HACKENSACK, N.J. – #1 FDU women's basketball (24-7, 14-2 NEC) fell to #2 Sacred Heart University (18-13, 12-4 NEC) in the Northeast Conference Championship Final Sunday afternoon.
 
Sacred Heart claims its first NEC Championship since 2011-12.
 
The Pioneers took a four-point lead 3:36 into the game on a jumper before the Knights held them scoreless for the next three minutes. During the stretch, FDU pulled in front 10-8 on a pair of Ella Fajardo free throws and a Chloe Wilson layup. Sacred Heart finished the period on a 13-4 spurt, taking a 21-14 advantage into the second quarter.
 
Fajardo drained a three-pointer opening the second, but Sacred Heart countered with five consecutive markers to open up a nine-point lead. A 7-1 FDU rally trimmed the gap to three at 32-29, but Ny'Ceara Pryor's jumper with three seconds remaining in the second stanza sent Sacred Heart into the locker room with a 40-35 edge.
 
Sacred Heart shot a blistering 64.3% (18-of-28) from the floor in the first 20 minutes and held FDU to 13-of-34 (38.2%).
 
The Burgundy and Blue fought back in the third quarter, getting the score to within one with 5:18 left on a Sierra DeAngelo layup. Dahomee Forgues rattled home a three-pointer with 3:23 left, tying the game at 46, and the senior gave FDU their first lead since 10-8 with a three-pointer to make it 49-46. FDU forced Sacred Heart into 12 missed shots in the third, limiting them to 4-of-16 shooting.
 
A 5-0 run by the Knights turned a two-point deficit into a three-point lead early in the fourth before Olivia Tucker's jumper at the 3:17 mark sent Sacred Heart back in front 57-56. The Tucker bucket kick-started a game-changing 10-0 run for the Pioneers, breaking the game open. Sacred Heart outscored FDU 17-4 over the last 3:17 to claim the win.
 
Wilson led FDU with 19 points and seven rebounds as DeAngelo poured in 15. Fajardo came off the bench to score 11 markers in the setback. Pryor led all scorers with a double-double of 20 points and 11 rebounds as Tucker added 16.