HADLEY, Mass. -- Bates junior captain Meghan Graff was named the NESCAC Women's Basketball Player of the Week on Monday after leading the Bobcats to the first NESCAC title in program history. 

Graff (South Portland, Maine) scored a game-high 20 points against top-seeded Trinity in the NESCAC Semifinals and repeated the effort against No. 3 Amherst in the NESCAC Championship game. She also dished out four assists against the Bantams and five against Amherst.

The Bobcats (17-7) became the first No. 5 seed to win the NESCAC Women's Basketball title with the 51-42 victory over three-seed and No. 8 nationally ranked Amherst. Bates held a 40-20 lead after three quarters and held off a furious fourth-quarter comeback effort by the Mammoths to earn the victory.

Bates reached the championship game for the fifth time with a 57-55 victory over top-seeded Trinity. The Bobcats made a clutch defensive stand as the Bantams had multiple chances to tie or take the lead in the waning minutes of regulation to pull out the victory. Graff made two clutch free throws with 1:04 remaining to give Bates a two-point lead and the final score.

Graff's back-to-back 20-point scoring efforts puts her at 1,119 career points, 12th most in Bates women's basketball history. 

This is the second straight week a Bates player has won conference player of the week honors. Senior Mia Roy (Bedford, N.H.) took home the award last week for her conference tournament record 35 points in the NESCAC quarterfinal at Middlebury.

Bates is one of three NESCAC teams headed to the NCAA Championships and the Bobcats will take on Roger Williams in New York City on Friday in the first round.