BEVERLY, Mass. - The 2025-26 women’s hockey season in the Conference of New England is set to drop the puck with plenty of excitement following a memorable 2024-25 campaign that saw the Endicott Gulls capture the league’s championship. With several contenders reloading and key returners ready to make their mark, the race for this year’s title promises to be as competitive as ever. Here’s a look at what each team brings to the ice entering the new season.

Curry Women’s Ice Hockey
2025-26 Schedule | 2025-26 Roster (returners: 13 | graduated: 13 | newcomers: 13)
2024-25 Results (12-14-1, 9-9-0 CNE) | 2024-25 Overall Stats | 2024-25 Postseason Finish: CNE Second Seed, CNE Runner-Ups
 
After two straight CNE runner-up seasons, the Colonels will look to take that next step this year. If they are able to, it will be with a much different looking squad than years past, as the program celebrated their inaugural class last year, with 13 players graduating. Those included leading scorer Danielle Reid, and top assist person in Grayson Goolgasian. Also gone is the best faceoff taker in the conference in Hannah Berkowitz. All of which received all-conference recognition during their careers. Of the Colonels 64 goals last year, 42 came from that senior class, 65.6%.
 
Someone that coach Kelly Rider is hoping to help take on some of that goal scoring will be sophomore Bella Mardesich. In her freshman year she tied for the second most goals on the team with 10, and added eight assists.
 
Another player the Colonels will look to rely on is senior goaltender Sarah Kerr. She ended last year with a sub two GAA at 1.94, and was playing the best hockey of her career down the stretch, allowing more than one goal just once across her last eight games. That stretch included three shutouts.

Endicott Women’s Ice Hockey
2025-26 Schedule | 2025-26 Roster (returners: 18 | graduated: 9 | newcomers: 9)
2024-25 Results (22-5-1, 15-2-1 CNE) | 2024-25 Overall Stats | 2024-25 Postseason Finish: CNE First Seed, CNE Champion, NCAA Tournament First Round

The No. 12 Endicott women's ice hockey team opens up its 2025-26 season hosting Southern Maine on Saturday, November 1 at 5 PM. The Gulls will look to capture their fifth conference championship and second straight CNE Championship. Endicott returns three All-Conference honorees from last season's team, including first-team All-Conference forward Teaghan Hall and second team All-Conference selections Lilly Corso and Casey Mortiz. The Blue and Green were ranked No. 12 in the preseason United States College Hockey Orgainzation (USCHO) Division III Poll. The Gulls take on two preseason nationally ranked opponents this season (No. 4 Middlebury and No. 7 Plattsburgh St.) and another team receiving votes (Hamline). Endicott has won six consecutive season openers.

Johnson & Wales Women's Ice Hockey
2025-26 Schedule | 2025-26 Roster (returners: 15 | graduated: 7 | newcomers: 6)
2024-25 Results (9-15-2, 6-11-1 CNE) | 2024-25 Overall Stats | 2024-25 Postseason Finish: CNE Semifinals (#6 Seed)
 
The Wildcats begin year four under head coach Maddy Santore poised to break out as their top six scorers from last season’s squad are back. Sophomore Kailin Kane potted a team-high eight goals and tied with senior Zoe Tow for the team lead in points with 15. Sophomore Grace Adams racked up 15 points in her first season at JWU (7-5-12) - including a team-leading three game-winning goals – while senior captain Kylie O’Keefe registered 12 points on five goals and seven apples. Senior Allyson Barry headlines a young group of defensemen with features one junior, two sophomores and two freshmen. Sophomore Katelyn Cardoso went 6-6-2 with a 2.12 GAA in 14 games as a freshman and returns as the incumbent starter between the pipes.


Nichols Women’s Ice Hockey
2025-26 Schedule | 2025-26 Roster (returners: 16 | graduated: 5 | newcomers: 7)
2024-25 Results (8-14-3, 5-10-3 CNE) | 2024-25 Overall Stats | 2024-25 Postseason Finish: DNQ for CNE Postseason
 
The Nichols women’s ice hockey program is back for their 18th season, and brings with them an even balance of returning student athletes and fresh newcomers. The Bison, who finished last season with an 8-14-3 (5-10-3 CNE) overall record, will open the 2025-26 campaign at home on Halloween against Framingham State University, and will open conference play the following weekend against newcomer Johnson & Wales University (November 7).
 
Leading the Bison on the ice this season are team captains Kerstin Ambruso (Sophomore) and Avery Moriarty (Senior), with Moriarty entering her second season as a captain. Part of Nichols’ returning corps are offensive threats Ema Jaskova (Junior) and Alexis Pacheco (Sophomore), who each tied for second on the team last year in overall scoring with 12 points apiece. In the crease, sophomore goaltender Paige Almon will look to build off her 2024-25 performance, where she logged a 2.39 GAA through five total appearances.
 
