Brian Foley

Women's Basketball Rematches Bentley in East Region Semifinals on Saturday

3/13/2026 5:57:00 PM

By: CONTACT: Connor Griffin, Assistant Director of Athletics Communications | cgriffin@daemen.edu

KEEP DANCING!
The #9 (#3 seed) Daemen women's basketball team takes on #2 seed Bentley in the NCAA East Region Semifinals on Saturday. The Wildcats are playing in the NCAA Tournament for the seventh consecutive season and reached the regional semifinals for the third consecutive season and the fourth time in the last five years. Daemen defeated the #6 seed Felician in the regional quarterfinals on Friday to advance. The Falcons downed the #7 seed Mercy 74-47 in the quarterfinals.

LAST TIME OUT
#3 seed Daemen (25-3, 15-1 ECC) defeated #6 seed Felician (22-8, 15-5 CACC) in the NCAA East Region Quarterfinals at the James Moore Fieldhouse on Friday. Daemen capitalized on Felician's 31 turnovers, converting them into 28 points. The Wildcats maintained control with a strong defensive performance, recording 18 steals and limiting Felician to only two successful three-point shots. Joline Raposo (Tampa, Fla.) tallied a team-leading 15 points, including three three-pointers, while also collecting four steals. Claire Pikett (Holland, N.Y.) scored 14 points and added three blocks, and grabbing five rebounds, contributing to a strong defensive effort. Ne'vaeh Buntley (Rochester, N.Y.) scored 14 points and recorded seven rebounds, showcasing her presence on the boards. Julia Fontanillo (Valladolid, Spain) tallied 11 points while dishing out two assists and logging two steals. Shyla Montgomery (Brockton, Mass.) added five steals and scored eight points, reinforcing the defensive front.

DAEMEN IN THE NCAA TOURNAMENT
The Wildcats are dancing for the seventh straight year after earning the ECC's automatic bid with the tournament championship victory. Daemen is 9-5 all-time in NCAA Tournament play after Friday's win, and was 2-1 in the tournament last season after winning the program's second East Region title and advancing to the NCAA Division II Elite Eight. The Wildcats were the #2 seed and defeated #7 seed Jefferson (70-48) in the regional quarterfinals before falling to #3 seed Holy Family (68-55) in the semifinals. Daemen won the East Region in 2024, before falling to Texas Woman's in the Elite Eight. Daemen won the program's first-ever East Region title and trip to the Elite Eight in 2021, and made it back to the East Region championship game, where they fell in a two-point heartbreaker to Pace in the 2022 tournament. The Wildcats advanced to the East Regional in 2023 but fell to No. 6 Jefferson in the quarterfinals.

ECC TITLE REMAINS IN AMHERST
Daemen won its fifth straight conference title last weekend. The Wildcats defeated Staten Island 75-61 in the semifinals and Mercy (73-68) in the title game. Buntley was named ECC Tournament Most Outstanding Player. The sophomore averaged 22.0 points, 4.0 steals, and 4.5 rebounds per game in the Wildcats' two games. Pikett and Auer were named to the All-Tournament Team. Pikett averaged 14.5 points, 2.5 steals, and 4.5 rebounds per contest. Auer posted 12.5 points per game on 53.8% shooting, 7.0 rebounds per game, and 2.0 assists per game.

CO-REGULAR SEASON CHAMPS
Daemen claimed a share of the ECC regular season title with Mercy after defeating Roberts Wesleyan on Feb. 25. The Wildcats earned the No. 1 seed through tiebreakers. This marks the seventh consecutive season that Daemen has earned at least a share of the title.

DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Pikett was named East Coast Conference Defensive Player of the Year. Pikett started all 25 games for the Wildcats during the regular season, playing 29.4 minutes per contest. Pikett led the ECC in steals (87) and steals per game (3.5), also sitting ninth nationally in the latter. The forward is fourth in the ECC in blocks (41) and tied for third in blocks per game (1.6). Additionally, Pikett averaged 12.6 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 2.1 assists per game, ranking third on the team in all three categories. She recorded five-plus steals in six contests this season, including a career-high eight in the season-opener against Wilmington (DE).

ALL-CONFERENCE WILDCATS
Four Wildcats earned All-ECC recognition. Pikett was joined by Ne'vaeh Buntley (Rochester, N.Y.) on the first team. Shyla Montgomery (Brockton, Mass.) and Sophie Auer (Lewiston, N.Y.) landed on the third team. Daemen has produced at least one all-conference selection in each of the previous 10 seasons. Buntley led the Wildcats in scoring (16.9 PPG) on 41.1% shooting, ranking third in the ECC in points per game during the regular season. She started all 25 games, averaging a team-leading 29.6 minutes per contest, while also recording 5.4 rebounds per game, second-best on the team, and 1.7 steals per game. Montgomery started all 22 games she played during the regular season. She led the Wildcats and ranked tied for fourth in the ECC in assists per game (3.0). The senior finished second on the team and second in the ECC in steals per game (2.6), while averaging 8.8 points and 3.3 rebounds per game. Auer started all 25 of Daemen's games during the regular season, ranking fourth on the squad in minutes per game (28.0). She finished second on the team in field goal percentage (45.9%), averaging 8.8 points per game and tying for fourth on the squad. Auer also averaged 4.1 rebounds, 2.0 assists, and 1.5 steals per game, ranking tied for 15th in the ECC in the latter.

'CATS JUMP INTO THE TOP 10
Daemen women's basketball moved up to #9 in the latest Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) NCAA Division II Coaches' Poll. The Wildcats are ranked for the 10th consecutive week and the 11th time this season. It is the program's first time in the top ten of the WBCA poll since March 2021, when it was ranked eighth. The team is 2-1 against nationally ranked opponents, with wins over #24 Holy Family (66-61) and #18 Bentley (75-62), and a loss against #5 Gannon (57-50).

IN THE RANKINGS
The Wildcats led the ECC with 72.5 points per game, while holding their opponents to 56.8 points per game, also first in the conference. Daemen led the ECC in steals per game (15.75 SPG), ranking fifth nationally. Additionally, Daemen's 4.71 blocks per game are the best in the ECC and rank tied for 13th nationally.

(SCOUTING THE FALCONS (23-4, 17-1 NE10)
Bentley advanced to the regional semifinals for the fourth straight year with a win over Mercy. The Falcons fell in the Northeast 10 championship game to Southern Connecticut State, but earned an at-large bid and the #2 seed in the East Region after an impressive season that saw them ranked #11 in the WBCA poll. First Team All-NE10 selection Morgan Niya leads the Falcons offensively with 14.2 points per game while averaging 5.1 rebounds per game and a team-best 1.3 steals per game. Kayana Armbrister earned Third Team All-NE10 and is averaging 10.7 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 1.2 steals per game. Julie Elie earned third-team all-conference honors after leading the team with 6.2 rebounds per game while posting 9.4 points, 1.1 steals, and 1.6 assists per game.

SERIES HISTORY
The Wildcats and Falcons will be meeting for the third time overall and for the second time this season. The Wildcats beat then #18-ranked Bentley 75-62 on their home court on Jan. 1. In their first meeting, Bentley defeated Daemen 76-61 on Nov. 10, 2023, in Rochester, N.Y., as part of the Redhawk Classic.

UP NEXT
If Daemen advances, the Wildcats will play the winner of the East Region semifinal matchup on Monday at 7 p.m.

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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