Brickley becomes all-time leading scorer with 1,542 points

SPRINGFIELD, Mass.  – Fourth-seeded Babson College defeated second-seeded Wheaton College, 77-51, in the New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) Women's Basketball Tournament championship game on Sunday afternoon inside Blake Arena on the campus of Springfield College.

With the win, Babson (20-8) has earned an automatic bid into the NCAA Division III Tournament and also claimed its ninth conference title in program history counting both NEWMAC and NEW 8 championships. Wheaton (20-8) will now await a potential at-large bid into the NCAA Tournament via the NCAA Tournament selection show that is scheduled for Monday, March 2 at 2:30 p.m.

Wheaton senior forward Abbie Brickley (Sandy, Utah/Skyline) finished the contest with nine points to become the all-time leading scorer in program history with 1,542 points (611-for-1,234 FG, 14-for-42 3PT, 306-for-389 FT). Brickley, who also registered six rebounds and three assists for the Lyons on the afternoon, surpassed Krystin Hickey '09 for the top spot on the all-time scoring list. Hickey scored 1,540 points from 2005-2009 for the Blue and White.

Senior guard Laura Pierce (Hampstead, N.H./Pinkerton Academy) had a team-high 12 points, while junior forward Kiley Shoemaker (Fayetteville, N.Y./Fayetteville-Manlius) nearly recorded a double-double with eight points, a game-high 14 rebounds and four blocks. Senior guard Kenzie Kuhn (Glenwood Springs, Colo./Glenwood Springs) chipped in with seven points, five rebounds, one assist and a steal.

Babson sophomore guard Taylor Russell (Braintree, Mass./Braintree) led all scorers with 16 points on 8-of-12 shooting from the floor to go with five rebounds, two blocks and one steal. Classmate Jennifer Narlee (Medfield, Mass./Medfield) compiled ten points and seven rebounds, while sophomore Giovanna Pickering (Hull, Mass./Phillips Andover) added nine points, five rebounds, a game-high six assists and two steals.

The Beavers also saw seven other student-athletes find the scoring column highlighted by nine points from senior guard Erin Young (Westwood, Mass./Westwood) and a eight points apiece from sophomore forward Ashley Snyder (Foxboro, Mass./Foxboro) and junior forward Megan Otto (Scituate, Mass./Scituate).

In the first half, Babson charged out to a 27-2 advantage over the opening 8:23 of play shooting 57.1-percent (8-for-14) from the floor and 71.4-percent (5-for-7) from long distance alongside a pair of made free throws via Snyder that started the run at 18:08 of the contest.

The Beavers received points from eight different scorers during the offensive outburst including six from Young, who buried a pair of treys from the wing, while Pickering also added five points. Juniors Marissa Cicchetti (Mansfield, Mass./Bishop Feehan), Linnett Graber (Roseland, N.J./Gill St. Bernard's) and Kristen Ferola (Amherst, Mass./Amherst Reg.) and Narlee all had three points and Russell collected two points to account for the rest of the scoring.

Russell capped the run with a jumper at the 11:37 mark before Morris stopped the spurt with a tough layup from the right block at 11:17.

Wheaton then pulled within under 20 points with 7:03 remaining in the stanza as Pierce followed Morris' layup with a three-pointer from the right wing and Ferrari swished back-to-back free throws via a 1-and-1 situation at the line to make it 27-9.

Babson answered with a 15-9 run to take a 42-18 lead into the break as Pickering broke apart the Lyons' string of seven-straight points with a layup at the 6:56 mark. Graber led the offense during the final 7:03 of the half with four points, while Young hit her third 3-pointer of the stanza and Snyder, Otto and Russell all contributed two points apiece.

The Beavers eventually broke away to a 35-point lead in the second half – their largest advantage of the contest – with 9:13 left to play before Wheaton chipped away at its deficit down the stretch for the final score of 77-51 (26 points). The Lyons, who were only outscored 35-33 in the second half, shot 40.0-percent (14-for-35) in the second stanza. Brickley paced the offense with nine points, while Shoemaker poured in eight and Pierce turned in seven points to highlight the scoring for Wheaton in the second half.

Babson is now winners of 16 out of its last 17 conference tournament games with today's victory over Wheaton. The Beavers also boast a 19-3 record this season when scoring at least 60 points in a contest and a 16-1 mark when holding its opponents under 60 points.

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