“It’s sad now,” Austria said. “But when I look back and see all the accomplishments, it was pretty amazing.”
The former Carroll High School standout scored the last of her 1,197 career points with 35 seconds remaining as the Flyers tried to beat the odds and make a miraculous comeback.
“We just kept trying to fight it out,” Austria said. “We just wanted to stay together and keep playing until the end.”
ARCHDEACON: Flyers can’t keep the fire going vs. Vols
Austria, who got a fifth year of eligibility after suffering her second ACL tear in the 2015-16 season, finished 115-43 in her career.
Fellow seniors Saicha Grant-Allen, Andrijana Cvitkovic and Christy Macioce were 87-40 and played in two NCAA tournaments.
As Austria talked, junior JaVonna Layfield walked past, kissed her hand and then pressed it to Austria’s cheek.
“I’m not ready for them to leave,” Layfield said. “Kelley and Saicha really took me in when I was a freshman and helped me out. I don’t want them to leave.”
Hometown welcome: The end of the season, with the seniors leaving, capped an emotional day for Layfield.
The Louisville Ballard High School graduate scored the first points in the game in front of more than 30 friends and family who loudly cheered her every accomplishment.
“It was an amazing feeling,” Layfield said after finishing with 10 points and four rebounds. “Only so many kids get to do this and I am more than thankful and blessed to be in my hometown.”
Layfield did get a chance to get a home-cooked meal during the brief stop in her hometown, but made sure she enjoyed everything about the experience.
“I’m used to being away from home, but it was a little bittersweet,” Layfield said. “But I made sure I sucked in every minute of it.”
Harris strong: Junior Alex Harris is normally an emotional player in the post for the Flyers, but Saturday the level was amped even more.
Harris finished with 10 points and 14 rebounds, including 11 defensive boards, and was vocal in the process.
“This is the NCAA, you got to play like every game is your last,” Harris said. “I wanted to win for our seniors so bad that there were a lot of emotions in my heart and I just wanted to leave it all out there.”
The Lady Vols also offered a size challenge with three starters taller than Harris’ 6-foot-1 frame.
“It’s definitely a challenge, but once you get a body on them, that difference goes away,” Harris said. “But I really like playing against competition like that.”
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