NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J. -- All six of them ventured to the basketball court outside the Embassy Suites Hotel in Somerset. Each wanted to see what the other girls could do.

	Shawnetta Stewart, right, is the Scarlet Knights' leading scorer.

Never mind that it was nearly 3 a.m., or that it was raining and none of them was wearing traditional basketball apparel. Kiesha Brown, Coko Eggleston, Usha Gilmore, Andrea Honeycutt, LaTana Lillard and Shawnetta Stewart wondered what kinds of basketball skills their fellow high school seniors had.

After all, it was basketball -- an official recruiting trip to Rutgers, actually -- that had brought them here to New Jersey. And as it turned out, all of them except Brown -- who committed to Georgia -- decided to attend Rutgers and call New Jersey their home over the next four years.

"I remember me, Usha, Coko, LaTana and Dre (Honeycutt) were all together (on the recruiting visit)," said Stewart, now Rutgers' senior leader. "That was kind of cool. All my other trips weren't like that. It might have been me or someone else from another school coming. It wasn't a group of people like this."

Rachelle Guyton joined Eggleston, Gilmore, Honeycutt, Lillard and Stewart in New Brunswick for the fall of 1996, comprising coach C. Vivian Stringer's first recruiting class at Rutgers.

Guyton would leave the university after only one semester, and Honeycutt departed during her junior year -- both for personal reasons.

The remaining four, however, who said hello to each other and Rutgers back at the Embassy Suites Hotel, will say goodbye some time this spring, either in March or early April.

For Stringer it definitely won't be easy bidding farewell to a group that helped her put Rutgers on the women's basketball map. Rutgers was 13-15 her first year, a school-worst 11-17 during this class's freshman year, then went to the Sweet Sixteen as sophomores and the Elite Eight as juniors.

"This class is a class we can appreciate and respect most because they came when there was nothing," Stringer said. "They came with a decision knowing they would have to make a path and others would follow. They not only have done that but have encouraged all the players that are here now to overextend themselves."

For the seniors, closing a chapter in their lives obviously will be tough. Memories will be taken with them and their dream of qualifying for the Final Four, still alive.

Three years ago, the thought of Rutgers even making it to the NCAA Tournament, nevertheless the Final Four, seemed light years away.

"Rome wasn't built in a week," Gilmore said. "We were struggling as a team early on, trying to adapt to the coaches. But things seem to work out in the end."

Stewart, the team's top player over the past two years and likely a first-team All-Big East selection this year, didn't play her freshman year after failing to qualify academically. Stewart could only watch as her teammates and classmates struggled through a dreadful year.

As if that wasn't enough, two of the team's top players from that year, Susan Blauser and Kylie Marin, transferred out -- leaving Stringer's first recruiting class at the center of attention.

"Though we struggled in our first year, they honestly believed, and by the time they were sophomores things began to fall into place," Stringer said.

With the help from an incoming freshman class, highlighted by point guard Tasha Pointer and holdovers Tomora Young and Clemente (both juniors), an upswing occurred.

Rutgers earned 22 wins and advanced to the Sweet Sixteen before bowing out to eventual NCAA champion Tennessee in 1998. Last year, it tallied 29 wins and advanced to the Elite Eight before losing to the next champion, Purdue.

For all the success on the court, the times off the court rank equally high.

Stewart, Lillard and Gilmore all roomed together as freshmen. Gilmore and Stewart are still roommates, with Lillard and Eggleston living in the same resident hall.

"I can think of a thousand things to tell you (about fun times)," Stewart said. "I think we just enjoyed some great times together -- especially freshman year.

"I think we were all close when we first came here. Coach Stringer recruits ladies that complement each other. We all have the same kinds of desires and same kinds of goals, and that has come through with recruiting this first class."

On the court Stewart, a swingman, definitely is the leader of this class and team. She is the squad's leading scorer and its go-to-player. What most Rutgers fans probably remember most is her half-court shot at the buzzer two years ago that sent Boston College home with a three-point loss.

Gilmore, who headed north from South Carolina, has the potential to light up opponents on any given night, but has battled with injuries. She had two ankle sprains her freshman year, a strained medial collateral ligament in her knee as a sophomore and concussions last season, as well as in 1999-2000.

Eggleston has had her bouts with injuries as well. She played in just 13 games as a high school senior in Lancaster, Pa., because of a knee injury. This year she was slowed by preseason knee surgery. She came into this season averaging 1.2 points per game and 1.3 rebounds per game.

Lillard, who came to Rutgers from Danville, Ill., has had an interesting career. She was a team captain as a sophomore and named the team's Best Defensive Player after playing 30 games and starting 25.

As a junior, she sat out the fall semester for personal reasons and was never able to consistently get into the rotation. This year, like her sophomore year, she is serving as a team captain.

However, no matter what roles they all have had at Rutgers, the group remains tight knit.

"We are all like sisters," Gilmore said. "All 15 of us. But especially this class because we've been together a lot longer."

And a long way since that rainy night outside the Embassy Suites.

Story written by Eric Griffith of the Daily Targum.