West Babylon, N.Y. – The bracket for the East Coast Conference Women's Basketball Championship is now set after the conclusion of regular season play earlier today.
Tournament action begins on Wednesday, March 1 with the first round taking place at on-campus sites. After clinching the ECC Regular Season Championship for a fourth straight year, Daemen will host the semifinals and final of the tournament at Lumsden Gymnasium on their campus in Amherst, N.Y. on Saturday, March 4, and Sunday, March 5.
This is the fourth year in a row the Wildcats (18-4, 13-3 ECC) have earned a first round bye, the third straight season they have earned the No. 1 seed, and the second consecutive year they will serve as hosts of the final two rounds of the tournament. The Wildcats have excelled in postseason play in recent years, winning two of the past three ECC titles. They also advanced to the championship game the one time in that period they didn't cut down the nets.
Daemen will take on either No. 4 District of Columbia or No. 5 Staten Island in the semifinals.
UDC (15-12, 10-6 ECC) is back in the tournament for the second straight year and will host a first round matchup for the first time since the 2016 season. The Firebirds will look to end a nine-year drought without a title, with their last and only ECC Championship coming in 2014.
Staten Island (10-18, 6-10 ECC) makes its first-ever appearance in the ECC Championship. The Dolphins are in their first season of Division II postseason eligibility after transitioning from Division III over the past three years.
UDC swept the season series, including a 28-point win on their home court just last weekend.
On the other side of the bracket, St. Thomas Aquinas (20-7, 12-4 ECC) joins Daemen with a first round bye as the No. 2 seed. The Spartans now hold the longest streak of consecutive ECC Championship appearances as they make their ninth straight trip to the conference postseason. STAC has won just one tournament title in that span, however, coming during the 2018 season.
No. 3 Mercy (17-9, 11-5 ECC) and No. 6 Queens (8-19, 5-11 ECC) will face off in the other first round matchup. Mercy is back in the bracket for the third straight year and will host a tournament game for the first time in program history. Mercy has never won an ECC title and is attempting to earn their first postseason victory since the 1991-92 season.
Queens is back in the tournament for the first time since 2018 after claiming the final spot. The Knights have previously won the tournament three times, with the last coming in 2016 when they repeated as champions.
The two teams will meet for the second time in just five days after playing each other in Saturday's regular season finale. Mercy swept the season series but the previous game on their homecourt was a tight affair with the Mavericks prevailing, 50-48.
Follow Live
Each game of the championship will be broadcast live on the ECC Network website. The games will also be available on the ECC Network app. Download the ECC Network app on any Apple or Android mobile device or on Amazon Fire TV, Android TV, Apple TV, and Roku OTT streaming devices. In addition, the semifinal and final games from Daemen will be syndicated to watch live on the ECC Facebook page.
Twitter updates will also be available throughout the tournament, follow @ECCSports. To see highlights during the semifinal and final contests, follow @ECCSportsNet on Twitter. Tournament recaps, live stats, box scores, and all other pertinent tournament information will also be available on the tournament central page, which will be available on the ECC website later this week.
2023 East Coast Conference Women's Basketball Championship
First Round – Wednesday, March 1 at campus sites
5:30 p.m. - No. 5 Staten Island at No. 4 Dist. Columbia
7:00 p.m. - No. 6 Queens at No. 3 Mercy
Semifinals – Saturday, March 4 at Daemen
12:00 p.m. - CSI/UDC vs. No. 1 Daemen
3:00 p.m. - QC/MER vs. No. 2 St. Thomas Aquinas
Final – Sunday, March 5 at Daemen
12:00 p.m. - Semifinal winner vs. Semifinal winner
