WBB Set For NECC Semifinals Showdown at NEC

NEW LONDON, Conn. - Mitchell College will visit New England College for the semifinals of the 2020 New England Collegiate Conference Women's Basketball Championship on Thursday night.

The third-seeded Mariners, fresh off an 82-46 victory over sixth-seeded Elms College in Tuesday's first round, have advanced to the semifinals of the conference tournament for the sixth time in the past seven years. Mitchell is 6-11 in tournament play and is looking to earn its first-ever appearance in the title game.

The second-seeded Pilgrims went 12-2 in league action this season and are making their second appearance in the tournament. New England College won the title in its innaugural NECC season in 2018-19 and is 3-0 all-time in the tournament. 

This Season: New England College swept the regular season series between the two squads, winning 80-75 (OT) on the road on January 4 and 72-62 at home on February 22.  

In the Tournament: Tonight's meeting will be the first between Mitchell and New England College in the NECC Championship. 

Scouting New England College: The Pilgrims enter tonight's game having won nine of their last 11 games, with the only losses coming against top-seeded Eastern Nazarene College. Head coach Erika Ledy, now in her 18th year, led her squad to a 19-6 overall record during the regular season. NEC ranked second in the league in both scoring (72.0 ppg) and scoring defense (55.6 ppg). Senior guard Rene Hudson, an all-conference first team selection, leads the team in scoring at 19.3 points per game and is the only player averaging in double figures. Sophomore forward Kayla Goldring leads the charges on the glass with 5.8 rebounds per contest. 

Scouting Mitchell: The Mariners have won nine of their last 11 games, though one of those losses came at New England College on the final day of the regular season. Third-year head coach Courtney Burns has navigated Mitchell to a 16-10 overall record. Mitchell's high-powered offense (71.0 ppg) ranks third in the league and is fueled by four double-digit scorers in Amina Wiley (16.1 ppg), Kelsey Hernandez (12.8 ppg), Le'Sandra Turner (11.2 ppg) and Sam McKenna (10.2). Wiley leads the team and ranks second in the NECC in rebounding at 12.5 per game.


2020 NECC Women's Basketball Championship

First Round - Tuesday, February 25, 2020

Game 1: #6 Elms 46, #3 Mitchell 82
Game 2: #5 Dean 74, #4 Becker 82

Semifinals - Thursday, February 27, 2020

Game 3: #3 Mitchell at #2 New England Col. - 5:30 p.m. 
Game 4: #4 Becker at #1 Eastern Nazarene - 7:00 p.m.

Championship - Saturday, February 29, 2020

Game 5: Semifinal Winners at the highest remaining seed