PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Trish Juhline Brunner was one of the greatest players in the history of Villanova University women's basketball.
During her career, she scored more than 1,600 points. As a senior in 2003, she helped lead the Wildcats to the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament.
Juhline Brunner went to Cardinal O'Hara High School and the seeds of eventually becoming a Villanova Wildcat were planted during her childhood.
"I remember distinctly being in my backyard, being probably 10 or 11, and pretending I was backcourt mates with Michele Thornton, who played at Villanova, but was also from Havertown," she recalled.
"I had idolized her growing up because she was awesome, went to my grade school, then she played locally in high school and then went to Villanova. And I was always a huge Villanova basketball fan because my dad had been."
Villanova went 85-41 during Juhline Brunner's time on campus. The most memorable victory came on March 11, 2003 in Piscataway, New Jersey. Villanova stunned then undefeated UConn 52-48 to win the Big East Tournament Championship and snap the Huskies' 70-game winning streak.
"I remember them warming up and they had this routine, they were just pumping each other up, very normal. But [friend and teammate] Katie Davis and I are looking each other and we're kind of rolling our eyes like, 'I just wish we could beat them.' And in no way did we think that that was actually going to happen," she said.
"So it was so funny from that point of, 'Alright, let's just compete with them' to then having it actually happen, it was just was so crazy for us. And so much fun."
Juhline Brunner is a member of the Big Five Hall of Fame. She had her jersey retired by Villanova.
You can listen to the entire interview with Trish Juhline Brunner by checking out the latest episode, above, of the KYW Newsradio original podcast, "1-on-1 with Matt Leon." Subscribe on the Audacy app or wherever you get your podcasts.
Follow Matt Leon on Twitter @MattLeon1060.