FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 9, 2014
Additional Info Provided by Bentley Athletics Communications
Nation's No. 1 ranked team finishes off four-peat, Battista
(29 points) earns Most Outstanding Player honors for fourth time
WALTHAM, Mass. – For the fourth straight season, the Bentley University women's basketball team has won the Northeast-10 Conference Championship on its home floor at the Dana Center, as the No. 1 nationally ranked Falcons defeated Southwest Division top seed Adelphi University, 99-76, on Sunday afternoon to claim the league title.
The Falcons improved their unblemished 2013-14 record to 29-0 and are expected to host next week's NCAA Women's Basketball Championship East Regional, as the Division II selection show will air tonight at 10:00 p.m. on NCAA.com. A full recap from that will be posted after the airing at northeast10.org.
Bentley senior Lauren Battista was named the championship's Most Outstanding Player for the fourth time in as many years, the only student-athlete in Northeast-10 history to achieve such a feat.
The North Easton, Mass. native finished with 29 points (11-17 FG) on Sunday and averaged 21.0 points, 6.3 rebounds and 5.3 assists in her three championship contests. The two-time Northeast-10 Player of the Year also eclipsed the 2,000-point mark for her career in Sunday's victory. Needing 18 to reach the threshold, she scored 21 in the first half against the Panthers.
Adelphi, which fell to 22-7 with Sunday's loss, is also expected to receive an at-large selection to the NCAA Tournament when the field is announced later tonight.
Bentley senior Caleigh Crowell and grad student Courtney Finn were both named to the All-Championship Team along with Battista, as were Adelphi seniors Sade Jackson and Jessica Kitrys.
It was the second time in conference history a team has won four straight conference championships, with this year's group of Falcons duplicating their predecessors from 1998-2001. All-time, Bentley now has 18 Northeast-10 titles to its credit, including 10 in the last 17 years.
"I'm very proud of the way our team performed today," said 14-time Northeast-10 Coach of the Year Barbara Stevens after her 911th career win. "I was happy to see us play a spirited game. In the first half, we had a lot of offensive weapons and were also doing a good job defensively."
Battista was nothing short of sensational in her school record 127th career start as she hit 11-of-17 shots overall, including 3-of-5 from downtown, and all four free throws. She also provided six assists, four rebounds and turned the ball over just once in 31 minutes of action.
Bentley's all-time leading scorer joined the 2,000-point club with an inside move at 6:19 of the first half, a basket that made it 50-23 at the time. She had 21 points by the break, helping the Falcons to 64 points (a school record for a half) and a 27-point lead, and finished the game with 2,011 for her career.
"Lauren gave us a player of the year performance today and showed her tremendous versatility," said Stevens. "She's a distributor, a scorer and she was also asked to cover Sade Jackson. I'm so glad she's on our side."
Not to be overshadowed was the performance of Crowell, who drilled five three-pointers en route to a 22-point afternoon, 15 of which came before intermission.
After the Panthers jumped out to a quick 6-2 lead, Bentley embarked on a 28-5 blitzing of the visitors over a span of six-plus minutes. That produced a 30-11 lead with more than 12 minutes still left on the first-half clock and Adelphi (22-7) never got closer than 17 again.
"Our team was very ready to play, but I think their first three possessions got our attention," said Stevens.
That 28-5 began with a dozen unanswered points, a run that featured eight points by Crowell. She got it going with a three from the right wing, and later added a lay-up and another trifecta during the spurt.
By the time freshman forward Jen Gemma scored with 12:29 to make it a 30-11 game, Bentley was shooting a ridiculous 81 percent, having connected on 13-of-16 shots at that point.
Battista's 2,000th came in the midst of an 18-6 run that made it a 59-27 game with 2:44 left until the break. The final points during that span came on a three-ball from Finn, Bentley's 23rd field goal in 31 attempts.
It was more of the same throughout the first eight minutes of the second half. Adelphi netted the first basket when play resumed, but Bentley followed with a 21-6 explosion that made it a 40-point game, 85-45.
Battista and Crowell were followed in the scoring column by Finn and Gemma, with 16 and 14, respectively. Finn added eight rebounds, three assists and two steals, and Gemma helped out with six boards.
Bentley also received six points and seven rebounds apiece from seniors Jacqui Brugliera and Christiana Bakolas, with Bakolas also matching Battista's six assists.
For Adelphi, Jackson led the way with 21 points and four assists, and Kitrys followed with 20 points. Both were plagued by turnovers (11 of the team's 20) and fouls (four apiece).
Bentley shot 66 percent in the opening half, including 7-of-10 from three, and finished at .576 overall with 10 threes in 22 attempts. The Panthers were limited to 40 percent and were outrebounded, 45-35.
The Northeast-10 Conference is an association of 15 NCAA Division II colleges and universities located in New England and New York that is committed to supporting balanced academic and athletic opportunities for more than 6,000 student-athletes. Each year, 4,000 of those student-athletes compete in conference championships in 23 sports, making the NE-10 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 Northeast-10 is proud of its comprehensive program and the experience it provides student-athletes.
Friday, February 28 - First Round | RECAP
Game 1: #4 NE Franklin Pierce 74, #5 SW Southern Connecticut 66 | BOX
Game 2: #4 SW Le Moyne 58, #5 NE Saint Anselm 53 | BOX
Sunday, March 2 - Quarterfinals | RECAP
Game 3: #1 SW Adelphi 81, #4 NE Franklin Pierce 77 | BOX
Game 4: #1 NE Bentley 77, #4 SW Le Moyne 51 | BOX
Game 5: #3 NE Assumption 61, #2 SW New Haven 58 | BOX
Game 6: #2 NE Stonehill 75, #3 SW American International 60 | BOX
Thursday, March 6 - Semifinals | RECAP
Game 7: #1 SW Adelphi 93, #2 NE Stonehill 77 | BOX | HIGHLIGHTS
Game 8: #1 NE Bentley 75, #3 NE Assumption 59 | BOX | HIGHLIGHTS
Sunday, March 9 - Final
Game 9: #1 NE Bentley 99, #1 SW Adelphi 76 | BOX
– #NE10 –
