Championship Central
Bentley, SCSU, Assumption, and Adelphi Advance to Semifinals
No. 1 Bentley 65, No. 9 SNHU 50 Box Score
Graduate forward Maggie Whitmore scored a season-high 24 points and also gave her team five rebounds, three assists, two steals and a block as the Bentley University women's basketball team began its bid for a Northeast-10 Conference four-peat with a 64-50 quarterfinal win over Southern New Hampshire Sunday afternoon on Barbara Stevens Court.
Bentley, the third-ranked team in the WBCA Division II coaches poll, never trailed on route to its 24th consecutive victory this season and its 12th straight in Northeast-10 championship play. The top-seeded Falcons improved to 28-1 overall and the ninth-seeded Penmen finished their season at 12-16.
A pair of 11-0 runs helped coach C White's go into the halftime break up 14, 36-22.
Whitmore was the Falcons' top scorer in the half with 14, and Bentley outscored the Penmen 14-2 off turnovers in the opening two quarters.
The first 11-0 burst came after Southern New Hampshire evened the game at 10-10 and encompassed a span of 4:24 around the quarter break. Two free throws by sophomore guard Niya Morgen and a second chance basket by senior forward Kylie DuCharme put the Falcons up 14-10 after the first stanza.
Scoring in the second began with four points by Whitmore and a traditional three-point play by Morgen. That made it 21-10 a little more than two minutes into the second.
After SNHU drew within six, Bentley put together another 11-0 surge to go up 36-19 with 1:05 left until the halftime break. Whitmore scored on a lay-up, DuCharme had a second-chance basket, junior guard Cassidy Yeomans hit a three from the left side, junior post Ciara Norman made one of two free throws and Morgen stuck a three.
With the Falcons up ten after three, 45-35, Whitmore scored the first six points of the fourth. She hit a straight-ahead three and followed with a three-point play about 30 seconds later to make it 51-35.
A three-minute run of six straight sealed the win, making it a 62-45 game with 1:31 remaining. Whitmore hit a step-back jumper, DuCharme scored on a hook shot and Morgen hit two from the line.
Whitmore, who made 10 of her 13 attempts from inside the line, was followed in the scoring column by DuCharme, who finished with 13 points, seven rebounds and three assists.
Yeomans finished with ten points and three steals, and Morgen matched her in the scoring column.
Southern New Hampshire was led by sophomore forward Amy Winterburn (New Boston, N.H.), who equaled her career-high with 17 points.
Bentley had a tough shooting day (.348 overall and an uncharacteristic 6 of 31 from three) but attempted 16 more shots than the Penmen and had a 12-2 advantage in free throws made.
The Falcons scored 21 points off 25 Penmen turnovers and finished with 19 assists and only 12 turns.
The championships will continue Thursday with the Falcons hosting Southern Connecticut in the semis at 6 pm. The fourth-seeded Owls advanced with a 68-61 win over Pace.
During the regular season, Bentley defeated Southern Connecticut twice, 78-59 and 75-54.
- Recap Courtesy of Bentley Athletics -
No. 7 Adelphi 64, No. 2 Saint Anselm 61 Box Score
Behind 23 points from Isabella Asencio, the Adelphi University women's basketball team won its Northeast-10 Tournament quarterfinal contest against No. 2 seed Saint Anselm College on Sunday afternoon, by a final score of 64-61.
The Hawks made the final set of 10 a thrilling one, tying the game on two occasions. After Christina Sanchez opened up the quarter with a three-point make of her own, the hosts clapped back to tie the contest at 52-all with seven minutes to play. From there, Asencio tallied nine of the final 12 points for the 'Cats, hitting two jumpers in the span of a minute.
Kaitlyn O'Connell stretched the Panther lead to seven with her third three of the day, giving the team a spark as 4:23 showed on the clock. A 7-0 run spanned the next three minutes, giving us another tie at 61 with 90 seconds remaining.
On the following possession, Asencio rose up from the right side of the perimeter, connecting on her second three of the afternoon to give the 'Cats a three-point lead.
