WEST BABYLON, N.Y. – After facing off in the ECC Women's Basketball Championship title game earlier this afternoon, both Daemen and Mercy have been selected to play in the East Regional portion of the upcoming NCAA Division II Women's Basketball Championship, as the the full 64-team NCAA tournament bracket was revealed on Sunday evening in a selection show broadcast at NCAA.com. The No. 6 Wildcats of Daemen University and No. 8 Mavericks of Mercy University will represent the ECC at No. 1 seed Bentley University's Dana Center's Barbara Stevens Court in Waltham, Mass. this upcoming weekend.
No. 6 Daemen (20-7) will face No. 3 Saint Rose (21-6) from the Northeast-10 Conference in the East Regional quarterfinals on Friday, March 15 at noon.
The Wildcats come into their fifth straight regional tournament boasting a 20-7 record. Daemen won its fifth straight ECC regular-season title with a 13-3 record in conference play and went on to take its third consecutive ECC tournament title – and fourth in five seasons – over the weekend at Lumsden Gymnasium. As the top seed in the ECC Tournament, the Wildcats squared off against No. 4 District of Columbia in the semifinals on Saturday and after an incredible game, came away with the 69-66 victory over the Firebirds thanks to a buzzer-beater triple from the ECC Player of the Year Alahna Paige. The Wildcats faced No. 2 Mercy in the championship game on Sunday and came back from an eight-point deficit late in the fourth quarter to take down the Mavericks, 55-50.
Since punching their ticket to the program's first ever NCAA Tournament in the 2019-20 season that was canceled due to the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, Daemen has been a staple in the postseason, advancing to the "Big Dance" each year since. The Wildcats hosted the 2021 NCAA East Regional in Lumsden Gymnasium and punched their ticket to the program's first Elite Eight. Daemen made noise in the 2022 East Regional as the No. 8 seed and made their way back into the regional championship. As the No. 6 seed in the 2022 tournament, the Wildcats fell to regional runners up No. 3 Jefferson in the quarterfinal match-up.
No. 8 Mercy (20-9) will face No. 1 Bentley (26-5), the three-time defending NE10 tournament champion, in the East Regional quarterfinals on Friday, March 15 at 5:00 PM.
The Mavericks have received the program's second-ever bid into the 2024 NCAA Division II Women's Basketball Championship by virtue of going 20-9 while advancing to the ECC Championship Final for the first time. Mercy is making its first NCAA Tournament appearance since 1985 and has their most wins in a season since the 1984-85 season, finishing in a program-best second place in the ECC standings. Under the direction of ECC Coach of the Year Scott Lagas, the Mavericks are led by ECC Defensive Player of the Year Angelina Barrera and All-ECC First Team selections Katie Wall and Jaclyn Stanavich.
The Elite Eight will be played in St. Joseph, Mo. from March 25-29.
NCAA DIVISION II EAST REGIONAL
At Bentley University, Waltham, Mass.
Quarterfinals – Friday, March 15
#1 Bentley (26-5) vs. #8 Mercy (20-9)
#4 Jefferson (30-1) vs. Southern New Hampshire (17-10)
#3 Saint Rose (21-6) vs. #6 Daemen (20-7)
#2 Assumption (24-5) vs. #7 Franklin Pierce (20-10)
Semifinals – Saturday, March 16
Bentley-Mercy winner vs. Jefferson-SNHU winner
Saint Rose-Daemen winner vs. Assumption-FPU winner
Championship – Monday, March 18