Mariners making a splash

• For the second straight week, former New London forward Josh Maynard has been named the New England Collegiate Conference Rookie of the Week in men's basketball. Maynard averaged 6.7 points in three games last week. He is also Mariners' top 3-point shooter, converting 44 percent from beyond the arc. In 14 games, he's averaging 4.2 points. "Josh Maynard has been a nice addition," Mitchell coach Todd Peretz said,

Fifth-seeded Mitchell (12-12) visits No. 4 Becker College (15-10) in the first round of the NECC tournament tonight. The winner faces top-seeded Southern Vermont (22-3) in the semifinals on Friday. During the regular season, Mitchell won at home (86-83 in 2OT) and lost on the road (93-86).

• The women's basketball team takes a four-game winning streak into the conference tournament. The fourth-seeded Mariners (12-12) host No. 5 Wheelock (11-14) at 7 tonight at the Yarnall Athletic Center. Their last loss came against Wheelock, which posted a 55-41 victory on Feb. 11 in New London. Tonight's winner advances to play top-seeded Regis College (20-5) on Friday night. Junior forward Amanda Garcia leads the team in points (13.8) and rebounds (9.8) per game while sophomore Jessica Shepherd contributes 13 points per game.

Tracking the Bears

• Coast Guard Academy's Dani Knox and Jamie Waterman earned New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference academic all-conference team honors for women's basketball. Tyler Kotchman made the all-academic team for men's swimming and diving while the women's swimming and diving team placed eight student-athletes on the all-conference academic team: Elizabeth Furman, Caitlyn Gever, Carlie Gilligan, Abigail Isaacs, Rachel Seaman, Carolyn Slife, Kaitlyn Toth and Sidney Wagner.

• There isn't a more dangerous team in the NEWMAC women's basketball tournament field than the Bears, who've won a school-record 11 straight. Coast Guard (18-7), the third seed, will host sixth-seeded MIT (11-14) at 7 p.m. Wednesday. Meghan Fornaro (16.4 points) and Torie Sutherland (11.4) are the team's leading scorers. The teams last met in the regular-season finale on Saturday, with the Bears rallying from a 20-point deficit to claim a 58-55 victory. MIT is the last team to beat CGA, posting a 63-53 win on Jan. 17.

• The 400 freestyle relay team of Patti Eidenire, Jackie Kokomoor, Vicky Talens and Darlene Sao placed fourth in 3:33.92 at the NEWMAC Championships last weekend to help the Bears finish sixth. Kaitlyn Toth and Sao were fifth in the 200 butterfly (2:12.94) and 100 freestyle (53.43), respectively.

• Senior All-American Christian Brindamour earned co-swimmer of the year honors after winning the 50 and 100 freestyles at the NEWMAC meet. Brindamour also joined Brandon Ledford, Ben Morseth and Tim Dion on the third place 400 freestyle relay team (3:05.46). Morseth was fifth in the 200 backstroke (1:53.86).

Camel highlights

• The women's hockey team earned the highest seed in program history for the New England Small College Athletic Conference tournament. The No. 4 Camels (12-9-3) host No. 5 Bowdoin (10-9-5) in Saturday's quarterfinals at 7 p.m. at Dayton Arena. The teams split the regular season series, with Conn winning 2-1 and losing 4-1 on the weekend of Jan. 9-10. They reached the semifinals in their two previous conference tournament appearances.

Senior goalie Kelsie Fralick needs 22 saves to hit the 2,000 save milestone in her career. She owns a 1.96 goals against average. Sophomore forward Steph Izzi has a team-high 12 goals and leads the league with seven power play goals. Conn ranks first in the conference in power play percentage (20-for-90, or 22.2 percent) and second in penalty kills at 90.7 percent.

• Junior goalie Tim Conlin was named the NESCAC Player of the Week in men's hockey for the second time. Conlin stopped 60 of 62 shots and allowed just two goals in road wins over Bowdoin and Colby last week. Conlin owns a sparkling 2.23 goals against average in 22 starts this season.

"Tom Conlin's consistently strong play and leadership has given our team the confidence needed to have a strong finish to our regular season on a traditionally difficult road trip," said coach Jim Ward in a released statement.

Conn (13-9-2, 10-7-1) ended the regular season in third place, its highest finish in program history. The Camels will host its first NESCAC tournament game, taking on No. 6 Hamilton (9-9-4, 7-7-4) at 3 p.m. Saturday at Dayton Arena. Hamilton swept the regular season series, winning 3-1 and 4-2.

• The Camels captured two of three matches last weekend at the College Squash Association National Championship at Trinity College. The men's team finished 26th in the nation. They competed in the D Division for the Conroy Cup, beating Bucknell, 6-3, and Stanford, 5-4, before losing the final to Hamilton, 6-3.

Around the region

• The American Athletic Conference rewarded UConn's Daniel Hamilton for his productive week by selecting him as the league's rookie of the week for the third time this season. In two games, Hamilton averaged 16 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists. Sophomore teammate Amida Brimah made the weekly honor roll, averaging 19 points, 8.5 rebounds and 2.5 blocks while sinking 13 of 14 field goals in a loss at Memphis Thursday and a win against Tulane on Sunday.

• UConn junior Breanna Stewart was named the AAC Player of Whe week in women's basketball. She averaged 27 points, seven rebounds and 4.5 blocks while shooting 70.6 percent from the field in wins over Houston and Tulsa last week.

• Eastern Connecticut State University freshman Taylor Driggers, a Norwich Free Academy graduate, achieved All-New England status in two events Saturday at the New England Division III Indoor Track and Field Championship at Smith College. Driggers, who was named the Little East Rookie of the Week for the fifth time, placed third in the long jump at 17 feet, 9.75 inches and finished eighth in the triple jump at 36-3.5. She holds the school record in the long jump (18-1.75) while freshman Savonnah Artis of Waterford is the school record holder in the triple jump (37-0.25).

In the men's championship, ECSU junior Lee Cattanach of New London placed second in the 800 meters in a program-record time of 1:54.84 to earn All-New England honors. He trailed winner Kevin Desmond of the University of Southern Maine by just .64 seconds.

• Bryn Mawr College junior Marissa Mirecki, an East Lyme graduate, ran a 60-meter time of 11.19 seconds and took eighth at the Keough Invite at Haverford (Pa.) College last week, qualifying for the conference championship meet.

- Gavin Keefe