South Carolina Claims First Women’s Basketball Championship

South Carolina captured its first women’s college basketball national title Sunday night, beating Mississippi State with a score of 67-55. Junior center A’ja Wilson led the Gamecocks to victory over the Bulldogs with a surge in the fourth quarter, scoring eight of her 23 points toward the end of the game. Shooting guards Allisha Gray and Kaela Davis also helped the team claim its historic win, with 18 and 10 points, respectively. The victory held special meaning for Coach Dawn Staley, who made the Final Four three times as a player for Virginia, but never won a title. Staley held the trophy high over her head and paraded it around on the court after the game, saying she “never gave up on winning” in her athletic career. “It means I can check off one of the things that had been a void in my career,” Staley said.