Each week during the academic year, the NE10 honors
Athletes of the Week for all of its 24 sponsored sports while they are in season. Faces in the Crowd shines a spotlight on outstanding on-field performances that didn't earn Athlete of the Week recognition, while also highlighting academic or community efforts from student-athletes across the league.
Below are this week's
NE10 Faces in the Crowd.
BENTLEY'S 3PT STREAK
School: Bentley
Sport: Basketball
In Saturday's game at Staten Island, the three-point streak for the Bentley men's basketball team reached 1,000 games -- the longest in NCAA Division II history. The Falcon streak, nearly 35 years old, dates back to December 1989. This year's edition of the Falcons boasts four players shooting better than 40% with Cash McClure as the team's top shot-maker from three thus far.
CLAUDIA PEIRCE
School: Franklin Pierce
Sport: Soccer
Position: Forward
Class: Junior
Hometown: Carver, Mass.
Peirce has carried FPU into the NCAA's Sweet 16, scoring in six of the last seven games and tallying eight of her 14 goals this season over that span. Peirce is the top goal scorer in the NE10 this season.
DILLON LABONTE
School: SNHU
Sport: Cross Country
Class: Junior
Hometown: Lee, N.H.
Labonte represented SNHU at the NCAA Division II Men's Cross Country Championships in Sacramento, Calif. This is the first time he has qualified for Nationals. Labonte is coming off consecutive personal bests heading into the national meet: first while running third a the 2024 NE10 Cross Country Championship, then at the NCAA East Regionals, where he finished fourth in 31:30.4. That's the fifth-fastest 10k in program history.
Most notably, Labonte was honored at the national race with the NCAA's Elite 90 Award as the top academic runner at the championship. Labonte sports a 4.0 GPA and was the NE10 Elite 24 Award winner as well.
DONTE POPE
School: Franklin Peirce
Sport: Basketball
Position: Wing
Class: Graduate
Hometown: Middletown, Conn.
Despite the team's results, Pope has consistently averaged 21.7 points per game in the Ravens' first seven games. He currently leads the NE10 in shooting with 152 points on the season. This past week, he scored 26 points against Assumption and 20 against Saint Anselm.
KATIE LEMANSKI
School: Saint Anselm
Sport: Basketball
Position: Guard
Class: Senior
Hometown: Haymarket, Va.
A walking assist machine last week, Lemanski dished out 20 helpers in two days in western New York as the Hawks went 1-1 at D'Youville and Daemen. Lemanski's 11-assist game vs D'Youville is the top performance in the NE10 this season and ranks fifth nationally.
MADDIE DAVIS
School: Saint Anselm
Sport: Field Hockey
Position: Forward
Class: Fifth-Year
Hometown: Exeter, N.H.
Davis had one hell of a week for the Hawks, headlined by scoring the game-winning-goal in the national championship, pushing the Hawks to the first title in any sport in school history. Davis also scored in the national semifinals and finished with a career-high 15 goals this fall. Davis also became the Saint Anselm program record holder for career points and goals with 102 and 38.
PAUL GREENE
School: SNHU
Sport: Basketball
Position: Forward
Class: Senior
Hometown: Freeport, Bahamas
Greene is one of the best rebounders in college basketball at any level this year. Greene's pulled down double-digit boards in every game this season and had nine offensive rebounds against Southern Connecticut last week. He ripped down 18 rebounds against St. Michael's and ranks third nationally across all NCAA levels in the statistic (he leads Division II).
SIDNEY FALTERER
School: Saint Anselm
Sport: Field Hockey
Position: Goalie
Class: Senior
Hometown: Fairfield, Conn.
Falterer is a national champion after pitching back-to-back shutouts in the Final Four last weekend. The keeper made 10 saves in South Carolina and recorded her sixth and seventh shutouts of the year. Falterer waited her time for the Hawks, serving as a backup to Mackenzie McConnell until this year. Falterer ranks ninth in program history in goals against average with her 1.47 mark this season.
TRAY ALEXANDER
School: Pace
Sport: Basketball
Position: Guard
Class: Senior
Hometown: Freeport, N.Y.
Tray dished out 16 assists vs. Bridgeport last week -- the most for an NE10 player this season. The Pace PG holds the top four assist performances in the conference this year and is averaging 11.3 per game.
ABOUT THE NE10
The NE10 is an association of 11 diverse institutions serving student-athletes across 24 NCAA Division II sports. Together we build brilliant futures by embracing the journey of every student-athlete.
Each year, 4,500 of those student-athletes compete in conference championships in 24 sports, making the NE10 the largest DII conference in the country in terms of sport sponsorship. Leading the way in the classroom, on the field and within the community, the NE10 is proud of its comprehensive program and the experience it provides student-athletes.
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