Indianapolis - Two teams from the East Coast Conference, Daemen and St. Thomas Aquinas, saw their names included in the bracket of the NCAA Division II Women’s Basketball Championship released on Sunday evening.
Daemen repeated as ECC Champions on Sunday afternoon to earn the conference’s automatic bid into the tournament. The Wildcats, who are heading to their fourth straight NCAA Championship, were awarded the No. 6 seed in the East Region bracket.
The Wildcats will take on No. 3 Jefferson in the NCAA Championship for the second straight year. In the program’s first-ever matchup, Daemen topped the Rams, 70-52, in last year’s East Region semifinals.
St. Thomas Aquinas, who fell to Daemen in the final of the ECC Championship, earn an at-large bid and the No. 7 seed. This is the Spartans’ fourth NCAA Championship appearance and first since 2019.
No. 2 Southern New Hampshire will be the Spartans’ first round opponent. The Penmen hold a 2-1 edge in the all-time series between the two schools, including a 71-65 win at St. Thomas Aquinas earlier this season.
The remaining teams in the East Region bracket include No. 1 Assumption, No. 4 Le Moyne, No. 5 Bentley, and No. 8 Dominican.
Daemen holds a 3-1 record over fellow regional participants with a win over Le Moyne and a 2-1 record against St. Thomas Aquinas.
St. Thomas Aquinas went 3-3 against other teams in the bracket with wins over Dominican and Jefferson, and the aforementioned results against Southern New Hampshire and Daemen.
Tournament play will begin at Laska Gymnasium on Assumption’s campus in Worcester, Massachusetts with quarterfinal action on Friday, March 10. The semifinals will take place Saturday, March 11 and after a day off, the championship game will be on Monday, March 13.
To view the full 64 team bracket, click here.
2023 NCAA Division II Women's Basketball East Regional
Quarterfinals - Friday, March 10
No. 1 Assumption (24-5) vs. No. 8 Dominican (21-10)
No. 2 Southern New Hampshire (21-7) vs. No. 7 St. Thomas Aquinas (21-8)
No. 3 Jefferson (26-4) vs. No. 6 Daemen (20-4)
No. 4 Le Moyne (21-6) vs. No. 5 Bentley (21-9)
Semifinals – Saturday, March 11
No. 3-No. 6 winner vs. No. 2-No. 7 winner
No. 1-No. 8 winner vs. No. 4-No. 5 winner
Championship – Monday, March 13
