MANSFIELD, Mass. – The New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) announced its 2019-20 Women's Basketball All-Conference teams and major award winners on Tuesday morning. The awards were voted on by the conference's eight coaches following the conclusion of the regular season. Six conference schools are represented on the all-conference teams, while all eight placed a student-athlete on the Del Malloy Sportsmanship Team. Eastern Nazarene College led the way with three of the four major awards, as well as three all-conference honorees.
Eastern Nazarene sophomore guard Stevie Orton (Gilford, N.H.) was voted the 2019-20 NECC Player of the Year, while her teammate Jenn Burnham (West Valley City, Utah) earned Defensive Player of the Year honors. Becker freshman forward Natasha Pacheco (Fairfax, Va.) was named Rookie of the Year. Eastern Nazarene head coach Sacha Santimano was voted Coach of the Year by her peers.
Dakota Jones was named to the Second Team All-NECC after leading the conference in both points per game and rebounds per game. Jones averaged 22.8 points per game and 16.1 rebounds per game in her senior season. She also ranked sixth in the NECC in shooting percentage at 45.5%. Jones averaged 39.2 minutes per game and reached career highs in shots per game and free throw attempts per game.
The Lynx were also represented by Skylar Moore on the Del Malloy Sportsmanship Team.
First Team All-NECC
Makayla Rudder, Dean (So., G/F, Springfield, Mass.)
Kyra Fleharty, Eastern Nazarene (Sr., F, Lewistown, Mont.)
Stevie Orton, Eastern Nazarene (So., G, Gilford, N.H.)
Amina Wiley, Mitchell (So., F, New Rochelle, N.Y.)
Rene Hudson, New England Col. (Sr., G, Gallatin, Tenn.)
Second Team All-NECC
Cassidy Harrison, Becker (Sr., G, Foxborough, Mass.)
Natasha Pacheco, Becker (Fr., F, Fairfax, Va.)
Jenn Burnham, Eastern Nazarene (Sr., G, West Valley City, Utah)
Dakota Jones, Lesley (Sr., F, Torrance, Calif.)
Kelsey Hernandez, Mitchell (Sr., G, New Britain, Conn.)
Del Malloy Sportsmanship Team
Ashley Alcantara, Bay Path (Fr., F, Lowell, Mass.)
Sarah Ware, Becker (Sr., F, Oakham, Mass.)
Taishe Alexandre, Dean (Sr., G, Quincy, Mass.)
Seniesha Sekaquaptewa, Eastern Nazarene (Jr., G, Second Mesa, Ariz.)
Rachel Granger, Elms (Sr., G, Hampden, Mass.)
Skylar Moore, Lesley (So., G, Chelsea, Mass.)
Leilani McClellan, Mitchell (So., G, Bozrah, Conn.)
Haleigh Martin, New England College (Sr., G, Bergenfield, N.J.)
ABOUT THE NECC
The NECC began competition in the 2008-09 academic year and current member institutions compete across 15 sports. The NECC membership focuses on providing athletic competition among institutions that share similar academic aspirations and are committed to the importance of the total educational experience for students engaged in sports. Current members include Bay Path University, Becker College, Dean College, Eastern Nazarene College, Elms College, Lesley University, Mitchell College and New England College.