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Women's Basketball 2024-25 Season In-Review: Lesley Completes Historic Turnaround Season

Women's Basketball 2024-25 Season In-Review: Lesley Completes Historic Turnaround Season
Posted: Mar 13, 2025

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. --- The 2024-2025 Lesley Women's Basketball team made history on and off the court. The team's North Atlantic Conference (NAC) playoff appearance and subsequent run to the NAC Semifinals were each the first in program history. The squad's 11 wins were the most since the 2010-2011 season, and they met all of Lesley's #321LU academic, athletic, and community goals.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

Signs of the program's turnaround emerged in the offseason as the Lynx added 10 new student-athletes during the 2024 offseason. Five newcomers were transfers, and five first-years also joined the team.

The 2024-2025 season began with a strong start. The Lynx went 2-0 in their opening weekend with double-digit victories over SUNY Purchase (58-42) and Vermont State-Randolph (67-56) and held a 4-2 record in late November. After a five-game losing streak threatened to dampen the season, the team regrouped and won consecutive conference games for the first time since 2019 (February 1 vs. VTSU Johnson and February 7 vs. SUNY Delhi).

Even during their brief slump, the Lynx showed progress, becoming the first team in the NAC to win a quarter against two-time defending conference champions Maine Maritime, outscoring the Mariners 14-10 to enter halftime down by single-digits (35-27) before falling 76-58. Later in the year, the team's 61-32 victory over SUNY Delhi displayed the team's trademark stifling defense. With that victory, the Lynx clinched their first-ever NAC playoff berth.

Entering the NAC Postseason Tournament as the No.3 seed in the West Division, Lesley was slotted against conference power No.2 seed VTSU-Lyndon in the NAC Quarterfinals. Although VTSU-Lyndon had postseason experience, including a track record of 10+ wins in each of the last six seasons and topping the Lynx by 20 points three weeks prior (71-51 on January 31, 2025), Lesley pulled off the playoff upset. Leading wire-to-wire, the Lynx topped the Hornets 62-58. The team's season ended with a loss in the NAC Semifinals to No. 1 seed SUNY Cobleskill. SUNY Cobleskill ultimately won the 2024-2025 NAC WBB Championship topping Maine Maritime. 

INSIDE THE NUMBERS:

  • Lesley won more games (11) in the 2024-2025 season than in the previous six seasons combined (10).
  • Those 11 wins represent both the largest single-season turnaround in program history and one of the biggest improvements in all of NCAA Women's Basketball at any level in 2024-2025 (1-23 in the previous season).
  • Defeating Vermont State-Lyndon in the playoffs marked multiple firsts. It was the program's first NAC playoff victory, first win against Vermont State-Lyndon (previously 0-8), and first postseason victory as the lower seed.
  • The 81-34 victory over Fisher College on Lesley's Senior Day was the largest program margin of victory since the 2018-2019 season.
  • The Lynx went 4-2 in games played in New York and 5-3 overall against New York-based schools.
  • The Lynx ranked third in the NAC in overall team defense behind only NAC Champions SUNY Cobleskill and NAC East Division Champions Maine Maritime.
  • The Lynx also finished second in the NAC in steals (265) and third in blocked shots (79).
  • Despite being picked to finish fifth in the NAC West Division in the preseason coaches poll, the team defied expectations by finishing third in the regular season and ended up as the NAC West Division Runner-Up.
  • The NAC named Lynx players to the All-Conference Third-Team, All-Tournament Team (Bella Terry (El Cajon, Calif.)), and Sportsmanship Team (Alawnuh Dunda (Fort Ann, N.Y.)). 
  • Only two of the team's student-athletes averaged 10+ points per game (Terry and Ahidali DeHuelbes (Tucson, Ariz.)), with no Lynx averaging more than 13 in the regular season, and no student-athlete led the conference in any major statistical category.
  • Eleven student-athletes averaged double-digit minutes per game.
  • Terry finished the season with 14 double-doubles, the 12th most in the NCAA.
  • Guard Leila Chisholm (Santa Barbara, Calif.) averaged 9.5 points per game and was second in the NAC with 2.7 steals per game.
  • DeHuelbes led the team in three-point shooting, making 35 triples at a 30% clip.
  • Guard Madalynn Biagi (Yuba, Calif.) was the top facilitator for the Lynx this season, completing her year with 3.8 assists per game and a positive (1.01) assist-to-turnover ratio.
  • No student-athlete or coach received a technical foul in any of the team's 27 games.
  • Lesley earned national attention, with mentions on the official NCAA Instagram page, the Boston Globe, CNN, the Associated Press, and Saturday Night Live.
  • The Lynx accomplished their success under a new coaching staff. Head Coach Martin Rather was in his first full season as Head Coach (previously was the Interim Head Coach in 2023-2024) and Assistant Coaches Annika Brooks and Alexandra Kerley were each in their first season of collegiate coaching.
  • The team met the #321LU goals of the Lesley Athletics Department as the team earned a 3.0+ overall GPA, finished in the top two of the NAC West Division, and contributed to a One Lesley culture.

UP NEXT:

The Lynx look to build on their success in the 2025-2026 season and beyond!