[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 44 (Wednesday, March 30, 2011)]
[Senate]
[Page S1970]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        PIKEVILLE COLLEGE BEARS

  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I rise to congratulate a national 
championship team that makes its home in Pikeville, KY. This March 22, 
the Pikeville College Bears men's basketball team triumphed over the 
West Virginia Mountain State University Cougars in overtime, 83 to 76, 
to win the school's first NAIA men's basketball championship.
  It has been a thrilling season for the Bears, who finish the year 
with a school-best 30-7 record. They tied for third place in the Mid-
South Conference and entered the tournament unseeded and with something 
to prove. They certainly did that, becoming the first unseeded team in 
tournament history to defeat five seeded teams on the way to the 
championship.
  The Bears beat defending national champ Oklahoma Baptist, defending 
national runner-up Azusa Pacific, and top-seeded Robert Morris to get 
to the semifinals. Facing No. 3-seed Martin Methodist College in the 
semifinals, the Bears clawed their way out of a 15-point deficit to win 
by 11 points.
  Then it all came down to the final game, played in Municipal 
Auditorium in Kansas City, MO, against the Cougars from West Virginia. 
The Bears trailed for most of the way, but by the end of the night it 
was ``My Old Kentucky Home'' being played as the Bears cut down the 
nets.
  Trevor Setty of Maysville, KY, tied a career high for scoring in the 
game with 32 points, grabbed 17 rebounds and was named the tournament's 
Most Valuable Player. And Head Coach Kelly Wells was named NAIA 
National Coach of the Year.
  The students and faculty of Pikeville College and the people of 
Pikeville, eastern Kentucky, and the whole Commonwealth couldn't be 
prouder of this winning team. They represent the very best of what the 
Bluegrass State has to offer, and we are honored for them to represent 
us to basketball fans from across the Nation. I know my colleagues join 
me in congratulating the Pikeville College Bears men's basketball team 
for their exciting victory.
  Mr. President, the Lexington Herald-Leader recently published an 
article about the Pikeville College Bears' championship season and what 
it meant for the school and for eastern Kentucky. I ask unanimous 
consent that the full article be printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

                   [From Kentucky.com, Mar. 24, 2011]

      Pikeville Fans Happy To Lose Voices Cheering Team's NAIA Win

                          (By Dori Hjalmarson)

       Pikeville.--As the NAIA Division I Tournament championship 
     game inched to a close Tuesday night, the 200 spectators at a 
     viewing party on the floor of Pikeville's Expo Center rose to 
     their feet. They swelled and deflated with each basket, 
     chanting for ``defense'' and waving their fingers for free-
     throws as their team fought for the win more than 580 miles 
     away at Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Mo.
       Ear-splitting screams rang through the hall as the game 
     went into overtime, and students crowded toward the big 
     screen.
       After a slow first half on Tuesday, Pikeville's fans based 
     their hopes on Monday night's game, when the unseeded 
     Pikeville College Bears overcame a 15-point deficit to oust 
     its semifinal opponent, No. 3 seed Martin Methodist College.
       ``We're down. but (Monday) night proves we're not out of 
     it,'' said Ravin Fields, director of the dorm that houses the 
     basketball and baseball teams.
       And the Bears certainty weren't out of it, battling into 
     overtime for an 83-76 win over West Virginia's Mountain State 
     University and Pikeville College's first NAIA men's 
     basketball championship. The victory created a surge of 
     excitement throughout the crowd in Pikeville.
       ``I lost my voice cheering,'' communications professor 
     Chandra Messner said. ``We're so proud of those boys.''
       Said Massner's daughter, Amanda Arts: ``Amazing. 
     Unbelievable.''
       The celebration on campus lasted until 4 a.m., Residence 
     Life Director Kayla Bandy said. On Wednesday. a caravan was 
     planned starting at 8 p.m., from the Mountain Arts Center in 
     Prestonsburg to the college gym, where a rally would welcome 
     the team home. A parade in downtown Pikeville was planned for 
     4 p.m. Thursday.
       ``I hope a lot of people come out to support them.'' Bandy 
     said as she painted signs and hung streamers in the men's 
     locker room. She knows what she's talking about: Bandy was on 
     the 2008 national champion bowling team, the school's only 
     other title-winning sport. Now an assistant coach, she wears 
     her championship ring daily.
       ``It's such a big deal for these guys,'' Bandy said. ``From 
     the kids texting from Kansas City it was not like anything 
     they were expecting.''

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