Bentley Women's Basketball Caps Off Perfect Season With 2014 National Title

Posted: Feb 01, 2021

Over the first 40 years of the Northeast-10, there have been a number of outstanding team performances across the conference. Arguably, the 2013-14 Bentley University women’s basketball season may have been the best.

Under the leadership of Hall of Fame coach Barbara Stevens, that season culminated with the Bentley Falcons undefeated NCAA Division II National Champions!

The Falcons capped the perfect season by storming back in the final three minutes of the national championship game, closing with a press-fueled 19-5 run to overtake fifth-ranked West Texas A&M University, 73-65, Mar. 28, 2014 at the Erie (Pa.) Insurance Arena. The national championship was the first-ever for the legendary Bentley coach and the Falcon women’s basketball program.

“Am I dreaming? Is this real? I can’t tell you what a tremendous ride this has been for our coaching staff and our Bentley community with these young ladies,” said an exuberant Stevens after the game. “Proud of them doesn’t even begin to describe how I feel. I get emotional when I think of them because we’ve gone through so much together. They are truly champions. They have been champions in our book from day one.”

The seven Bentley seniors and grad students capped their final season 35-0 with three of the seven earning All-Tournament honors. Senior power forward Jacqui Brugliera was chosen as the tournament’s MVP and she was joined on the All-Tournament team by All-Americas Lauren Battista and Courtney Finn. All three were on the court during the comeback along with classmates Caleigh Crowell and Christiana Bakolas.

The amazing comeback actually began two-and-a-half minutes earlier with the Falcons facing a nine-point deficit, matching the team’s biggest of the year, with 5:37 to play.

A drive to the basket by Brugliera launched the rally and another inside basket by the six-footer made it a 58-53 contest with 4:37 left in the season. Bakolas hit the first of two from the line but West Texas A&M forward Chontiquah White did her one better, sinking a pair for a 60-54 lead with 3:07 to play.

Stevens put the press on and things changed rapidly with the Falcons exploding for six unanswered points in 13 seconds to draw even at 60 with 2:47 still to play. Finn made a layup, Bakolas stole the inbound pass and fed Battista for another layup, and then Bakolas did it again, this time getting fouled while taking the shot herself. She sank both free throws and all of a sudden, the two teams were dead even with 2:47 to play.

The Falcons used the press despite having several in foul trouble. “We had no choice. They handled it. They handled it very well,” said Stevens. “With Lauren and Christiana up front, and Courtney sealing those traps off, and Christiana anticipating the reversal, thankfully Caleigh and Jacqui could stay behind and stay safe. The front line of our press was great.”

Finn added “when our backs are against the wall, it doesn’t matter if you have four fouls or one foul. You have to be aggressive and not worry about that, like Jacqui stepping up and taking some big charges at the end of the game for us.”

The Lady Buffs briefly regained the lead with a free throw, but 18 seconds later, after a Brugliera offensive board, Battista drilled a straight-away three-pointer to put Bentley in front for good, 63-61 with 2:11 remaining. Nine seconds later, the WBCA Player of the Year came up with a steal and took it in for a layup and a 65-60 lead.

“The clock was ticking down. Under five (seconds). Under four. We’re down by a decent amount,” said Battista. “At that point with my career on the line, seven of us really with our careers on the line, the national championship at stake. We needed to make big plays.”

After two free throws by White interrupted the Bentley run and a Lady Buff rebound of a Brugliera miss, Crowell came up with a steal and that led to a second-chance basket by Bakolas, making it a two-possession game (67-63) as the clock dipped under a minute.

Brugliera took a charge at the other end, one of four for her in the game, and Finn sank two free throws for a six-point lead with 0:41 showing. Two more free throws by Finn with 27.1 seconds made it 71-63 and the national championship was essentially locked up.

The night didn’t start out on a positive note as the Falcons scored only three points in the first seven-and-a-half minutes, falling behind by eight. However, the defense picked up after yielding 11 points in the first five minutes, limiting West Texas to just 13 the remainder of the opening stanza.

The two went into the break even at 24 and it remained a one-possession game until a 12-4 Lady Buff run put the Texans up nine, 55-46, with seven minutes left.

Finn led the Falcons with 21 points, including a perfect 12-for-12 at the foul stripe, and also provided four rebounds and four assists. Brugliera followed with 17, on 6-of-10 shooting, and four boards, and Battista closed out her amazing career with 14 points, seven rebounds, three assists, a block and a steal.

Bakolas, the late-game hero, provided eight assists, seven points, three rebounds and three steals in 30 turnover-free minutes. Crowell drained a pair of three-pointers for six points, and the other two who’ll be departing after this season, Tyler Parker Kimball and Chrystal Guarin, also stepped up when others were sitting due to foul trouble.

Freshman forward Jen Gemma also helped out, finishing with seven rebounds and six points. Bentley had advanced to the title game with wins over Drury, 74-66, and Cal Poly Pomona, 77-62, earlier in the Elite Eight. March also saw the Falcons capture the Northeast-10 Championship and the East Regional with all six games decided by at least 15 points.

Bentley 2013-14 Links of Note:

ABOUT THE NE10
Beginning its 40th anniversary season, the NE10 is an association of 14 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.