AMHERST, N.Y. -- For the first time in her young career, Daemen University freshman forward
Ne'vaeh Buntley (Rochester, N.Y.) of the women's basketball team has been named the East Coast Conference Rookie of the Week for week 13 of the basketball season. Buntley is the fourth Wildcat to earn a weekly award from the ECC, joining
Cecilia Lapertosa (Whitesboro, N.Y.) who earned ECC Player and Defensive Player of the Week,
Danielle DiCintio (Somers, N.Y.) who was the ECC Player of the Week and
Claire Pikett (Holland, N.Y.) who was named the ECC Defensive Player of the Week previously this season.
Buntley averaged 16.0 points per game in Daemen's routs over St. Thomas Aquinas, 72-53, and Mercy, 56-40, this weekend. The freshman scored a career-high 21 points against the Spartans on Friday night where she shot 50 percent both from the field (9-of-18 FG) and beyond the arc (3-of-6 3FG) with nine rebounds. Buntley then added 11 points and six rebounds in the Wildcats' win over Mercy on Sunday and finished the weekend with 32 points, 15 rebounds, three assists, four steals and one block.
A starter for the Wildcats since Dec. 15, Buntley has put together a stellar freshman campaign. In her 12 starts, she is averaging 13.6 points per game, seven rebounds per game, while shooting 44% from the field over that span.
Daemen returns to Lumsden Gymnasium this weekend for their final doubleheader of the regular season. The Wildcats welcome Molloy University on Friday, Feb. 14 at 5:30 PM and wrap up the weekend hosting Queens College on Sunday, Feb. 16 at 12 PM. Winners of eight straight games, the Wildcats are 16-6 overall and 12-0 in ECC play this season.
Daemen University features the premier NCAA Division II athletics program in the Buffalo-Niagara region, sponsoring 17 intercollegiate teams. For the latest information on Daemen Athletics, follow the Wildcats via social media on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Instagram, or sign up to receive customizable news alerts, e-mail newsletters and weekly schedule alerts.
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