BEVERLY, Mass. - The 2026 Conference of New England (CNE) women’s soccer season is set to get underway as teams across the league return to the pitch with their sights set on a conference championship. The University of Hartford enters the fall as the defending CNE champion after capturing the conference crown a season ago. With a new campaign on the horizon, the Hawks will look to defend their title while the rest of the conference begins its pursuit of the CNE trophy.
Curry College
2026 Schedule | 2026 Roster (returners: TBD | graduated: TBD | newcomers: TBD)
2025 Results (4-9-5, 1-6-3 CNE) | 2025 Overall Stats | 2025 Postseason Finish: 10th place
The Colonels will be looking to make a playoff run this year, and if they do, it will likely be because of their returning leading goal scorers in Nicole Hudson and Mia Schena. Schena has 12 career goals, while Hudson scored eight last year in her freshman year. It will be a new face in net however, as the Colonels starting goalie last year, Lexi Smardon has graduated.
The Colonels will start their season on September 1st at Mass. Maritime.
Endicott College
2026 Schedule | 2026 Roster (returners: 24 | graduated: 11 | newcomers: 9) 2025 Results (10-8-2, 7-3-0 CNE) | 2025 Overall Stats | 2025 Postseason Finish: CNE Runner-Up
Endicott women’s soccer kicks off its 2026 fall campaign against Rivier at Hempstead Stadium on Wednesday, September 2 at 7 PM. Here’s an inside look at the upcoming 2026 slate for the Gulls.
After putting up some of the CNE’s best defensive statistics in 2025, the Gulls will turn to some new faces for help on the backline this season. One of the biggest offseason recruits for head coach Lauren Pien is junior transfer Emerson Iacovelli. Iacovelli comes to the Gulls following her sophomore year at Brandeis, in which she played 15 games for the Judges.
Additionally, following a breakout year in net last season, Amanda Cosgrove returns for her junior season. In 10 starts last season, Cosgrove limited opponents to 0.96 goals per game and scooped up 19 saves along the way.
Gordon College
2026 Schedule | 2026 Roster (returners: 15 | graduated: 9 | newcomers: 11)
2025 Results (4-10-4, 2-5-3 CNE) | 2025 Overall Stats | 2025 Postseason Finish: T-8th place
Gordon returns 15 veterans for the 2026 season and welcomes 11 newcomers. The Fighting Scots finished last fall with a 4-10-4 overall record to go with a 2-5-3 mark in the Conference of New England.
Eowyn Lapp paced Gordon last season with 14 goals and three assists to earn All-CNE and all-region accolades. In goal, Ivy Daniel started 10 matches and recorded a pair of clean sheets.
Led by 12th-year head coach Chuck Breton, Gordon opens the 2026 campaign September 1 at MIT. The Fighting Scots will play their first three matches on the road before hosting Salve Regina September 9 in the home-opener.
University of Hartford
2026 Schedule | 2026 Roster (returners: 14 | graduated: 7 | newcomers: 14)
2025 Results (14-4-2, 7-3 CNE) | 2025 Overall Stats | 2025 Postseason Finish: 1st Place
The University of Hartford women’s soccer team returns to the pitch in 2026 after coming off back-to-back Conference of New England Championships and a first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2006. This year the Hawks will look different, but the goal remains the same which is competing for championships and the NCAA Tournament. Hartford would finish the 2025 season with a 14-4-2 record including a 7-3 conference record. The Hawks would clinch the #1 seed in the conference tournament before winning both the semifinals and championship to head to the NCAA tourney. Hartford would fall to the University of Rochester in the opening round to conclude their season.
Hartford returns four all-conference selections in 2025 in Anastasia Nerney, Kathleen Brush, Reese Sadler and Mia Mangalji. Nerney was the CNE Rookie of the Year and a 1st Team All-Conference selection in 2025 scoring 11 goals to go with nine assists in her first year. Brush was a 2nd Team All-Conference choice scoring 10 goals to go with six assists in 2025. Sadler also was selected to the 2nd Team as a key defensive midfielder starting all 20 games with 2 goals with an assist, while Mia Mangalji is the top defender returning after making the 3rd Team All-Conference with 1541 minutes and 16 starts.
The Hawks have 17 regular season games on the schedule in 2026, with eight taking place at home. Hartford opens the season with a two-game road stand, starting on September 1st at Stevens.