Behind the bench, head coach Michael Barrett returns for his 5th season at the helm, with former players Grace Melanson and Melissa Montessi joining on as assistants, as well as newcomer Dylan Knox.

Suffolk Women’s Ice Hockey
2025-26 Schedule | 2025-26 Roster (returners: 15 | graduated: 6 | newcomers: 10)
2024-25 Results (10-16-1, 7-10-1 CNE) | 2024-25 Overall Stats | 2024-25 Postseason Finish: CNE Fifth Seed, CNE Semifinals

Suffolk women’s ice hockey played its way back to the Conference of New England (CNE) postseason a year ago after a year hiatus behind a 7-10-1 league ledger. The Rams exited the league tournament in the semifinals to end the year 10-16-1 overall, the program’s sixth season with double-digit wins.

All-CNE Second-Team selection Bella Schmidt paced Suffolk’s 75-goal offense with 10 goals and eight assists of her own. The junior is one of six Rams with double-digit stat lines from last season back on the blue-and-gold’s line chart this year along with forwards Alexia Hill (5g, 10a), Jenna Caballero (1g, 13a), Anya Nichipor (3g, 10a), and Cassie Borowski (6g, 6a) and defenseman Liliana Moose (5g, 9a).

Katelyn Michals returns to her spot in between the post as the goalie played all, but one of Suffolk’s 27 games last season. She turned away 777 shots for a 2.94 GAA and .911 save percentage.

Third-year head coach Abby Ostrom brought in 10 newcomers, seven true freshmen and three transfers, to complement the 15 returners.

University of New England Women’s Ice Hockey
2025-26 Schedule | 2025-26 Roster (returners: 15 | graduated: 8 | newcomers: 9)
2024-25 Results (13-13-1, 9-8-1 CNE) | 2024-25 Overall Stats | 2024-25 Postseason Finish: CNE Semifinals (#3 Seed)
 
The University of New England and 3rd-year head coach Cassandra Sherman return the top seven point-getters from the 2024-25 squad that earned the third seed for the postseason championship. Senior defender Hannah Humes led the team in points and was second in goals, on the way to a CNE first team selection. The rest of that leading group included senior forwards Jamie DuPont, Lainie Lemieux, and Danielle McCarthy, and junior forwards Averi Curran, Amanda Forziati, and Adria Tebo. Tebo paced the UNE offense with seven goals last year. Humes, along with junior defenders Mackenzie O’Leary and Jamie Ryan, all averaged roughly two blocked shots per outing.
 
Western New England Women’s Ice Hockey
2025-26 Schedule | 2025-26 Roster (returners: 13 | graduated: 9 | newcomers: 12)
2024-25 Results (13-10-3, 7-8-3 CNE) | 2024-25 Overall Stats | 2024-25 Postseason Finish: CNE Fourth Seed, CNE First Round
 
The Golden Bears return to the Olympia Ice Center for their fifth season of game action behind Head Coach Katie Zimmerman. Following a season in which the Golden Bears qualified for the conference postseason tournament and fell in the opening round, Coach Zimmerman lost nine graduates, including two of their three leading scorers from last season. However, returning for the Golden Bears are 2024-25 CNE Rookie of the Year, Mabel Gerard, and Michaela Birmingham, who were both tied for second in points for WNE last season with 17. Gerard led the team with 10 goals in the 2024-25 season and was tied for the third-most game-winning goals in the conference with 3. Also returning to the WNE attacking line are Maddie Pope and Jenna Lynch, who combined for 29 points (14 goals and 15 assists).
 
The Golden Bears’ net will once again be guarded by CNE Goalie of the Year and New England Hockey Writers Association All-Star, Rachael Irving. Irving led the conference in Goals Against Average (1.24), save percentage (.962), and shutouts (4). Irving also had the second-lowest amount of goals allowed (18), the fourth-most saves (454), and the third-most saves per game (28.38).
 
On a team with 20 of the 25 players being sophomore or first-year student-athletes, the Golden Bears will rely on leadership from Zoe Galanoudis and 2022-23 conference Rookie of the Year/2023-24 All-Conference Second Team Honoree, Maddie Pope, to hopefully steer the Golden Bears back to another successful postseason run.

ABOUT THE CONFERENCE OF NEW ENGLAND
Originally founded in 1984 as the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC), and reconstituted as the Conference of New England (CNE) in 2024, the CNE is an NCAA Division III athletic conference composed of 11 full member and five associate member institutions throughout the New England region. Its membership aims to provide student-athletes with a positive experience in their pursuit of excellence through high academic standards, quality competition and a meaningful student life. The Conference administers championships in 21 intercollegiate sports.