Jaila Bryant and Taylor Lubinsky hugged as teammates celebrated on the court around them. Chelsea Richardson left the melee, climbed over the railing behind press row and found her family in the stands at the Charleston Civic Center.
Tears streamed down Richardson's face as she screamed "We did it."
Wheeling Jesuit, a five-win program in 2011-12 and now in its fifth season under coach Debbie Buff, defeated top seed West Liberty, 70-66, to claim Sunday's Mountain East Conference women's basketball title.
"That was fun," Cardinals sophomore Mariah Callen said as she took a seat for postgame interviews.
Callen was flanked at the press conference by Bryant and junior post player Jaana Motton, all three of whom earned all-tournament honors. They had their MEC championship hats on backwards with pieces of freshly cut net pinned against their foreheads.
"I'm just kind of speechless and that's rare for me," Buff said.
The tournament title is the richest part of the program's rags-to story. Wheeling Jesuit compiled a 5-22 record in Buff's inaugural season. The Cardinals improved by at least three wins every season: 8-19 to 15-13 to 19-9.
The win against Wheeling Jesuit's crosstown rival improves the team's record to 26-5 this season - a seven-win increase with more games to be played.
"It's been a rocky road," said Bryant, who was named tournament MVP. "From freshman year we only won eight games, my sophomore year we won 15. It's just gratifying to get this.
"If you stick in there and stay with it and just keep the faith and believe - you can win."
Bryant, a 5-foot-8 senior, scored 11 of her team-high 21 points in the fourth quarter, including four consecutive free throws in the final five seconds to stave off West Liberty's comeback attempt.
"I knew we were going to pull it out," Bryant said. "We missed a couple free throws down the stretch, but we stayed poised."
The Cardinals had the Hilltoppers (27-4) out of sorts from the opening tip. West Liberty couldn't get a rhythm against Jesuit's man-to-man defense and the Hilltoppers struggled with fouls on the other end.
West Liberty starters Liz Flowers and Emily Bucon picked up three fouls in the first half and had to sit for extended stretches as Wheeling Jesuit built a 33-24 halftime lead.
By game's end, West Liberty had three starters foul out (Flowers, Bucon and MEC Player of the Year Kierra Simpson) and three others with four fouls. Wheeling Jesuit made 32 of 43 free throws compared to West Liberty's 14 of 17 from the line.
Foul shots accounted for 46 percent of the Cardinals' points. The trio of Callen, Bryant and Kyle Frizell finished 27 of 29 combined.
"There's zero chance of winning the game if the team is on the line that much," West Liberty coach Lynn Ullom said.
The longtime Hilltoppers coach took "100 percent responsibility" and said his team was "out-coached from the beginning of the game to the end."
West Liberty committed 17 first-half turnovers.
"I just think we struggled starting off and getting going on the offensive end," said Flowers, who also earned all-tournament honors. "We were all just standing in spots and when we stand we don't get open, we have to make Kailee [Howe] make moves.
"Us standing, it leads to turnovers because we can't get open for Kailee. It was our mistake."
Flowers, who averages 20.1 points per game, was held to nine points in 27 minutes. Howe shouldered the scoring load, finishing with 22 points, but she was forced into eight turnovers.
"I thought we had a great gameplan," Buff said. "I talked to the team [Sunday] at the walkthrough and asked them what defense they were confident in, and I don't think West Lib thought we would be coming out in man."
Callen finished with 16 points and made all nine of her free throws. She added five steals. Bryant only made five of 19 shots, but hit 10 of 12 free throws and her only 3-pointers. She also collected four offensive rebounds.
Motton scored 14 points and grabbed nine rebounds while stifling Simpson, who finished with seven points and eight rebounds. Simpson had 19 double-doubles in 30 games before Sunday.
Simpson joined teammates Flowers and Howe on the all-tournament team, but they were forced to watch their rivals hoist the MEC trophy.
That scene left Callen reminiscing about early morning track workouts that weren't necessarily a team favorite.
"We did it," she said. "It was all worth it. Everything, getting up at 5 a.m., it was all worth it."