CALDWELL, N.J. (March 8, 2026) – A successful midrange jump shot by Deviney Jackson with 0:00.3 remaining in the first overtime period lifted No. 2 seed Felician University to a 65-63 victory over No. 1 seed Holy Family University in the championship game of the 2025-26 Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference Women’s Basketball Championship tournament on Sunday afternoon. Caldwell University hosted the contest at the George R. Newman Center.
Final tournament information is available at the CACC Championship Central web page at https://caccathletics.org/tournaments/?id=28.
Felician (24-7) claims its first CACC Championship in the sport, denying 2024-25 champion Holy Family in its bid for a repeat. The Golden Falcons earn the conference’s automatic berth into the NCAA Division II East Regional Championship.
Felician trailed, 40-30, with 6:54 remaining in the third quarter, but closed the gap to 44-43 by period’s end. The teams remained within four points of each other throughout the fourth. Felician scored the final four points of regulation, with both teams gaining defensive stops in the final 30 seconds.
Jackson scored all five Golden Falcon points in the extra session. After two free throws by HFU’s Kaelah Carter knotted the score at 63-63 with four seconds left, Felician called timeout, advanced the ball, and inbounded to Jackson, who freed herself for the game winner from straight on and just beyond the foul line.
Karla Barreno and Ane Valle scored 18 points each for Felician and Stephanie Formby finished with 15 points and nine rebounds. Formby was named the tournament’s most valuable player after averaging 19.0 points, 8.0 rebounds, and 2.7 assists in her three games. Carter led Holy Family with 16 points and teammate Taylor Hinkle had 14 points and 15 rebounds. It was the first CACC women’s championship final in seven years to be decided in overtime.
Felician looks forward to the NCAA Division II Women’s Basketball Selection Show tonight at 10:30 p.m. Holy Family, ranked fifth in the East Region, also hopes to hear its name called.
Earlier Sunday, the Felician men’s basketball team also won the CACC championship, marking just third occasion in the conference’s NCAA era in which the same team won both basketball titles in the same year. Philadelphia University/Thomas Jefferson University accomplished the feat in both 2008-09 and 2023-24.
2026 CACC WOMEN'S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP
Quarterfinals (Tuesday, March 3, at Sites of Higher Seeds)
#1 Holy Family 67, #8 Bridgeport 32
#4 Chestnut Hill 71, #5 Jefferson 64
#2 Felician 73, #7 Georgian Court 48
#3 Caldwell 53, #6 Post 41
Semifinals (Saturday, March 7, at Newman Center, Caldwell University)
Holy Family 67, Chestnut Hill 59
Felician 65, Caldwell 61
Championship Final (Sunday, March 8, at Newman Center, Caldwell University)
Felician 65, Holy Family 63 (OT)
2026 CACC WOMEN'S BASKETBALL ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
Neysa Aguilar, Caldwell
Tikyra Miller, Chestnut Hill
Kaelah Carter, Holy Family
Taylor Hinkle, Holy Family
Amy Ngo, Holy Family
Karla Barreno, Felician
Stephanie Formby, Felician
Ane Valle, Felician
MVP: Stephanie Formby, Felician
2026 CACC WOMEN'S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP TOP XVI AWARD
(Student-Athlete with the Highest Cumulative Grade Point Average at the Finals Site)
Skyler Searfoss, Holy Family University
Founded in 1961, the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference has been affiliated with NCAA Division II for 20 years. Conference institutions compete for championships in 17 sports – seven for men, nine for women, and one co-ed. The CACC contains 11 full members in Connecticut, Delaware, New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania. Membership includes the University of Bridgeport, Caldwell University, Chestnut Hill College, Dominican University New York, Felician University, Georgian Court University, Goldey-Beacom College, Holy Family University, Post University, Thomas Jefferson University, and Wilmington University.