Today, unless I’m very much mistaken, is the last day of March. And this means that we at the sports department have been excitedly buzzing over those hallowed diagrams of paper and ink known to sports fans everywhere as the tournament bracket. That’s right everybody, March Madness is upon us! Who did you pick to win? Personally, I picked Missouri, based not really on the basis of talent or overall depth, but rather because I want the team that knocked our brave boys in Carnelian to ride that wave all the way to the national title. There’s something to be said for getting knocked out by the best collegiate basketball team in the country.

Women’s basketball ended its season with a loss against Princeton (13-4, 8-5 Ivy), 76-55, finishing a disappointing sixth in the Ancient Eight and failing to make a return to the NCAA Championship. Cornell (10-6, 6-8 Ivy) finished first in the Ivy League last year.

In her final game representing Cornell, senior fHover: Princeton was senior Shannan Scarselletta’s last game.orward Shannan Scarselletta scored 18 points, going 4-for-4 from the line. Junior guard Allie Fedorowicz also tallied 18, while junior guard Virginia McMunigal led the team with nine rebounds.

The game was also the final contest for senior guard Lacey Workman, who played 21 minutes and tacked on four boards.

For the first time since 2006, the women's basketball team may finish the season in the bottom half of the Ivy League. That year was also the first season for senior co-captains Shannan Scarselletta, a Sun columnist, and Lacey Workman, who will be making their final appearances for the Red this weekend as Cornell takes on Penn tonight and Princeton tomorrow.

A lot has changed for the women’s basketball program since Scarselletta and Workman first joined the team. After finishing in fifth place as rookies, the Red finished third in 2007 and then rewrote the school's record books last season with the team's first Ivy League title. This season, having lost the team's top-4 scorers from last year, the Red will be fighting for third place –– while in position to drop as low as sixth.

The Red was led by a balanced offense one night, and a big scorer the next, to split a weekend series at Newman Arena against Dartmouth and Harvard –– picking up a key conference win in the process.

On Friday against the Green (14-10, 9-1 Ivy), the Red took down the Ivy League’s best defense with four players scoring in double-digits, winning an exciting matchup, 66-61, in overtime.

“We focused more on scoring in transition; we wanted to get quick shots,” said head coach Dayna Smith.

The team also emphasized making the right adjustments mid-game once it was brought face-to-face with the fierce Dartmouth defensive front.

“We weren’t successful in our first crack at it, so we changed our mentality and took quicker shots,” said Smith.

Check Monday's edition of The Cornell Daily Sun for additional coverage

Men's Lacrosse: Cornell 9, Army 8

The men's lacrosse team walked away from its second game of the season with a tight win against Army. The game winner was a cooperative effort between All-Americans Michael Seibold and John Glynn who combined for the goal that put No. 4/6 Cornell over the top. Siebold scored on a low, hard shot on the army goal from 15 yards out, from an assist by Glynn. The team is now 2-0, continuing its step towards the top.

A week after its best offensive weekend of the season, the Red will be back in action tonight against Dartmouth — the Ivy League’s best defensive team. Cornell (9-13, 5-5 Ivy) will then have the pleasure of playing Harvard — the league’s best offensive team — tomorrow, both games being played at Newman Arena.

The game against Dartmouth (14-9, 9-0) will be the 61st meeting between the two teams, with the Green having won 50 of them, including 13 of the last 15 games. The Green won the last contest earlier this season, 55-36. In addition to dominating its series with Cornell, Dartmouth is also currently dominating the Ivy League.

With the weight of a four-game losing streak on its shoulders, the women’s basketball team welcomes Yale and Brown to Newman Arena this weekend for a chance to pick up two crucial Ivy League wins.

In preparation for the big doubleheader weekend, freshman swingman Allison Abt said the Red has been focusing on “defense and team concepts” in practice.

The first game, against the Bulldogs (10-12, 3-5 Ivy), will tip off tonight at 7 p.m.

1,249 high school seniors were accepted to Cornell’s class of 2013 as early-decision applicants in mid-December. Of them, five will join the women’s basketball team next season as the newest members of the Red, including a McDonald’s All-American.

“The recruiting process in the last four to five years has really expanded,” said head coach Dayna Smith. “The process to recruit a freshman is a two, three, four-year process now. The recruits we’ve seen we’ve known about for a few years and we’ve, been corresponding with them. The entire month of July, we’re on the road almost the entire 30 days.”

[SIDEBAR]Although its defense was formidable, Cornell produced its worse offensive performance of the season in a loss to Dartmouth in Hanover, N.H., Saturday night, 55-36.

Shooting only 21 percent from the field, the Red (7-13, 3-5 Ivy) was unable to get into any offensive rhythm in the face of the Green’s (12-9, 7-0 Ivy) defensive pressure, and was unable to reach 20 points in either period. The loss is Cornell’s fourth-straight against an Ivy opponent, following the team’s 3-1 start in conference play.On the run: Freshman forward Allison Abt (34) dribbles away from a Princeton defender Feb. 6. Abt scored 11 points against Dartmouth, with six rebounds.

After starting conference play strong, Cornell lost back to back games at Newman Arena to Princeton and Penn this past weekend, falling to fifth in the Ivy League standings.

“We messed up big. You don’t lose on your home court like this,” said senior forward Shannan Scarselletta, also a Sun columnist.

“This weekend was a tough two games,” added junior guard Virginia McMunigal. “We’re just hoping to go in this week and have a strong week of practice.”

Following the doubleheader, the Red’s record on the season dropped to 7-11 overall, and 3-3 in conference play.