Conference Predictions Day 10: The Conference of New England
Today brings us back to the Northeast, to the Conference of New England. If that sounds new, it’s because it is. Most in the Division III world know this league as the Commonwealth Coast Conference, its name since its founding in 1984. But over the summer, the conference announced a rebrand, and will be known as the Conference of New England (CNE) moving into the future.
So, what does the women’s basketball landscape look like in the CNE in 2024? Very competitive. It’s still likely to be a one-bid league unless a couple teams really surprise us, but in terms of parity, there are at least three teams that I expect to be contending for the conference title by the end of the year. Keep in mind that this was the same league in which four teams finished 12-4 or better in conference play last winter, with a tie for first place between Western New England and the University of New England. And the championship game in the CCC Tournament certainly lived up to the hype after that entertaining regular season, as WNE defeated UNE, 50-49, with an auto bid to the NCAA Tournament on the line.
Because of that competitiveness, this league stands out for me when looking at Region 2. Scott Peterson’s preseason model currently has WNE, Endicott, Roger Williams, and Suffolk in the Top 125, with UNE a good ways back from that quartet at 203. The gap between the top half of the league and the bottom half should be fairly wide again this season. But without further ado, let’s get to the predictions!
Pick to Win: Western New England
WNE is the defending league champ, and brings back a solid returning group that helped lead the Golden Bears in last season’s success. Having been in the conference title race before and played in high-pressure regular season and postseason games, this is a team that knows how to navigate what can be a long season, especially in a deep league. Three of WNE’s four players who started 20 or more games last season are back, and all three—Shaina Cooney, Lilly Hedge, and Emma Kahn—will be seniors. Hedge and Cooney are both forwards, while Kahn is a versatile 5-11 guard who can score from anywhere on the court.
Bringing back those three in particular is huge in WNE’s effort to repeat as league champs. Hedge was the only player on the roster to start in all 28 contests in 2023-24, and is one of the most efficient shooters in the league. The Guilford, Connecticut native shot exactly 50% from the field last season (88-of-176) and had several games in which she shot 60% or better. That included the two CCC Tournament contests, in which she shot 6-of-8 against Suffolk and 5-of-8 against UNE, tallying 27 points en route to WNE’s first conference title since 2018-19.
Cooney returns after leading WNE in scoring and rebounding last season at 11.9 PPG and 7.3 RPG. She also shot over 50% (50.2%) from the field. Kahn led WNE in 3-pointers made (28), and did a little bit of everything, averaging 6.3 PPG, 3.2 RPG, 1.0 APG, along with 18 total steals.
But WNE’s rotation goes beyond the three returning starters. Emma Novajasky, who will also be a senior, appeared in all 28 games and started 8 last season, with 6.1 PPG in just 16.7 min/game. Sophomore guard Sophie Hedge, Lilly’s younger sister, saw action in just 8.9 min/game last year but could see a more expanded role in the backcourt after scoring 55 total points and tallying 15 steals. Erin Reed is another guard who came off the bench frequently last season and should be more of a factor for the Golden Bears in 2024-25.
The thing I like most about WNE is something that was shown in the CCC All-Conference honors at the end of last season. Nobody on WNE’s roster, despite the 22-6 record and tournament title, earned First Team honors. Cooney was the only WNE representative on the Second Team. Yet, WNE was consistently one of the league’s best teams throughout last season. How? The style of play. WNE plays such team-oriented basketball that is makes for a tough matchup on both ends of the floor. Seven players averaged above 6.0 PPG, and there were also seven who tallied at least 15 steals over the course of the season. The balance may not garner conference-wide awards because the individual stat totals tend to be a little lower. But hoisting the conference trophy seems to more than make up for that.
Preseason Offensive Player of the Year: Sarah Dempsey, Endicott: The Gulls may have gone just 9-7 in league play last season, but the pieces are there for significant improvement in 2024-25, led by Dempsey. The senior forward started all 25 games for Endicott last season, averaging 19.8 PPG, a big jump from the 13.8 PPG she averaged as a sophomore. She shot 51.3% from the field last season and also dished out 1.2 assists/game.
Preseason Defensive Player of the Year: Abrianna Vazquez, Nichols: Nichols plays a very up-tempo style, which results in quite a few steals and opportunities for forced turnovers. Vazquez took charge defensively again last season, with 4.2 steals/game (104 total steals), a mark that ranked fifth in the country. Nichols’ defense needs to improve if the Bison are going to improve on the 12-14 record, and Vazquez will be a centerpiece of that.
Picks so far → AMCC: PSU Behrend, A-R-C: Wartburg, ASC: ETBU, AEC: Marymount, Centennial: Johns Hopkins, CUNYAC: Baruch, C2C: Christopher Newport, CCIW: Illinois Wesleyan, CCS: LaGrange, CNE: Western New England
Up next: MAC Commonwealth