PREVIEW: Womens Basketball Faces Top-Seeded Amherst In NCAA First Round
The Regis (Mass.) women?s basketball team (22-6, 18-0 NECC) opens the 2017 NCAA Tournament with a first round matchup against Amherst College (27-0, 10-0 NESCAC) Friday, 7pm
AMHERST, Mass. – The Regis (Mass.) women's basketball team (22-6, 18-0 NECC) opens the 2017 NCAA Tournament with a first round matchup against Amherst College (27-0, 10-0 NESCAC). The Pride and Amherst will square off at LeFrak Gymnasium at 7:00 p.m. on Friday, Mar. 3. Mary Washington and the Sage Colleges will play in the first game of the opening round double header at 5:00 p.m.
The Pride earned the New England Collegiate Conference's automatic bid after beating Elms College in the final of the NECC Tournament. The game marks the fifth straight league title and berth to the NCAA Tournament for the Pride. Regis is looking for its first NCAA Tournament win after falling to Montclair State in its first three appearances before losing to Tufts last season.
Regis enters the game on a nine-game win streak and will be led by all-conference selections Brittany Stone (West Bridgewater, Mass.) and Amanda Hawkesworth (Abbington, Mass.). Stone was voted the NECC's Player of the Year with Hawkesworth earning defensive player of the year honors one year after being named the league's player of the year in 2016.
Stone has been outstanding in her junior campaign, shooting 64.9 percent from the floor across the 18 NECC games while averaging 18.7 points and collecting 9.9 rebounds per game. She was a key cog in a Pride offense that led the league with 76.4 points per game.
Regis Postseason History
10th postseason appearance (5-NCAA, 5-ECAC)
NCAA postseason record – 0-4
ECAC postseason record – 1-5
NCAA postseason appearances – 2013, '14, '15, '16, '17
ECAC postseason appearances – 1996, '97, '10, '11, '12
Record against tournament field – 0-5
All-time record vs. Amherst – first meeting
First & Second Round Schedule (LeFrak Gymnasium)
Friday, Mar. 3 – First Round
Game 1 – Sage vs Mary Washington (5:00 p.m.)
Game 2 – Regis vs. Amherst ( 7:00pm) - Live Stats | Live Video
Saturday, Mar. 4 – Second Round
Winner Game 1 vs. winner Game 2 (6:00 p.m.)
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