Sometimes a sports fan has the final word. This year, the words were scribed on a sign handed to women's basketball standout Asjha Jones by a woman seated in a wheelchair: "We didn't shock the world," the fan had written. "We were simply the best."

This year's perfect season -- 39 and 0 -- came as no shock to UConn women's basketball fans or to National Coach of the Year Geno Auriemma. Reaching beyond past pinnacles, the women became the fourth team in women's college basketball history to finish the season undefeated, winning the 2002 NCAA national championship.

The hoops in the classroom were mastered as well -- Jones was named a District I Academic All-American. Asjha Jones and her All-American teammates -- Sue Bird, Swin Cash and Tamika Williams -- were top picks of the WNBA. They also celebrated the spoils of academic victory as they all graduated together in May.

This year, Jim Calhoun, coach of the UConn men's basketball team, brought his team back from the Big East tournament as champions and, to the delight of the Husky faithful, went on to fast break through the NCAA tournament, finishing among the nation's Elite Eight basketball teams.

Division I-A Husky football -- now in its second season -- pulled off its first defeat of a Big East opponent, scoring a 20-19 come-from-behind win against Rutgers. The Huskies will play their last season at Memorial Stadium before moving to a state-of-the-art, 40,000-seat stadium at Rentschler Field in East Hartford.

The string of triumphs continued on the track, soccer and baseball fields, and volleyball court with notable winning streaks and individual honors.

It was mirrored in classroom achievements. You'll find the names of UConn student-athletes in the two-inch headlines of the sports pages. You'll also find them on the Athletic Director's honor roll as 250 student-athletes achieved a 3.0 or better grade point average. You'll find them in the running for graduate school fellowships, internships and among those who bring professional and civic honor to our state.

It is the result of an athletic program ranked among the top 20 by U.S. News & World Report. It is the fruit of a public university ranked among the top three in the Northeast. It is the momentum behind people who, to no one's surprise, are achieving the best in the classroom, in the research lab, and on the athletic fields.