SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (May 11, 2026) – Two members of the Western New England baseball team have earned Golden Bear Athlete of the Week honors, the final honorees of the Spring 2026 season, with Ryan Montini and Corey Kilroy receiving distinctions. 

In a week during the Conference of New England tournament, Montini led Western New England with seven RBIs over five games played, slashing .381 at the plate, going 8-for-21 overall. Montini hit two home runs during the week, coming in a win over the University of Hartford and in the final game of the season, a 3-1 loss against Endicott. Montini reached base a total of 16 times, leading the Golden Bears over the five-game stretch. Montini ends his four years at Western New England with a .330 batting average, recording 445 at-bats, collecting 147 hits, including 34 doubles, a triple, and 11 home runs, while driving in 95 runs. 

Kilroy was a big part of Western New England's run to the Conference of New England championship series this season, collecting nine hits over 19 at-bats, going .474 at the plate. Kilroy scored four runs for WNE this past week, while collecting two doubles, a home run, and six RBIs overall. Kilroy finished the 2026 season hitting .308 at the plate, collecting 48 hits, including ten doubles, two triples, and four home runs, driving in 41 runs.

The Western New England baseball team fell one win short of its first trip to the NCAA Tournament since 2018 after falling twice this past Sunday afternoon in the CNE Championship Series to No. 1 Endicott, 7-4 and 3-1. The Golden Bears finished the season with a 24-20 overall record.