STANDISH, Maine – #1 Emmanuel College (21-7) held off #2 Saint Joseph's College (17-11), 73-64, in the 2026 Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Women's Basketball Championship on Sunday afternoon.
PLAYOFF IMPLICATIONS:
With the victory, Emmanuel College claims the GNAC title and earns the conference's automatic berth into the NCAA Division III Women's Basketball Championship. For Saint Joseph's, the loss closes out a strong postseason run that included home wins over University of Saint Joseph and Albertus Magnus College to reach the championship game.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
Emmanuel seized control early, scoring the game's first eight points and building a 22-12 lead by the end of the first quarter. Saint Joseph's struggled to find an offensive rhythm in the opening half, shooting just 2-for-18 in the first quarter and 3-for-14 in the second, as the Saints extended the margin to 37-20 at halftime.
The Monks came out with much better energy in the third quarter. Senior guard Logan Brown (Brunswick, Maine) fueled the comeback effort with three straight three-pointers, junior guard Abby Dube (Groveland, Mass.) added another triple, and Saint Joseph's cut the deficit to 10 points (44-34) midway through the frame. Emmanuel answered quickly, however, as Shea Canavan knocked down four three-pointers in the quarter to help the Saints take a 57-42 lead into the fourth.
Saint Joseph's made another push early in the final period and pulled within 57-49 on a Layla Facchiano three-pointer with 7:03 remaining. Emmanuel then settled in at the free-throw line and rebuilt separation late. The Monks connected on late threes and continued to battle but could not trim the deficit below eight in the closing minute.
STATS OF THE GAME:
Saint Joseph's shot 32.8% (20-for-61) from the field and scored 44 second-half points after being limited to 20 before intermission. Emmanuel shot 43.8% (28-for-64), including timely perimeter shooting during each SJC rally.
The Saints held advantages in points in the paint (28-20), fast-break points (16-4), bench scoring (26-10), and points off turnovers (18-11), while capitalizing on 19 Saint Joseph's turnovers.
LEADERS:
Saint Joseph's:
- Logan Brown scored a game-high 20 points and went 6-for-11 from three-point range.
- Madison Lebel (Sr., Hermon, Maine) recorded 14 points and a game-high 18 rebounds.
- Abby Dube added 8 points.
- Layla Facchiano (Fr., Auburn, Maine) chipped in 7 points off the bench.
Emmanuel:
- Shea Canavan scored 20 points off the bench on 8-for-11 shooting, including 4-for-6 from three.
- Lia Krumian tallied 14 points and went 8-for-8 at the free-throw line.
- Megan Reilly posted 10 points and 14 rebounds.
