SPRINGFIELD, Mass. — The Endicott women's basketball team pulled out a gritty 64-58 victory over top-seeded and No. 23 nationally ranked Western New England (WNE) in Saturday afternoon's Conference of New England (CNE) Championship matchup from Anthony S. Caprio Alumni Healthful Living Center.

Senior forward Sarah Dempsey (Windham, N.H.) was crowned as Most Outstanding Player (MOP) of the CNE Tournament after her 21-point (8-15 FG, 5-8 FT), seven-rebound, two-steal, and one-block performance. 

Sophomore guard Emma Shinney (Wakefield, Mass.) supplied 18 points (4-10 FG, 10-12 FT), five rebounds, and three assists in nearly a full 40 minutes of play. 

CNE Defensive Player of the Year Libby Fleming (Bangor, Maine) controlled the paint, as she accumulated 13 rebounds and three steals on the evening.

Cora Nadeau (Newport, Vt.) cashed in some clutch shooting (3-5 3PT) and was a team-high +20 in plus-minus.

HOW IT HAPPENED

Endicott opened on a 6-2 run thanks to paint scores from Dempsey, Shinney, and Fleming.

After an 11-2 Golden Bears spurt, the Gulls got back-to-back buckets from Dempsey (post score) and Katelyn Konareski (Milford, Conn.) from deep to reclaim a 15-14 advantage heading to the second.

The hosts sprung loose for an 11-5 start in the second, but Tenley Wallin (Danbury, Conn.) banked in a three to put the Gulls back within a score (25-22). 

A few clutch stops late and some efficient free throw shooting made it a one-point game (28-27 WNE) at the break.

Nadeau got the Blue and Green off to a big start in the third quarter, as she drilled back-to-back corner triples. A beautiful spinning floater off the glass from Shinney and a Dempsey second chance bucket was enough to put the Gulls up 37-34 at the under five media timeout.

The hosts snapped the Gulls' run and regained a five-point advantage (44-39), but a strong Dempsey drive to the basket and-one finish brought it back to a one-possession game (44-42) heading to the final quarter.

Dempsey stayed hot to open the fourth, extending her personal run to 6-0 to point the needle back in favor of the Gulls (45-44; 7:38).

Out of a media timeout, the Golden Bears created an open three-pointer and converted, but deep two-point jumpers from Dempsey and Wallin put the Gulls back on top. 

With a steady diet of Dempsey scoring (in paint and mid-range) combined with dominant free throw shooting from Shinney as well as stifling defensive pressure, the Gulls secured their second-ever conference championship, 64-58.

BEYOND THE BOX SCORE

• Endicott holds a 23-14 edge in the all-time series between the two teams.
• Insel is the first head coach in program history to win a title in her first season.
• First conference championship for the Gulls since the 2019-20 season.
• Gulls extended their winning streak to 13 games.
• Endicott limited CNE Player of the Year Lilly Hedge (Guilford, Conn.) to 3-9 shooting from the floor.
• Dempsey recorded 18 of her 21 points in the second half. The senior leads the program in all-time scoring and rebounding.

FIRST HALF NOTES

• Nadeau was a team-high +7 in the opening half.
• The opening half featured five lead changes and one tie.
• Shinney scored a game-high 12 points (3-8 FG, 6-6 FT) in the first 20 minutes.
• Fleming recorded six points and six rebounds in the first stanza.

WHAT'S NEXT

Endicott (22-5) earned an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. 

Western New England (24-3) hopes to receive an at-large bid into the NCAA Tournament. They await the NCAA Selection Show, which airs Monday, March 3 at 3 PM.

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(Photo Credit - David Le '10)