Johnson & Wales University (Providence)
2026 Schedule | 2026 Roster (graduated: 4 | newcomers: 7)
2025 Results (8-8-3, 6-2-2 CNE) | 2025 Overall Stats | 2025 Postseason Finish: #3 seed
The Wildcats carry high expectations into 2026 after posting an 8-8-3 mark in 2026 (6-2-2 CNE) and earning the No. 3 seed in the conference tournament. Senior forward Sophia Warburton returns after leading the team with eight goals and 20 points in 2025, which earned her both CNE First Team and CSC Academic All-District honors JWU also brings back key contributors in senior midfielder Jessica Lee and junior forward Jamie Davies, providing experience throughout their lineup. With a mix of veteran leadership and incoming talent, the Wildcats are once again aiming to solidify themselves as one of top teams in the CNE. If JWU can build on last season's strong conference record and generate consistent offensive production, the Wildcats have the potential to make a deeper postseason run in 2026.
University of New England
2026 Schedule | 2026 Roster (returners: 19 | graduated: 7 | newcomers: 13)
2025 Results (13-5-3, 6-2-2 CNE) | 2025 Overall Stats | 2025 Postseason Finish: CNE Semifinal (#4 Seed)
The University of New England and 4th-year head coach AJ Stueck welcome back seven starters from a 2025 group that posted a .700 winning percentage in CNE play and reached the semifinals. Junior defender Amy Forrest already has the 2024 CNE Rookie of the Year and 2025 CNE first team nod to her credit, and will be central to the Nor'easters holding opponents well below one goal per game (0.76) this time around, along with junior goalkeeper Haley Coombs -- a second team selection who started in 10 of the team's 11 clean sheets, and logged the program's second-longest consecutive shutout minutes streak along the way (383:40).
Sophomore forward Emily Talbot shared the team lead with seven goals last season, and classmates Jill Hodgson (forward) and Gillian McGee (midfield) were tied for third with five scores. The trio also combined for 16 assists, and each one was recognized with all-conference status.
Forrest and Coombs, along with junior midfielder Ailey Mann and senior forward Ashley Clark, will captain the squad that begins 2026 with a September 1 date against Saint Joseph's College (Maine).
Nichols College
2026 Schedule | 2026 Roster (returners: 19 | graduated: 4 | newcomers: 10)
2025 Results (1-16-1, 0-10 CNE) | 2025 Overall Stats | 2025 Postseason Finish: 11th place
Fifth-year head coach Angel Mogel and the Nichols Women’s Soccer program welcome 19 returners and ten newcomers as they return to The Hill for the 2026 season. In 2025, Mogel guided a young roster that featured all eight freshmen seeing meaningful minutes, including goalkeeper Isabella Dupret, who finished the year just outside the program’s top ten for single-season saves.
Returning for their junior seasons, Summer Bruno, Alyssa Senecal, and Cassie Rice will be huge assets on the field for the Bison. Senecal and Bruno led the Bison last season in minutes played with 1,620 and 1,561 minutes apiece, while Rice ended the 2025 season tied for the most goals scored in the squad. The Bison’s season starts on Tuesday, September 1st, when they travel to Albertus Magnus College for a 4 PM kickoff. They will start conference play on the road against Western New England on Saturday, September 12th.
Roger Williams University
2026 Schedule | 2026 Roster (returners: 19 | graduated: 6 | newcomers: 12)
2025 Results (10-3-6, 5-1-4 CNE) | 2025 Overall Stats | 2025 Postseason Finish: No. 5 Seed, Lost in CNE First Round
The Roger Williams University Women’s Soccer team enters the season under the leadership of third-year head coach Katy Labella. The Hawks posted a strong 10-3-6 record during the regular season, seeing four draws in conference play, falling to the No. 5 seed in the conference tournament. Despite that the Hawks only held one loss on the year in CNE action to Hartford.
The Hawks saw five land on the All-Conference teams last season, with returners Mya D’Antonio (Marshfield, Mass.), Camryn Dickinson (Quaker Hill, Conn.), and Meghan Goutink (Hauppauge, N.Y.) each landing a spot on the second team.
Offensively, the Hawks return their top three point scorers from last season with D’Antonio, Beth Yucius, and Dickinson leading the team, while returning six of their primary starters from the 2025 campaign. They will see a shift defensively, as for the first time in four seasons, the Hawks will look to a new goalkeeper following the graduation of the 2025 CNE Goalkeeper of the Year, Coco Marrelli.
