Cobleskill, NY: The SUNY Cobleskill women's basketball team made history, securing its first-ever North Atlantic Conference (NAC) Championship with a hard-fought 55-53 victory over Maine Maritime Academy. With the win, the Fighting Tigers clinched their first NCAA Division III Tournament berth, capping off a remarkable season with a conference title.

NAC Tournament MVP Taylor Meacham (Berne, NY/Berne-Knox-Westerlo) led the charge with a season-high 24 points, six rebounds, a steal, and an assist, shooting an efficient 62.5 percent from the field (10-16). Senior Antonia May (Amsterdam, NY) stepped up with clutch shot-making, finishing with 12 points, eight rebounds, two assists, two blocks, and a steal, while Cara Walker (Phelps, NY/Midlakes) contributed 11 points, seven boards, three assists, two blocks, and a steal. Maine Maritime keyed in on Logan Thayne (Hoosick Falls, NY), who battled foul trouble but still made her presence felt with eight rebounds, four points, and two blocks. Off the bench, Kayleigh Bryant (Schenevus, NY) gave Cobleskill a defensive spark with three steals and four rebounds.

Both defenses set the tone in a bruising championship bout. Cobleskill's defensive rotations and relentless pressure held Maine Maritime to 33.3 percent shooting from the field, while the Mariners' defensive intensity limited Cobleskill to 31.7 percent. The Tigers clamped down on the perimeter, forcing Maine Maritime into 27.3 percent shooting from three, while the Mariners stifled Cobleskill's outside game, holding them to just 13.6 percent from beyond the arc. Despite Maine Maritime's near-perfect free-throw shooting (90.0%), Cobleskill controlled the paint, outscoring the Mariners 30-20 inside. The Tigers also held a 42-38 rebounding edge, capitalizing with 13 second-chance points to Maine's nine. With just four ties and six lead changes, every possession was critical in a back-and-forth defensive struggle.

Meacham and Kyra Pence (Randolph, NY) set the tone early, giving Cobleskill a quick 4-0 lead. The Mariners responded, and the teams' traded blows throughout the first quarter, with a Walker layup tying the game at 12 heading into the second. The Tigers clawed their way to a 19-14 advantage after Meacham converted an and-one, but Maine Maritime countered with a 9-0 run to reclaim the lead at 25-22. Thayne's smooth turnaround jumper ended the run, but the Mariners carried a 27-24 lead into halftime.

Maine Maritime extended its lead to 31-28 early in the third before Meacham sparked a Cobleskill surge. A layup by the senior brought the Tigers within one at 33-32, but Maine responded, pushing the margin to 42-36. Refusing to back down, Cobleskill roared back with a 9-0 run in the final two minutes of the quarter, fueled by Meacham's relentless attacking. Her six straight points powered the Tigers to a 45-42 lead heading into the fourth.

Riding their momentum, Cobleskill opened the final quarter with back-to-back buckets from May and Meacham to stretch their lead to 51-43. Maine Maritime, the defending NAC champions, wouldn't go quietly, trimming the deficit to 51-48 with 4:38 to play. That's when Walker delivered in the clutch, draining a cold-blooded three off a feed from Pence to push the lead back to six. The Mariners made one final push, closing within two at 55-53 with 34 seconds left. But when it mattered most, Thayne secured the game-winning offensive rebound, sealing the Tigers' first NAC title in program history.

Antonia May and Cara Walker were both named to the NAC All-Tournament Team.

The Tigers will learn their NCAA Tournament opponent on Monday, March 3, during the Division III selection show which will air at 2:30 p.m. on the NCAA website.