THE LAST WORD:

Congratulations, Vanguard!

The women’s basketball team captured the university’s first national championship in any sport with a 72-59 victory over Trevecca Nazarene in the NAIA Division I Tournament title game Tuesday at Oman Arena in Jackson, Tenn.

Special recognition goes to seniors Melissa Cook (25 points, 12 rebounds) and Jessica Richter (12 points, eight rebounds, five steals), along with Russ Davis, who reached the pinnacle in his 12th year as the Lions’ coach.

“The first word I can think of is proud,” he said. “Our girls are believers.”

So are we, Russ. So are we.