NEW LONDON, Conn. -- New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) tournament most valuable player, Hailee Lowe (Hamilton, Mass.) led #2 Lesley University to a 63-55 victory over #4 Daniel Webster on Saturday afternoon and the inaugural NECC women's basketball title.  Lowe finished the game with30 points and hauled down eight rebounds.

Lesley started the game strongly and took a 14-5 lead on two free throws by NECC all-tournament team selection, Rachael O'Mara (Levittown, Pa.).  Daniel Webster struggled in the first half in the shooting department going 7-for-28 (25%) from the floor and 2-for-11 (18%) from long range. 

The Eagles were held scoreless for a seven minute stretch until the 7:12 mark of the first half when NECC all-tournament team selection Alycia Gervais (Windham, Conn.) converted a free throw.  By that point, Lesley had racked up 21 points and held a 21-6 advantage with just over seven minutes to play in the first half.

Hailee Lowe came up big in the first half as she poured in 20 points in the first 20 minutes of play on 8-for-11 shooting from the floor.  Lesley took a 16 point lead (36-20) into the locker room at the  half.

The first eight minutes of the second half was much of the same, with the Lesley lead lingering around 15 points.  The Eagles of Daniel Webster stormed back and went on a 14-1 run, including eight straight points by sophomore Alyssa Regan (Salem, N.H.).  Kacie Lang (Raymond, N.H.) made a lay-up to cut the Lesley lead to 47-45 with 7:57 left to play in the championship game.  But that is as close as the Eagles would get in the ball game.

Lesley regained a seven point lead when Lowe scored two buckets in the paint.  The Lynx would ice the win and the title on clutch free throw shooting down the stretch.  They converted 6-of-8 free throws in the final four minutes of play, including 3-of-4 shooting by Jodi Fralick (Woburn, Mass.).

 For the Eagles, Vanessa Bosques (N. Windham, Conn.) scored a team-leading 15 points, while Alyssa Regan chipped in with 12 points and six boards.

Joining Lowe in double-digit scoring for the champions was Kaitlyn Wechsler (Merrick, N.Y.) who scored 13 points and pulled down seven rebounds.

Daniel Webster finishes the season 17-11 overall, while the NECC champions, Lesley University, finishes 17-10. 

Story Courtesy of Mitchell Sports Information

BOX SCORE

2008-‘09 NECC WOMEN'S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP SCHEDULE

Quarterfinals
Tuesday, February 24
#6 Newbury (5-20, 5-11) at #3 Elms (14-11, 1 2-4), EC 72, NC 42
#5 Becker (14-11, 10-6) at #4 Daniel Webster (15-10, 10-6), DWC 63, BC 54

Semifinals
Friday, February 27 (Hosted by Mitchell, New London, Conn.)
#4 Daniel Webster (16-10) at #1 Mitchell (16-9, 14-2), DWC81 MC 77
#3 Elms (14-11) vs. #2 Lesley (15-10, 14-2), LU 65 EC 49

Championship Game
Saturday, February 28 (Hosted by Mitchell, New London, Conn.)
#4 Daniel Webster (17-11) vs. #2 Lesley (17-10), LU 63 DWC55

2009 NECC Women's Basketball All Tournament Team

NECC WBB All-Tournament Team: Rachel O'Mara (LU), Hailee Lowe-MVP (LU), Alycia Gervais (DWC), Joyce Chagan (DWC), Jen Iglesias (MC), not pictured: Amanda Brogna (EC)

MVP Hailee Lowe, Lesley, Junior, Forward (Hamilton, Mass.)
Amanda Brogna, Elms, Junior, Forward (Oxford, Mass.)
Joyce Chagan, Daniel Webster, Sophomore, Guard (Boothbay Harbor, Maine)
Alycia Gervais, Daniel Webster, Freshman, Guard (Windham, Conn.)
Jennifer Iglesias, Mitchell, Junior, Guard (Waterbury, Conn.)
Rachel O' Mara, Lesley, Sophomore, Forward (Levittown, N.Y.)