How 'Sweet' It Is: Inside the RedHawks' Postgame Ice Cream Tradition

Photo by: Ellie Reynolds

How 'Sweet' It Is: Inside the RedHawks' Postgame Ice Cream Tradition

3/18/2026 12:57:00 PM | Women's Basketball

OXFORD, Ohio— College sports is known for its traditions.

Many are familiar and well-documented —from whiteouts to the wave— while others might be a little more basic or fly under the radar a bit.

(Perhaps you'd call those 'vanilla'?)

As the Miami University women's basketball team has racked up win after win this season en route to a program-record 28 triumphs, a RedHawk postgame tradition that developed early in Glenn Box's tenure has taken hold and become a staple of Miami's victory celebrations.

Every time a road trip for the Red and White yields a win, the team stops for ice cream on the way home.

Wait, every time?

Yes, every single time.

From last-second nailbiters to blowouts, whether the game was basically decided by halftime or required overtime for the RedHawks to come out on top, it doesn't matter – if Miami is ahead when the final buzzer goes off, the bus isn't coming back to Oxford without taking time for treats.

And that particular motivational approach has paid off royally, as the RedHawks have captured two-thirds of their non-Oxford games over the past two seasons (18-10 in road games and 6-2 in neutral games), a ridiculously good percentage when taking into account how notoriously difficult it is to win away from home.

In fact, when Box was asked in his Selection Sunday press conference if his team had stopped to get ice cream after winning the Mid-American Conference Tournament championship at Rocket Arena the day before, the MAC Coach of the Year almost sounded insulted at the question.

"Of course we stopped for ice cream!", Box smiled.

"I think winning should be fun, and I choose to win and have fun," the third-year head coach continued. "I know the work our kids do, and they should be rewarded. They should enjoy winning. And so, if eating ice cream is what they want, I'm willing to give them whatever they want when they win."

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Brooke Blumenfeld's go-to order is a cookie dough Blizzard from Dairy Queen. (DQ is always a popular option when it comes to looking for a treat on the way home!) Ilse de Vries and Ashton Elley prefer chocolate ice cream. Clara Gonzalez Planella tends to go the milkshake route (Oreo milkshakes, specifically). Anna Hurst is usually looking for something chocolate peanut butter-flavored. Núria Jurjo said she's happy with just chocolate. For Mio Sakano, it's usually choco-dipped strawberry. Tamar Singer and Macie Taylor are fans of cookie dough. Amber Tretter likes anything with Reese's in it.

And then there's Amber Scalia, who may or may not have gotten in 'trouble' early on this year for ordering a banana split after a win, only to learn that a simpler, smaller order was customary. That message from the Miami staff came with a disclaimer, however, according to Scalia: "You can't get a banana split until we win the whole thing!", they said.

Well, with freshly-printed championship shirts and hats in tow, guess what the MAC Tournament MVP (along with Emily VanTimmeren, who shares Scalia's fondness for banana splits) ordered last weekend?

That's right…and no one was complaining this time!

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Obviously, the ice cream is always tasty (especially after a hard-fought 'W'), but Box also loves the celebration tradition because of the good vibes that accompany it, from the restaurant to the remainder of the bus trip.

"There's a camaraderie piece when they're eating their ice cream: when they're ordering and they're waiting for their ice cream," Box said. "They enjoy it, and they appreciate it.

"Then they hook the 'aux' up and have 'party bus!'"

Taylor agreed. "My favorite memory after the game was being on the bus and playing music," the junior guard said.

There's something to be said for taking time to revel in what a team has achieved, for bonding over a scouting report followed to the letter or a game plan exceptionally well-executed,. Part of that happens over the final hours of the trip, all the way up until when the charter bus pulls back into the Millett Hall parking lot. The smiles, the singing, the satisfied sigh…(and perhaps the 'food coma'?!?)

Then again, sometimes victory takes a little longer to sink in.

"I never really felt it until I came into the office today and I saw the two trophies next to each other," Box said Sunday as he reflected on his team's doubly-successful season (with both a regular-season MAC title and conference tournament crown).

"For me personally, it was more of a relief because there's such a build-up to it," he continued. "Today I think I was able to really, really truly enjoy what we've been able to accomplish."

There's been plenty to enjoy as Miami's historic season has unfolded. Of course, with NCAA first- and second-round games on tap for Saturday (at fourth-seeded West Virginia) and Monday (against either Kentucky or James Madison, should the RedHawks advance), the ride isn't over yet.

And should the No. 13 seed pull an upset or two in Morgantown, you'd better believe the ice cream sundaes on the way home are going to be every bit as impressive as Miami's stingy defense and hot outside shooting were last weekend in Cleveland.

Country roads, meet Rocky Road?

Because what could possibly be 'sweeter'…than the Sweet 16?

Miami opens the NCAA Tournament Saturday, March 21 at 5 p.m. against West Virginia in Morgantown, W.Va. The game will be broadcast on ESPNU.