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South Easton, Mass. – The Northeast-10 had five institutions ranked in the first edition of the NCAA Division II women’s basketball regional rankings as released by the NCAA Division II Women’s Basketball Committee.

Franklin Pierce University, ranked #1 nationally in the recent USA Today/ESPN WBCA Division II National Top-25 poll, led the way as the top ranked team in the East region. Holy Family University of the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (CACC) is ranked second, followed by Stonehill College and Bentley University. C.W. Post of the East Coast Conference (ECC) rounds out the top five.

The rest of the rankings fill out with Pace University at number six, followed by the University of Bridgeport and Dowling College of the ECC ranked seventh and eighth respectively. Molloy College, also with the ECC, is ninth, while Assumption College rounds out the poll at tenth.

Franklin Pierce (18-0, 14-0 NE-10) is currently undefeated on the year after its recent victory over Adelphi University on Tuesday night. The Ravens are led by senior Johannah Leedham (Ellesmere Port, England) who recently broke the school’s all-time scoring record after setting the same record in the Northeast-10 earlier in the season. Leedham leads the conference in scoring with 25.1 points per game and is ranked in the top five in both rebounds (8.3 rpg) and assists (4.39 apg). Junior Cynthia Gaudet (Coventry, R.I.) is averaging 10.8 points per contest and is ranked fourth in the NE-10 in assists with 4.50 per game. Franklin Pierce travels to Syracuse, N.Y. for a 1 p.m. contest versus Le Moyne College on Saturday.

Stonehill (17-4, 12-2 NE-10) is currently tied for second place in the Northeast-10 at 12-2 with Bentley after extending its winning streak to nine games with its win over Le Moyne on Tuesday night. Junior Emily Rousseau (Biddeford, Maine) led the Skyhawks with 22 points off 7-of-13 shooting from the field. Rousseau drained a key three-point basket while getting fouled and converted the four-point play to give Stonehill a 63-61 lead with 33-seconds left in regulation. She is averaging 14.3 points and 4.3 assists per game. Senior Kelsey Simonds (Middleboro, Mass.) leads the team in scoring with 17.0 points and in rebounds with 7.7 per game. The Skyhawks return to action on Saturday as they travel to Albany, N.Y. to face Saint Rose at 1:30 p.m.

Just like Franklin Pierce and Stonehill, Bentley is streaking as well as the Falcons extended their own winning streak to eight games after defeating Saint Rose, 87-84, on Tuesday night in a thrilling three-overtime contest. Junior Kim Brennan (Locust Valley, N.Y.) led the way for the Falcons as she finished with a game-high 25 points including a game-saving shot from midcourt to force a third overtime period. Bentley trailed 76-73 with 3.4 seconds left in the second-overtime period when Brennan launched a desperation shot from midcourt and drained it to tie the game. Brennan is ranked third in the Northeast-10 in scoring as she is currently averaging 16.1 points per game. She is also averaging 3.7 rebounds and 4.4 assists per game. Colette Josey (Boston, Mass.) is averaging 9.2 points and is second in the NE-10 with 9.1 rebounds per game. Bentley will look to extend its win-streak to nine games on Saturday as the Falcons head south to face Pace for a 1:30 p.m. contest.

Pace (14-5, 11-3 NE-10) continues to roll as well as the Setters have put together a five-game winning streak after defeating UMass Lowell Tuesday night, 69-58. Junior Lisa Welsome (Staten Island, N.Y.) led the way for the Setters with a game-high 17 points. She shot 5-of-6 from the field with all five shots made coming from three-point range. Senior Taylor Losey (Bristol, Conn.) finished with 15 points and just shy of a double-double with nine rebounds. Losey leads the team in scoring with 13.7 points per game. Sophomore Brittany Huggins (Windsor, Conn.) is averaging 11.2 points and a team high 5.3 rebounds per game for the Setters. Pace will host Bentley on Saturday for a 1:30 p.m. tip-off.

Assumption (10-9, 7-7 NE-10) will look to rebound after its loss to Saint Anselm College on Tuesday night. Freshman Gabrielle Gibson (Amityville, N.Y.) finished with a team-high 14 points, while fellow classmate Katy Howard (Medway, Mass.) added 13 points versus the Hawks. Gibson leads the team in scoring with 11.7 points per game and is the top-scoring freshman in the conference. Senior Kayla Parker (Sanford, Maine) is averaging 10.9 points and 6.1 rebounds per game for the Greyhounds. Assumption will host Southern New Hampshire University on Saturday at 1:30 p.m.

With 16 member institutions the Northeast-10 shares the distinction of being the largest Division II conference in the country along with the PSAC and WVIAC. Its 23 championship sports provide athletic opportunities for over 5,500 student-athletes, the largest such program of any Division II conference.

-NE-10-

NCAA Division II East Region Rankings Week 1

1. Franklin Pierce
2. Holy Family
3. Stonehill
4. Bentley
5. C.W. Post
6. Pace
7. Bridgeport
8. Dowling
9. Molloy
10. Assumption