HARTFORD, Conn. _ Kathleen Crewdson was supposed to be getting a massage.
That was how she had planned it, anyway. Then UConn announced a send-off celebration for its Final Four-bound Huskies women's basketball team at noon Tuesday, leaving Crewdson to tear up her schedule. Now she and her wife Alice O'Donovan were standing in 45-degree cold outside Gampel Pavilion waiting for Napheesa Collier, Katie Lou Samuelson and the rest of the UConn team to emerge from the building.
"The girls deserve the attention," said Crewdson, who received Final Four tickets for her recent 70th birthday. "Yes it's year No. 12 (of consecutive Final Four appearances), but it's still a big deal every year."
Crewdson and O'Donovan were two of several hundred fans gathered Tuesday to cheer on the Huskies as they embark for Tampa. They're also two of the tens of thousands of Connecticut residents who have grown to adore Geno Auriemma's program over its 25-run of women's hoops dominance.
Yes, the Huskies' men's basketball program has enjoyed great success, winning four national championships and capturing the state's imagination, but for some fans the women's team carries even greater resonance.
In some ways, O'Donovan said, having the 11-time champion Huskies was more meaningful than even having a major professional sports team would be.
"There's a whole lot of love that goes into this," she said.
The Courant asked numerous fans at Tuesday's rally what UConn women's basketball means to them. Here are some of their stories.
