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Bentley ranks first in nation for first time in program history
By Louis Sherman
Last week, Bentley women’s basketball was honored by being ranked as the number-one Division II women’s basketball team in the nation, the first time that the Falcons have ever reached that height in the team’s program history.
After being in the number-two spot in the rankings for a total of 23 different times over the team’s history, Bentley finally got the break they have been waiting for when defending national champion and number one ranked Clayton State was upset by Tusculum the weekend prior.
Bentley received 28 of the 32 first place votes in the Coaches’ Poll, with Arkansas Tech moving into the second spot, as Clayton State dropped to six.
The Lady Falcons continued their sensational season in what proved to be their most competitive game so far in the young season, as they defeated St. Michaels, 75-66.
Bentley had four separate players finish with double-digit point totals on the night. The game was as close as 60-58 with just over seven minutes remaining before Bentley went on a 15-3 run to contain the Purple Knights.
Junior forward Caleigh Crowell played in her first career Bentley game, after missing 38 due to a foot injury. She only played in one minute, but was able to pick up four points and a block in her short time on the court.
Sophomore Lauren Battista continued her stellar season with 14 points to go along with six rebounds. Fellow sophomore Jacqui Brugliera produced her first double-double of the year, as she posted 13 points and 11 rebounds.
Junior guards Kelsey Roberson and Courtney Finn rounded out the double-digit scorers. Roberson finished with five assists to go along with her 12 points. Finn, who knocked down two three-pointers along with Roberson, finished with 10 points. Senior Katherine Goodwin also had a fine day with seven points and five rebounds.
This past Saturday marked the last home game for the Falcons in 2011, as they hosted the 5-1 Southern New Hampshire Penmen. The Lady Falcons won this won easily, 76-43.
Battista, Brugliera and Finn combined to outscore Southern New Hampshire on their own, as they combined for 46 on the afternoon. The win put Bentley at 7-0 on the season, 5-0 in the NE-10, and extended their home win streak to 13 games.
Battista continued her hot season with 17 points and eight rebounds in the game. Brugliera added another 15 points and seven rebounds, while Finn had 14 points and five rebounds. Senior Shatasia Kearse also added eight rebounds in 17 minutes.
This marked the fifth time in the seven games that the Lady Falcons have played in which they never trailed through the game. The first half included runs of 19-9 and 20-8 by Bentley, who went into the locker room up 39-22.
Bentley women’s basketball has been lighting up the stat sheet through the first seven games of their season. The Falcons have averaged 75.6 points per game, while only allowing 51.1 points against on average. They are a very balanced team that has won on the road and at home en route to the seven victories.
Battista is continuing from where she left off on her freshman campaign last season. The sophomore is averaging an impressive 17.6 points and 6.7 rebounds per contest.
Brugliera is also continuing her success from her freshman year, as she is fourth on the team with 8.4 points per game, and leads the team at 6.9 rebounds per game.
Kearse is third on the team with 9.1 points per game, and had added 4.7 rebounds per game. Finn is the only other Falcon averaging double digits, at 10.6 points per game.
Roberson has stepped up to lead the team with 27 assists, with junior Chrystal Guarin next in line at 17. Roberson also has 6.4 points per game to go along with the second most steals on the team, at 10. Senior Lauren Massie leads the team with 13 steals.
Roberson and Graduate student Elise Caira are the team’s captains this year. Their on-court leadership has shined through and they have put up the numbers to back up why they should be in that leadership role.
Although the Lady Falcons have completed their home games for 2011, they still have five games left before returning to the Dana Center on January 3.
After Wednesday night’s matchup at Franklin Pierce, the Falcons head to Stonehill and C.W. Post in New York before taking a week off. After their short break, Bentley will take part in the Bridgeport Holiday Classic on December 29 and 30, to take on Dowling and Bridgeport.
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On the sjbceut of comparing regular season and playoff splits, an idea I played with a while back was to calculate how much more important a playoff game would have to be for it to outweigh the sum of regular season games to get a desired regular season result.