Saint Anselm got one final chance with the ball down three as 2.3 seconds remained on the scoreboard. Following the inbound, Addisen Sulikowski went up for a game-tying three, and Lauren Beberman was called for a shooting foul, giving the home team some life.
Sulikowski then missed the first free throw, declaring the Panthers as victors and advancing to the NE10 semifinal to be played on Thursday, March 6.
Beberman knocked down a shot from beyond the arc 25 seconds in to ignite the Panthers offense. Rolanda Robinson scored nine points in the first quarter, with her final basket stretching the lead to double digits in the Brown and Gold's favor. Saint Anselm responded with a 7-0 run in under two minutes to trim the margin to five by the end of the first 10 minutes.
Asencio went on her own scoring run in the second, scoring the first five of the second frame before ending with nine by the halftime horn. An 11-0 run from the 'Cats further extended the lead to 16. Beberman capped off the first half with a score as six ticks remained on the clock. Adelphi converted on 50% of their attempts from the field, while capitalizing on the struggling Hawks' 25% clip.
Saint A's came out with their best quarter in the third, responding with 24 points. Avery Romps knocked down back-to-back three pointers to cut the lead inside one possession. Tatum Forbes followed up later with a successful jump shot as time expired. What was once a 15 point lead became only one by the time it was time for the fourth quarter.
The Brown and Gold finished with eight steals, four of which came from O'Connell and Lateisha Willis. Gamila Betton was responsible for the lone Panther block, and Robinson finished as the team's leading rebounder with seven.
Head Coach Sade Jackson and Adelphi will be back in action for the NE10 semis on Thursday, March 6 against No. 6 seed Assumption University. Tip-off from Worcester, Mass. is currently to be determined.
- Recap Courtesy of Adelphi Athletics -
No. 6 Assumption 57, No. 3 New Haven 54 Box Score
The No. 6 seeded Assumption University women's basketball team overcame a ten-point deficit in the third quarter to rally and upset the No. 3 seeded University of New Haven, 57-54 in overtime, in the Northeast-10 Conference Quarterfinals Sunday afternoon.
THE BASICS:
Score: Assumption University 57, University of New Haven 54 - OT
Records: Greyhounds (18-12, 9-11 NE10), Chargers (17-10, 12-8 NE10)
HOW IT HAPPENED:
The scoring was flowing for both teams in the first quarter, as Kaijhe Hall led the way for Assumption with seven points, while Aniya McDonald-Perry had seven for New Haven, who led 21-17 after the first quarter. The Greyhounds' defense locked down in the second quarter, as they held the hosts to just 2-of-9 from the field and forced five turnovers. Molly Stokes was key in the frame, as she drained a pair of three-pointers, giving Assumption a 28-25 lead at halftime.
New Haven started the second half strong, as they went on a 17-4 run to go up ten (42-32), which included six points from McDonald-Perry and five from Charlotte Bassett. The Greyhounds closed out the frame on a 5-0 run, as Hall converted an and-one, while Laura Johnson-Shedd had a layup in the final minute, cutting the deficit to five (42-37) entering the fourth.
In the final frame, Hall and Antonia Panayides combined to score all 13 points the Greyhounds needed to overcome the five-point deficit and send the game to overtime tied at 50-50. In the extra session, Assumption was powered by five points from Marina Callahan, including a layup with 13 seconds remaining, giving the Hounds a three-point lead. New Haven took a shot at the buzzer to send the game to a second overtime, but the Blue and White defense held strong and finished off the upset.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
- Kaijhe Hall had a career-high 21 points while adding seven rebounds, two steals, and one assist.
- New Haven outrebounded Assumption 38-31, while the Greyhounds scored 21 points off 22 Charger turnovers.
- There were 17 lead changes and 10 ties in the contest.
- Assumption leads the all-time series 22-10.
UP NEXT:
- Assumption vs. No. 7 Adelphi, Thursday, March 6 – NE10 Semifinals
- Recap Courtesy of Assumption Athletics -
No. 4 SCSU 68, No. 5 Pace 61 Box Score
Southern Connecticut State University women's basketball overcame a halftime deficit to defeat Pace, 68-61, in the Northeast-10 Conference Championship tournament quarterfinals at James Moore Field House. The No. 4-seeded Owls improved to 19-9 overall while the No. 5-seeded Setters finish the year at 13-16.
