Highlights (courtesy Pack Network)

WALTHAM, Mass. – Sophomore forward Lauren Battista (North Easton/Oliver Ames HS), a repeat selection as tournament MVP, filled the stat sheet with 20 points, five rebounds, four steals and two blocks as top-seeded Bentley University captured its second straight Northeast-10 Conference women's basketball championship in convincing fashion, 79-52 over Southern Connecticut State University Sunday afternoon at the Dana Center.

Bentley scored the game's first ten points, had another 10-0 run midway through the first half and closed the opening half with a 13-0 blitzing to open a commanding 50-28 lead and never let up in the second half.

The championship was the 16th for Bentley in the conference's 31-year history and gave the Falcons the NE-10's automatic berth to next weekend's NCAA Division II East Regional. Bentley, ranked sixth in Division II, stretched its winning streak to 10 while improving to 27-3 overall.  Southern Connecticut, the 18th-ranked club nationally, dropped to 24-5 following just its second loss since Dec. 1.

Defense was the key to the victory for the Falcons, who came up with 16 steals and forced 28 turnovers.  Five of those came in the first three-and-a-half minutes before Southern scored its first points of the game. Nineteen of Bentley's 27 points off turnovers came during the opening half.

Bentley, whose only home loss of the season was against Southern five weeks ago, vaulted out of the gate with ten straight points, beginning with a three from the left wing by junior guard and All-Tournament Team selection Courtney Finn (Winthrop/Winthrop HS).

Senior guard Katherine Goodwin (Goffstown, N.H./Governors Academy) followed with a three-point play, Battista finished a fast-break with a lay-up and Goodwin sank a pair from the charity stripe.

Following Southern's first points of the game, a three-ball with 16:34 left, Finn and Goodwin connected from downtown, making it a 16-3 game with little more than four minutes having elapsed.

The Owls came alive after that, closing to within four at 19-15 after seven minutes. Bentley responded by putting up the next ten points, a run that produced a 29-15 lead with 8:20 remaining. At that juncture, the Falcons were shooting a blistering 67 percent from the floor.

That second run began with a driving lay-up by Finn.  Battista scored the next four, sophomore guard Christiana Bakolas (Manchester, N.H./Central HS) made a pair from the line, and junior guard Kelsey Roberson (Arlington/Arlington Catholic HS) capped it with a lay-up.

Any hopes the Owls had of a second-half comeback with essentially eliminated when the Falcons finished the opening stanza with 13 in a row over the final 3:17, turning a nine-point game into a 50-28 rout. Sophomore forward Jacqui Brugliera (Fitchburg/Wachusett Reg. HS) had six of the 13,Battista had four and senior guard Meghan Thomann (Andover/Andover HS) buried a triple.

During that opening half, Bentley outshot the Owls 55-41 percent and came up with ten steals, including three by Battista.

The lead remained at least 22 throughout the second half, hit 30 points several times, and peaked at 32 with 1:30 left on the clock.

Finn followed Battista on the scoring list, finishing with 16 points, along with five rebounds, three assists and three steals. She made her first six shots of the game and had 14 in the first 16 minutes.

Brugliera and Goodwin also scored in doubles, finishing with 12 apiece. Brugliera came within a rebound of a double-double and also had three steals, and Goodwin's stat line included six rebounds and three assists. Bakolas only had four points, but helped out with five assists, four rebounds and two takeaways.

Senior guard Sylvonya Moore (Stockton, Calif.) led Southern with 17 points, and sophomore post Moni Smith-Ocran (Bronx, N.Y.) followed with 10 points and seven boards. Both earned All-Tourney honors, as did Jewel White of Franklin Pierce.

Overall, Bentley outshot the Owls 45-36 percent, made twice as many threes (6-3) and had a huge edge at the line. The Falcons were 19 of 22 while Southern attempted just nine, making seven.

Southern entered the game ranked seventh in Division II in turnover margin, but Bentley finished the game a plus-eight in that category with the team's 16 steals one shy of its season-best. The Falcons also had the edge on the boards, 39-34 with 15 second-chance points.

Bentley is expected to be named the host for next weekend's NCAA regional tournament, with the announcement slated for 10 pm tonight on www.NCAA.com.