The NEWHA season officially got under way Friday night, and it’s already shaping up to be an exciting year. With the Preseason Coaches’ Poll dropping last week to set the stage for the season, let’s break down each of the members of this young conference.
Assumption
Assumption only joined NEWHA back in 2023, but they’ve climbed the standings quickly, and they play like they have something to prove. And they might just prove it this year.
This team was relatively young last year — with only one graduating senior — but they played well together, coming within 2 points of the regular season title, and now they have the chance to grow their chemistry and talent even more. This includes three of the conference’s top-six point producers from last season. Kayla McGaffigan, Ava McGaffigan and Justina Valentini all tallied more than 30 points through the 2025-26 campaign, and all three have since donned a letter as part of a star-studded Greyhounds leadership group. And they were all part of a NEWHA-leading power play and a second-in-NEWHA penalty kill that looks to continue with largely the same personnel.
In addition, last year’s freshman Natalie Joiner was named to the NEWHA All-Rookie team for her 22-point rookie season, including 3 power play goals and 1 short-handed goal. This kind of young talent bodes well for the Greyhounds’ future. They haven’t had a lot of turnover, retain a reliable goaltender in Jadyn Weiser and overall shape up to be a formidable opponent for any NEWHA team.
On top of that, Assumption have some quality out-of-conference games lined up, with Holy Cross on Oct. 1 and a weekend series against Mercyhurst Oct. 30-31. These games will be an early test for the Greyhounds’ lineup, and the outcome of these matchups can set the tone for the rest of the season.
Franklin Pierce
The reigning NEWHA champions will have some work to do to get back on top of the conference, but they have the experience and motivation to get it done. However, they will be lacking some of the bigger pieces from last year’s roster, including star goaltender Jill Hertl and second-in-scoring Bo Dean.
The NEWHA Goaltender of the Year left a series of records in her wake, including the most wins (61) and most shutouts (20) in program history. It’ll be no small task to step into her skates, but rising junior Rylee Eno may be up to it after racking up an impressive .942 save percentage (SV%) and 1.98 goals-against average (GAA) across nine games. Regardless of who Franklin Pierce’s newest starter is, they’ll have a blue line wall in front of them. The Ravens return a veteran D-corps, which may have battled through some injuries last season but will boast a fully healthy squad to start 2026-27 on the right foot.
The Ravens also have a bright spot in their youth. Last season, two Franklin Pierce rookies were named to the NEWHA All-Rookie Team, with the conference’s Rookie of the Year Addison Andre (13 goals, 10 assists) representing the forward group and Melanie Targosz shining a light on the back end.
Although Franklin Pierce lost a couple of big pieces at the end of 2025-26, they hold onto a well-rounded team that has a lot of potential heading into the new year.
Long Island
Since joining NEWHA in 2019, the Sharks have consistently been at the top of the conference, with the exception of last year. They won either the regular season championship or the NEWHA tournament (or both) for five straight years, but last season was a struggle for Long Island.
After the culmination of the 2024-25 season, LIU lost a lot of veteran talent, including six of their top-seven scorers. The lone returner in that group, Grace Babington, now enters her senior season after leading the Sharks with a career-high 32 points last year. However, one team’s loss is another’s gain, with Bo Dean joining the Sharks after a productive sophomore season with Franklin Pierce. The addition of Dean should help to make up some of the veteran losses, as she’ll likely suit up alongside Babington to start the season.
Additionally, the Sharks will likely look to reinstate a goalie tandem that contributed heavily to their successes last season. Victoria Rutnik was second only to the Ravens’ Jill Hertl in NEWHA GAA, with 1.99, and Clara Kammholz wasn’t far off that mark with 2.38.
LIU has six athletes joining the roster this season, with all but one being forwards. This new group brings plenty of intrigue, particularly a pair of Scandinavian players in Norway’s Malene Tjomsland and Sweden’s Saga Odebrant. Both have impressive national experience, with Tjomsland spending time on the Norwegian U18 team and Odebrant playing three years in the SDHL.
Post
The Eagles were the first team to hit the ice when they hosted Lindenwood Friday afternoon in the first of five straight out-of-conference matchups that will culminate with facing Quinnipiac on Oct. 6.
Post have one of the larger freshman classes in the conference, with 11 rookies joining the roster, but they represent some strong development pipelines. Most notably, Pittsburgh Penguins Elite’s Emerson Webster and Lovell Academy’s Ava Lai will soon don Eagles jerseys as the latest in a decorated line of athletes.
Hopefully, some tactful recruitment can help the scoring struggles from last season. The Eagles were second-to-last in NEWHA in goals per game last season, potting a mere 1.57 goals per game. It didn’t help that they were also one of the most unruly, averaging 8.4 penalty minutes in each matchup, but perhaps the new NCAA physicality rules will now play to their advantage.