With the win, the Owls advance to the NE10 Semifinals to face top-seeded Bentley on Thursday, March 6 in Waltham, Mass. Southern last faced Bentley in the postseason in last season's NE10 Championship Game.
Delaney Haines led four Owls in double figures with a game-high 20 points while Hope Fox had 14 points, six rebounds, four steals, three assists and two blocks. Jillian Martin had 10 points while Katie Williamson had 10 points, five rebounds and a pair of blocks. Ally Sentance knocked down a pair of second-half three's on her way to eight points off the bench with five rebounds and three assists.
Southern took an early 7-4 lead before Pace put together a 13-4 run to take a 17-11 lead with 1:24 left in the first quarter. Rheyna Steinauer came up with a big three at the end of the quarter to cut the Setters' lead to 17-14 heading to the first break. Both teams played back-and-forth in the second quarter with neither leading by more than a basket for the entire period, but Pace was able to head to halftime with a 31-29 lead.
In the third, with the game tied at 33-33, Fox came up with a steal and was then fouled on a three-point attempt before converting on all three free throws to give the Owls a 36-33 lead. Haines and Williamson scored on back-to-back possession to push Southern's lead to 40-35 before Sentance knocked down a three to give the Owls a seven-point lead, 43-36, with 2:17 to play. Minutes later, Martin hit a three from the top of the key to give Southern a 48-38 lead with 1:10 to play.
Pace scored before end the third, and twice more to open the fourth to pull the Setters within two points, 48-46, with 8:33 to play. The Owls received another timely three pointer from Haines with 7:47 to go to give Southern a 51-46 lead. From there, the Owls converted on 10-of-11 from the free throw line and outscored Pace, 20-15, over the remaining minutes to hold on for the win.
- Recap Courtesy of SCSU Athletics -
2025 NE10 Women's Basketball Championship
|
|
NE10 |
| 1. |
Bentley |
19-1 |
| 2. |
Saint Anselm |
14-6 |
| 3. |
New Haven |
12-8 |
| 4. |
Southern Connecticut |
11-9 |
| 5. |
Pace * |
9-11 |
| 6. |
Assumption * |
9-11 |
| 7. |
Adelphi * |
9-11 |
| 8. |
Saint Michael's |
8-12 |
| 9. |
Southern New Hampshire |
7-13 |
| 10. |
American International ** |
6-14 |
| 11. |
Franklin Pierce ** |
6-14 |
|
* Within the mini-conference, both Assumption & Pace were 3-1 and Adelphi was 0-4. Assumption & Pace were 1-1 vs. each other during the regular season. When comparing results vs. teams occupying the highest position in the standings, both were 0-2 vs. Bentley. Pace earned the #5 seed based on their 1-1 regular season record vs. Saint Anselm (Assumption was 0-2 vs. Saint Anselm).
** AIC & Franklin Pierce were 1-1 vs. each other during the regular season. When comparing results vs. teams occupying the highest position in the standings, both teams were 0-2 vs. both Bentley & Saint Anselm. AIC earned the #10 seed based on their 1-1 regular season record vs. New Haven (Franklin Pierce was 0-2 vs. New Haven).
First Round – Friday, February 28th:
Game 1: #9 SNHU 70, #8 Saint Michael's 63
Game 2: #7 Adelphi 52, #10 American International 28
Game 3: #6 Assumption 65, #11 Franklin Pierce 53
Quarterfinals – Sunday, March 2nd:
Game 4: #1 Bentley 64, #9 SNHU 50
Game 5: #7 Adelphi 64, #2 Saint Anselm 61
Game 6: #6 Assumption 57, #3 New Haven 54 (OT)
Game 7: #4 SCSU 68, #5 Pace 61
Semifinals – Thursday, March 6th (at highest remaining seeds):
Game 8: #4 SCSU at #1 Bentley - TBD
Game 9: #7 Adelphi at #6 Assumption - TBD
Championship – Sunday, March 9th (at highest remaining seed):
Game 10: Game 8 winner vs. Game 9 winner (at highest remaining seed)
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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