PROVIDENCE, R.I (March 1, 2026) – The No. 3-seeded Western New England women's basketball team fell in the Conference of New England Championship Game to top-seeded Johnson & Wales University, falling 77-66, seeing the 2025-26 season come to an end. 

Records:

• No. 3 Western New England: 20-8
• No. 1 Johnson & Wales University: 23-4

How it Happened:

First Quarter:

• Erin Reen got the Golden Bears rolling, driving to the rim to score a bucket on the first offensive possession of the game to give the Golden Bears a lead to begin the game. JWU's offensive leader, Grace Jaffray, came to play, scoring nearly all of JWU's points in the opening quarter. Western New England hung around early, as Sophie Hedge tied the game at six before Jaffray began breaking JWU away, scoring a layup and a foul shot, giving the Wildcats an 11-6 lead with 4:16 to play. 
• Reen and Hannah Blake got the Golden Bears back within one, while Sarah West connected on a layup that saw WNE lead by one, 12-11. Jaffray responded by connecting on a triple with 2:52 remaining, which were the final points of the quarter for either team, seeing the Wildcats lead 14-12 after the opening ten minutes. 
• Western New England was 0/4 from the outside, shooting 5/13 overall in the quarter. JWU made just four field goals, three from Jaffray, going 3/6 from deep and 3/3 from the free throw line. 

Second Quarter:

• Lottia Barnes tied the game at 14 on the opening possession of the quarter before Jaffray had four quick points to give JWU the lead back. The Golden Bears remained close with Perry Blasetti getting involved in the action with a jumper with 6:46 left, seeing the Wildcats' lead sink to two. 
• Jaffray then picked up five in a row for Johnson & Wales, increasing the Wildcats' lead to seven. Sophie Hedge and Blasetti picked up a pair of buckets to pull the Golden Bears back within three. WNE was behind by three in the final minute of the half, but Jaffray struck for four points in the final 32 seconds, seeing JWU take a 32-25 halftime lead. 
• Western New England began the game 0/8 from beyond the arc, but made six field goals in the quarter. Jaffray and the Wildcats hit seven field goals in the quarter, shooting 54% overall from the field. 

Third Quarter:

• In what was WNE's best quarter of the game, Erin Reen got to the line and dropped a pair of free throws to begin the quarter. Perry Blasetti drove to the rim and picked up a pair of layups on back-to-back possessions, shaving JWU's lead to three with 6:30 remaining in the quarter. Blasetti scored six straight for WNE in the quarter overall. 
• A run by the Wildcats saw Tahlia Pena, Mya Jimenez, and Brianne Foley connected from the field to give Johnson & Wales a 42-33 lead. Western New England battled back with the next eight to get within one with 1:29 remaining, as Blake, Blasetti, and Reen all helped WNE on the run.  Late free throws from Grace Jaffray in the quarter gave the Wildcats a 47-43 lead with ten minutes remaining to crown a champion. 
• Western New England had nine points from the free throw line in the quarter, hitting four field goals. JWU missed all four triples and shot just 30% from the field to allow WNE back into the game in the frame.

Fourth Quarter:

• The Wildcats used momentum from the late free throws to end the third quarter and opened the fourth quarter on a 7-0 run, with Brianne Foley knocking down a triple to give the Wildcats a 54-43 lead. Western New England couldn't recover, seeing JWU's lead extend to as many as 15 in the quarter at the midway point. 
• Back-to-back triples from Sophie Hedge gave the Golden Bears some life with just over three minutes left, trailing 64-55, but Johnson & Wales hit free throws in crunch time to put the game on ice. 
• Olivia Chrzan hit a layup with just 21 seconds left to bring the Golden Bears within eight, but there would not be enough time to allow Western New England to mount a comeback, seeing WNE fall by a final score of 77-66. 

Inside the Lines:

• Three Golden Bears finished the game in double figures, with Perry Blasetti leading the way with 16 points on 7/13 shooting, grabbing eight rebounds and an assist in the game. 
• Sophie Hedge connected on three of her five triples, going for 15 points, six rebounds, and two steals for WNE. 
• Erin Reen dropped a career-high 13 points in her final game in Blue and Gold, going a perfect 8/8 from the free throw line. Reen also had eight assists and a pair of steals. 
• Western New England shot 38% from the field, making four triples. Johnson & Wales shot 46% from the field, making seven triples. 
• Grace Jaffray led JWU with 30 points on 10/16 shooting, going 4/6 from the outside and 6/8 at the free throw line. The sophomore also had four steals, an assist, and a block in the win for the Wildcats. 
• JWU sweeps Western New England this season, with Jaffray scoring 83 points against the Golden Bears this season. 
• The Golden Bears will look ahead to the 2026-27 season on the horizon.