DALLAS -- From an ominous start to a nearly storybook ending, it has been quite the ride for Eric Osmundson.
Osmundson, who transferred from Utah after his freshman season in 2001-02, and thereby had to sit out the '02-03 season, has been a fixture in a Quakers lineup that has gone to two NCAA Tournaments in his three years playing for Penn.
And when the buzzer sounded at the American Airlines Center sealing Penn's 60-52 loss to Texas, Osmundson was overcome with an understandable mix of emotions -- equal parts pride and disappointment.
The pride comes from going 57-28, including 35-7 Ivy in his three years in the Quakers' backcourt.
And the disappointment comes from the fact that there would be no more moments in the spotlight, no more chances to take the Palestra floor, even no more 4 p.m. practices.
But one thing is not lost, even though the bracket says it's over.
"I've met so many friends that have become part of my family," Osmundson said.
"These 14 players in the locker room, and those who came before me and after me, it's something I'll remember for the rest of my life."
Osmundson will certainly leave quite a void in the Quakers' lineup. And that fact is fitting; he entered a class that had plenty of voids to fill. Friedrich Ebede and Pat Haddan were the only recruits for the Class of 2006, and Haddan was gone by the time Osmundson was eligible.
He became the only guard in this year's senior class, joining forwards Ebede and the seldom-used Eric Heil, who decided to forego his last season of eligibility after transferring from Lehigh.
And Osmundson took full advantage of the opportunity, even though it took him a while to get going. In his first game, his line against Wisconsin read 12 minutes, two points on 1-for-6 shooting, no assists, no rebounds and two turnovers.
Not exactly the numbers of a future starting guard.
His struggles would continue through his first season, which he finished shooting 31.7 percent from the field and 26.5 percent from behind the arc.
But those numbers would improve greatly as Osmundson became more involved in the offense and his minutes drastically increased over the next two.
And while Osmundson was hesitant after the Texas game to recall the best moment of his career, there are two that would stick out most to Quakers fans, and they both happened in the same game.
Down by 17 to Princeton at the Palestra last year, Osmundson sparked the comeback, scoring seven points in 20 seconds -- a run highlighted by a four-point play that got everyone at the Palestra thinking the unthinkable.
But perhaps more importantly were his two ice-water-in-the-veins free throws in the final minute to force overtime.
That final buzzer of the Texas game marked a stark transition between those memories -- both good and bad -- and a very uncertain future.
"I want to work out and continue to develop my game and hopefully play some basketball overseas," said Osmundson, who in his time at Penn played with Tim Begley, Jeff Schiffner and Jan Fikiel, who have all begun careers in Europe.
Since the Quakers could not pull out a win in Dallas, Osmundson would have to settle for his own personal goodbye -- hitting the 96th and final three-pointer of his career with 18 seconds left.
But for Osmundson, it was always about the name on the front of his jersey.
"I was so proud to wear the name 'Penn' across my chest," he said.
And that's the main reason why a not-too-quick, streaky-shooting transfer was called "captain."
