That was last March. More than three months later, those devilish memories still get her adrenaline pumping.

Cress charged off the bench and made a 3-pointer from the corner a few seconds after entering that first-round NCAA Tournament game between the underdog Lady Camels, champions of the Trans America Athletic Conference, and the mighty Blue Devils of the ACC.

“No one else was hitting, so I figured it wouldn’t hurt to try one,” says Cress. “It went in.”

A few minutes later, though, Cress was reminded of something she already knew. The TAAC’s a good league. It’s not the ACC.

“The next 3-pointer I tried got blocked,” laughs Cress. “Hey, that girl was big.”

Despite the block party, Cress says those two hours in Durham were as much fun as she’s had in basketball.

“It was a great atmosphere,” she says. “Tons of fans. We lost by 20, but what an experience. It’s definitely kept the basketball fire going for my senior year.”

Actually, Cress’ basketball flame has been burning brightly for as long as anyone can remember.

Local basketball fans started hearing about Cress when she starred at China Grove Middle School. They heard more buzz when she and future South Rowan High teammate Christi Athey and their Lake Norman Lady Laker teammates made the 14&under nationals in Salt Lake City seven summers ago.

Then as a freshman at South in the fall of ‘93, Cress made a spectacular varsity debut, scoring 20 points against Kannapolis. She scored in double figures 18 times that year. She was quick, could shoot from deep and obviously had the drive that only the special ones have.

Her sophomore year was scary. She got better. There was a night in February of ‘95 when she ran a fever and still torched R.J. Reynolds for 37 points, tying Beth Miller’s school record that had stood untouched for 31 years.

But just when the sky looked to be the limit, Cress got hurt. The summer between her sophomore and junior years, a teammate fell on her during an AAU practice. She played in the AAU nationals in San Antonio not long afterward, but she knew something was dreadfully wrong. There was pain in her back and it was spreading down her legs. It hurt just to bend over to pick up a basketball.

A Charlotte neurosurgeon diagnosed a herniated disc and operated, literally shaving the injured disc away from the nerves it had been painfully pinching.

Cress was hospitalized for just one day. After that, she was walking, then swimming, then jogging. When practice started for her junior year, she was ready to join her teammates.

She had a miraculously strong season, topping 20 points eight times and scoring over 400 points, a milestone only four other Raiders had reached. She actually averaged one more point per game (16.7) than she had her sophomore year.

And yet, Cress was a different player than before the injury. But she didn’t complain or make excuses. She kept going. And people developed a whole new respect for her toughness and determination. Before the back injury, she had worked at basketball, but she was so gifted, success came easily. After a part of that gift was taken away, she worked twice as hard to stay at the top.

Cress’ senior year was wild. The Raiders were good, going 18-9, (in her previous three years, South had gone 10-14, 14-13 and 11-13), but individually, Cress rode a roller coaster. There was a three-point game against R.J. Reynolds followed two games later by 28 points against West Forsyth. There was a four-game stretch late in the season in which she averaged just 7.5 ppg.

But she finished at South with the school record for most points (1,529), easing past the mark that Tracy Connor, who went on to Wake Forest, set in three years. In the process, Cress earned a scholarship to Campbell University. And Campbell was Division I.

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Campbell was not Cress’ original dream team. Geographically, Buies Creek, home of Campbell, isn’t all that far removed from the ACC schools. But in terms of glamour and attention, it’s a thousand miles away.

“How do I describe Buies Creek?” laughs Cress. “The town is really just the college. It’s much smaller than Landis or China Grove. Two gas stations, a post office and a coffee shop. The good thing is that McDonald’s and Food Lion are 10 minutes away and Raleigh and Fayetteville are only about 30 minutes away.”

Cress has done well. She’s a been a solid four-year contributor for Campbell, no small feat for someone her size playing D-I. The Camel media guide says Cress is 5-6, but they must have measured her with her hair up. She’s started a game here and there, but usually she comes off the bench early.

“I’ve played as much as I expected,” says Cress. “Not that I wouldn’t mind playing more. But who wouldn’t? If you ask someone who’s playing 38 minutes, they’d like to play 40.”

Cress has no complaints about the Camel coaching staff or her teammates.

“Would I go to Campbell, do it all over again? Sure I would,” she says. “The coaches have been great. They want me to do well not just in basketball but in everything. And I wouldn’t trade my teammates for anything in the world.”

Cress figures her role her senior season will be much like the past three. She came in with three other guards, and their collective experience is starting to pay dividends.

“Last year was the best year so far,” says Cress. “We have a lot of talent. We can sub a bunch of people in and out.”

The talent is good — people like former Ledford High star Stacey Hinkle. In a lot of ways, the TAAC is closer to the big-time than many people realize. The competition is strong and the Lady Camels fly to games against league foes in Florida and Alabama.

‘Not many bus rides for us,” says Cress happily.

Few bus rides, but plenty of ice.

Because of her back, ice-packs have become as much a part of Cress’ athletic career as her sweatbands.

“Ice, there’s always ice,” Cress says. “I get ice for my back even if I’m just playing ultimate frisbee. There’s not much pain in the off-season, but I know it will be there once the season starts. I’ve learned to deal with it.”

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Cress’ future is taking shape. After this last year of basketball, the real world will close in on her in a hurry. She’ll be ready. A sports management major, she’ll head to Baltimore for an internship with the NFL Ravens not long after she finishes with Campbell’s summer hoops camp.

“I’ll get six hours of credit with the Ravens and a lot of experience,” says Cress. “That’s what I want to do — work in a sports setting. It doesn’t have to be basketball, just so long as I’m in sports. I’ve always been an athlete. I can relate to other athletes.”

And when she’s settled into an office job, will her basketball finally find a permanent home in the closet?