-61 victory over UMBC. Texas A&M, which enters the game with a 22-10 overall record, are the third seed in the Raleigh Regional corner of the bracket, after falling to No. 1 overall seed Baylor, 73-50, in the Big 12 Championship game. The Aggies are looking to defend last season’s national title.

The Great Danes are led by junior Ebone Henry, the back-to-back America East Defensive Player of the Year, who totaled 23 points in the championship victory. Henry averaged 14.3 points and 7.1 rebounds per game this season, while also recording a league-high 88 steals. Senior guard Cassandra Callaway joined Henry on the All-Tournament Team, after also netting 23 points in the title game, while also handing out six assists. Callaway averaged 11.2 points per game in her final season with the Great Danes, and shot a team-best 81.3 percent from the free throw line.

“It is very exciting,” said Callaway, who averaged 2.8 assists per game while running the point. “It is great to be playing a team of this caliber. Being a basketball player, you always think that the NCAA Tournament is a possibility, so being in this position has always crossed my mind.”

UAlbany will also look to junior forward Julie Forster, who led the America East for the third straight season with 10.2 rebounds per contest. Forster, who was an All-Conference Second Team selection, also chipped in with 8.7 points and a team-high 36 blocks. Junior Lindsey Lowrie, a 3-point shooting specialist, and 6-foot-8 freshman Megan Craig, will also look to make an impact against the Aggies.

“We are so excited,” said head coach Katie Abrahamson-Henderson, who was named the America East Coach of the Year after leading UAlbany to their highest win total in Division I history. “I didn’t know if we were going to be a 14 or a 15 seed, but we are in, we’re happy and we’re excited. I thought the team’s reaction was great.”

The Great Danes have won 10 straight games, and 17 of their last 19, to hold the highest win total for UAlbany women’s basketball since 1985-86. Abrahamson-Henderson has some history with Texas A&M, as she led Missouri State past the Aggies to the 2004-05 WNIT Championship title.

The preceding information was provided by Brianna LaBrecque, Interim Director of Athletic Communications for UAlbany.

More From 104.5 THE TEAM