THE FINAL CHAPTER: The 2010 Seven Sisters Basketball Classic concluded with three more games today at the Mildred S. Howard Gymnasium. Wellesley College closed out its perfect weekend with a 61-47 win over Agnes Scott College. After Smith College topped Bryn Mawr College 69-30, host Mount Holyoke College closed out the weekend with a 54-51 victory over Vassar College. For more information, download the Seven Sisters Classic Program.
TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE:
Saturday, November 20
11:00 a.m. - Agnes Scott def. Mount Holyoke, 62-60 (Boxscore | Recap)
1:00 p.m. - Wellesley def. Bryn Mawr, 75-35 (Boxscore | Recap)
3:00 p.m. - Vassar def. Smith, 67-58 (Boxscore | Recap)
Sunday, November 21
10:00 a.m. - Wellesley def. Agnes Scott, 61-47 (Boxscore | Recap)
12:00 p.m. - Smith 69 def. Bryn Mawr 30 (Boxscore | Recap)
2:00 p.m. - Mount Holyoke def. Vassar, 54-51 (Boxscore | Recap)
ALL-CLASSIC TEAM
Devon Quattrochi, Smith College
Sydney Parkmond, Smith College
Brittany Parks, Vassar College
Cindy Matsuoka, Vassar College
Lindsey Darvin, Bryn Mawr College
Nicolette Parmese, Bryn Mawr College
Becca Kimball, Wellesley College
Leslie Leong, Wellesley College
Lexi Pulice-Farrow, Agnes Scott College
Genefine Sapateh, Agnes Scott College
Angelica Pascual, Mount Holyoke
Tricia Chase, Mount Holyoke College
SEVEN SISTERS HISTORY: In November 1980, Barnard hosted Bryn Mawr, New Rochelle and Vassar in a four team basketball tournament, won by New Rochelle. Following the tournament, the original Seven Sisters institutions - Barnard, Bryn Mawr, Mount Holyoke, Radcliffe, Smith, Vassar and Wellesley - joined to conduct championships in common sports. Radcliffe (now Harvard in the athletic arena) was invited but opted not to join, and Barnard (now competing as Columbia) was unable participate in all championships.
Without Radcliffe and Barnard, only five of the original Seven Sisters remained. Haverford and Swarthmore were invited to join the championships as cousins, and depending on the tournament, several other schools have been invited to compete, including Agnes Scott, Haverford, Swarthmore, Simmons and Elms.
The Seven Sisters Basketball Championship was held annually from 1981-2006. Over that span, Smith took home 11 titles, and Mount Holyoke prevailed six times. The Lyons came out on top in each of the final five championships from 2002-06 before the event shifted to a classic format in which teams would gather every other season.
This weekend marked the end of an era, as teams competed in the tournament for the final time. After nearly 30 years, a Seven Sisters event will no longer take place in the sport of basketball. The tradition will go one though, as teams will continue to compete for titles in the sports of crew, cross country, squash, swimming and diving and tennis.
Athletic Directors Laurie Priest (Mount Holyoke), Lynn Oberbillig (Smith) and Bridget Belgiovine (Wellesley) presented a history of women's basketball at this year's banquet (left). The trio sported replica uniforms worn by players in the late 1800's, when the sport became popular for women.
