Purcelle, Santiago Garner NECC Player of the Week Awards

ATTLEBORO, Mass. – Elms College sophomore men’s basketball player Brittain Purcelle (Tarrytown, N.Y.) and freshman women’s basketball player Marisabel Santiago (Springfield, Mass.) garnered New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) Player of the Week awards in their respective sports as announced by the league on Monday.

Purcelle earned NECC Player of the Week for the first time this season after leading the Blazers to a 2-1 week that included a 69-63 overtime win against Wheaton College on Dec. 7 and a 60-55 win over Worcester State University in the Coaches Vs. Cancer tournament consolation game on Dec. 12. For the week, Purcelle totaled 74 points (averaging 24.7 points per game), was 27 of 57 shooting from the field and connected on 19 of 23 attempts from the free throw line. In Elms’ 98-92 double overtime loss to Buffalo State College, Purcelle netted a collegiate-career high 31 points highlighted by a 13 for 15 showing from the foul line.

Santiago was named NECC Rookie of the Week for the first time during the 2010-11 campaign following Elms’ 0-2 week. Santiago scored 12 points off the bench in the team’s loss to St. Joseph College (Conn.) that included a 3 for 6 effort from beyond the arc in 20 minutes off the bench. Santiago, who averages 4.1 points per game off the bench for the season collected her highest collegiate points total in the loss to the Blue Jays on Dec. 8.