Between the pipes, Post may have lost a starter in Hannah Saunders, but Devyn Amundson and Alex Young haven’t been too far behind, and both have plenty of potential to step up to the big stage this season. Plus, Amundson made big leaps from her freshman to sophomore season, going from a .865 SV% in four games to .913 in eight, and making twice as many saves.
Sacred Heart
This past season was a good rebuild year for the Pioneers. After winning the conference championship in 2025, Sacred Heart dropped to sixth in NEWHA with an in-conference record of 12-14-2. But they set up a good, young core of strong scorers, with all but two of their double-digit performers stepping back onto the Sacred Heart stage this year.
While players like Addie Bowlby, Ella Holm and Ally Cohen should be expected to make big moves on the scoring front, it could be a good year for rising seniors Shae Carroll and Hailey Jussila to make their mark on the ice. The two forwards are among the strongest two-way players on this roster — especially Jussila, with her 30 blocks — and have the potential to contribute in big moments.
However, the graduation of starting netminder Jillian Petruno will leave a big gap between the pipes. Last season, Petruno finished fourth in the nation in SV% (.943), carrying the majority of the net share. The Pioneers will have four goaltenders to choose from this season, including a senior transfer out of Mercyhurst, Erika Lind. Lind played only a few games in her three years with the Lakers, but it was highlighted by a relief appearance against Colgate, in which she put up 23 saves across 30 minutes of play.
Saint Anselm
The final season of Division I play will likely be challenging for the Hawks. Not only did they lose senior Brooklyn Schneiderhan, who led NEWHA in points last season with 48, but also there was a mass exodus into the transfer portal once the news of the division change dropped.
As a team, St. A’s led NEWHA in scoring with 2.87 goals per game, but now nearly all that firepower is gone and the Hawks will be back to square one. They do have a trio of seniors in Hailey Tullo, Justyce Ohlgren and Brenna Young to lead the new squad, and they were also able to hold onto a handful of other Hawks. Regardless, there will be a big rookie class, but Saint Anselm also did well in the transfer portal. With the closing of Anna Maria College one state over, St. A’s brought in four Amcat athletes to help round out their roster, making for a good balance of youth and experience to support them through their transition year.
At the helm of the transition, former assistant coach Jessica Salisbury was promoted to head coach back in May 2026. A 2015 graduate of UMass Boston, Salisbury has plenty of both play and coaching experience to take her into her first head coaching role.
Saint Michael’s
There’s no doubt this team has struggled. The Purple Knights earned just one win last season, early in the year over LIU, but they’re returning a rookie who, last year, was their only double-digit point-producer in two years: Kyler Weatherred.
St. Mike’s are also bringing back their strongest defender from last season in Maddie Quinn. Quinn made a remarkable 121 blocks from the blue line last year and contributed 3 points (2 goals, 1 assist) as well, so she should get a lot of ice time.
But they’ll need plenty of others to answer the call if they want to have a shot at the NEWHA trophy. Last season, Saint Michael’s were last in NEWHA in every major category: goals per game (0.76), power play (6.3%), penalty kill (74.1%), and SV% (.904). The Purple Knights need a well-rounded effort in order to improve their last-place position both in the conference and nationally.
Stonehill
The Skyhawks had a big senior class last year, losing 11 talented athletes, including all-time leading scorer Maddi Achtyl, who headed to the SDHL after her graduation. As the only returner out of the top-six scorers last season, junior Reagan Whynot will be who the Skyhawks look to for leading the charge on the front end.
With the recent announcement of Stonehill’s leadership group, including Makenna Slocum and Alexsa Caron as captains and Peyton Wise as assistant, Caron became the first goalie in Skyhawks history to earn a letter. Caron backstopped Stonehill to an 18-17-2 record last season as part of a tandem with senior Eve Stone. Now, the workload will fall on the back of Caron as she continues to lead on and off the ice.
Stonehill are one of few teams — possibly the only team — in the entire NCAA that didn’t touch the transfer portal: nobody in, nobody out. They’ll be relying entirely on their own personally cultivated stream of talent to push through the 2026-27 season, replacing their 11 seniors with an equal number of rookies.
Final thoughts
Although Assumption look to lead the way into the 2026-27 season, plenty of other NEWHA teams are making big moves on their rosters in hopes of taking home the conference trophy. NEWHA play is already under way, with Post having hosted Lindenwood Friday and Stonehill having traveled to Merrimack College Saturday, and there’s bound to be plenty of excitement as the story of the new year unfolds.