Suffolk University
2026 Schedule | 2026 Roster (returners: 21 | graduated: 6 | newcomers: 6)
2025 Results (10-3-6, 4-3-3 CNE) | 2025 Overall Stats | 2025 Postseason Finish: CNE Semifinals – sixth seed
Suffolk women's soccer will have its sights set on hoisting the Conference of New England (CNE) Championship for the first time in program history after a historic defensive campaign in 2025. The Rams finished 10-3-6 overall and 4-3-3 in conference play, advancing to the CNE Semifinals before falling to second-seeded Endicott in a 4-3 penalty-kick shootout following a scoreless, double overtime draw.
Defense was the name of the game for the Rams last season, as Suffolk established program records with 13 shutouts and just eight goals allowed across 19 games. The Rams also reached No. 7 in the United Soccer Coaches Region II poll, the highest ranking in program history.
Avery Porter returns as captain after a dominant campaign on the backline. A set-piece specialist, Porter found the back of the net four times and added an assist last season, earning All-CNE First Team and United Soccer Coaches All-Region II Second Team recognition along the way.
The Rams also return CNE Second Team selection Sinclaire Hart, who anchors the midfield as a key defensive presence and senior captain Isa Peraza who is back after contributing three goals and an assist last season.
In goal, Arden Rose returns after tying the program's single-season shutout record with nine clean sheets in 2025. Rose went 6-2-5 across 14 appearances, conceding just six goals and making 54 saves. For her efforts, she earned All-CNE Third Team honors and United Soccer Coaches All-Region II Third Team distinction.
Suffolk turns the page on the new season Tuesday, Sept. 1, against Rensselaer at James A. Sartori Stadium at East Boston Memorial Park at 3:00 p.m.
Wentworth Institute of Technology Women’s Soccer
2026 Schedule | 2026 Roster (returners: 25 | graduated: 7 | newcomers: 10)
2025 Results (7-5-7, 2-5-3 CNE) | 2025 Overall Stats | 2025 Postseason Finish: N/A
Wentworth Head Coach Meredith Carey enters her 10th season at the helm, looking to lead the Leopards to their first postseason appearance in four years. Shyla Kulesza enters her senior season after recording nine clean sheets last year. Brooke Finaly was second on the team with 16 points (6 goals, 4 assists) and will look to lead the offense in the new campaign alongside Rachel Hagerty, who tallied two goals and five assists for nine points last year.
Despite the loss of a strong senior class, the Leopards will see the return of upperclassmen Bryce Bateman, Kyra Forsberg, Isabella Cunha, and Grace Del Pilar. Wentworth will welcome 10 newcomers to the squad who are eager to bring the Leopards back into the postseason tournament. Wentworth kicks off the season at home against Lesley on September 1.
Western New England University
2026 Schedule | 2026 Roster (returners: 24 | graduated: 4 | newcomers: 10)
2025 Results (7-6-5, 4-4-2 CNE) | 2025 Overall Stats | 2025 Postseason Finish: Did not qualify
The Western New England women’s soccer team will look to rebound after missing out on the Conference of New England Tournament last season, after finishing in seventh place in the CNE standings overall. The Golden Bears graduated four student-athletes in 2025, leaving a strong core set to return ahead of the upcoming season.
All of WNE’s top scorers from last season will return for the 2026 season, including leading scorer Liza Pinette (Acushnet, Mass.). The rising senior found the back of the net six times for Western New England last season while also coming away with three assists. Pinette took a team-high 39 shots, with 20 on goal, and scored a pair of game-winning goals. Sophomore Meghan Hartnett (Prospect, Conn.) had four goals and four assists for the Golden Bears in her first collegiate season and will look to build off an impressive debut in 2026. WNE will also look to rising sophomores Sophia Scyocurka (Ludlow, Mass.) and Natalia Estrada Rangel (Edinburg, Texas), who both had multi-goal efforts last season.
The midfield will look to remain steady for WNE, with Emily Smith (Clinton, Conn.) and Emma Withington (Burrillville, R.I.) expected to see significant minutes at the position this season. Western New England’s strength is its defense, with its entire back line returning for the 2026 campaign. Abigail Alicandro (Oxford, Mass.), Victoria Wilson (Merrimac, Mass.), Tess Chevalier (Brimfield, Mass.), and Ava dos Santos (Newington, Conn.) will all be in the mix for the Blue and Gold, who held opponents to just 18 goals in 18 games last season overall. Western New England saw Ainsley Napolitano (Andover, Mass.) start in and play in all 18 games last season in goal and returns to WNE for her senior season in 2026.
WNE’s season opener takes place on Wednesday, September 2, at 6:00 PM across the pond at Springfield College. The home opener takes place on Saturday, September 5, at 11:00 AM when the Golden Bears host Clark University.
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 nine 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-level athletic competition, academic achievement and community engagement.