By Tyler Hewey
WATERVILLE, Maine – The road to the women’s basketball Division III NCAA Tournament in the North Atlantic Conference will go through Newman Gymnasium on the campus of Husson University as the conference announced on Wednesday night.
The Husson Eagles earned the number one seed and the right to host the tournament after finishing the regular season with a 17-8 overall record and a 13-1 conference record. Maine Maritime locked up the two seed with a 12-2 record in the conference and an 18-6 record overall. Both the Eagles and Mariners earned a bye straight to the semifinals.
The quarterfinals will take place on Saturday, February 16th as the #3 seed SUNY Canton (11-13, 8-6 NAC) host #6 Thomas (6-18, 5-9 NAC) at 3 p.m. while #4 seed Northern Vermont University at Lyndon (13-11, 8-6 NAC) host #5 UMaine-Farmington (6-19, 6-8 NAC) at 2 p.m.
The semifinals will take place on Friday, February 22nd as the #2 seed Maine Maritime Mariners (18-6, 12-2) will play the winner of the SUNY Canton vs. Thomas game while the #1 Husson Eagles (17-8, 13-1) will play the winner of NVU-Lyndon vs. UMF with both games being played at Husson. The Eagles’ game will be played first at 5:30 p.m. and the Mariners game will be played following the conclusion of the first game.
The championship game will be played on Saturday, February 23rd at 2 p.m. with the winner advancing to the NCAA Tournament.
The Eagles are in search for their fourth straight NAC Conference championship as last season they knocked off Maine Maritime in the championship game, 76-58, in Vermont.
