SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (January 7, 2026) – Western New England junior Sophie Hedge was named to the New England Women's Basketball Association First Team of the Week on Tuesday afternoon following her performance at Gordon College to ring in the New Year. 

Hedge dropped 22 points for Western New England, leading the Golden Bears to a triumph on the road last Saturday afternoon. Hedge shot 8/17 from the floor, going 4/7 from the outside, and added 11 rebounds for her third double-double of the season. Additionally, Hedge recorded three assists and three steals in the win over the Fighting Scots. 

Though not counting towards this week's NEWBA honor, Hedge set a new career-high, scoring 33 points in Tuesday night's 76-60 victory over Endicott College, shooting 13/20 from the field, hitting another four triples for the Golden Bears while also hauling in eight rebounds and picking up three steals. The 33 points marked the highest single-game scoring total by a Golden Bear in WNE women's basketball program history since 2018. 

The Guilford, Connecticut, native is averaging 16.3 points per game this season, shooting at a 43.1% clip and hitting 38% of shots from the outside. Hedge has 93 rebounds this season, 7.8 per game, and has picked up 12 steals on the year, including six over her last two games. 

Western New England women's basketball will look to continue its winning ways in Conference of New England action on Saturday afternoon when it hosts the University of New England at 1:00 PM.