Fairleigh Dickinson coach calls for neutral NCAA sites following close call at Iowa

FDU nearly became the first No. 15 seed to upset a No. 2 seed in the women's NCAA Tournament before falling just short against Iowa.

Mar. 22, 2026 at 1:18am

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Fairleigh Dickinson (30-5) nearly became the first No. 15 seed to upset a No. 2 seed in the women's NCAA Tournament before falling just shy in a 58-48 loss to Iowa in a first-round game Saturday. The Knights rebounded from a pair of 15-point deficits in the first quarter, coming within 2 points inside the final five minutes before the Hawkeyes pulled away.

Why it matters

This case highlights the ongoing debate about the advantages of home-court environments in the NCAA Tournament, especially for mid-major programs looking to pull off upsets against power-conference teams. FDU's strong performance has renewed calls for more neutral-site games in the women's tournament.

The details

Fairleigh Dickinson, a No. 15 seed, nearly became the first team of that seeding to upset a No. 2 seed in the women's NCAA Tournament. The Knights trailed by as many as 15 points in the first quarter but rallied to come within 2 points of Iowa in the final minutes before the Hawkeyes pulled away for a 58-48 victory. FDU had won 22 consecutive games and 40 in a row in the Northeast Conference before the loss.

  • On Saturday, Fairleigh Dickinson played Iowa in the first round of the women's NCAA Tournament.

The players

Fairleigh Dickinson

A mid-major college basketball program that nearly pulled off a historic upset in the women's NCAA Tournament.

Iowa

A top-10 team in the country that finished second in the Big Ten, both in the regular season and during the tournament.

Stephanie Gaitley

The head coach of the Fairleigh Dickinson women's basketball team.

Ava Renninger

A two-time All-NEC player for Fairleigh Dickinson.

Jan Jensen

The head coach of the Iowa women's basketball team.

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What they’re saying

“I think first it puts a lot of respect on the NEC and mid-major schools. They're a top-10 team in the country, and we came in and showed what we're made of and showed what mid-major schools can do against these high teams.”

— Ava Renninger, Two-time All-NEC player

“The respect that we brought to the NEC and that we brought to FDU and to show that on any given day anybody can beat anybody, I think that's a huge step forward for women's basketball in the East.”

— Stephanie Gaitley, Fairleigh Dickinson head coach

“This is why we got to get off the home courts. We got to go neutral.”

— Jan Jensen, Iowa head coach

“On a neutral court, you have a much better chance (of an upset). Look at our men's team against Purdue. It was a neutral court, and the David knocked off the Goliath there. I think we're at the point in the game now, something like that needs to change.”

— Stephanie Gaitley, Fairleigh Dickinson head coach

What’s next

The NCAA will likely consider Gaitley's proposal to move more women's tournament games to neutral sites in the future.

The takeaway

Fairleigh Dickinson's near-upset of Iowa highlights the ongoing debate about the advantages of home-court environments in the NCAA Tournament, especially for mid-major programs looking to pull off upsets against power-conference teams. This performance has renewed calls for more neutral-site games in the women's tournament.