SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (June 16, 2026) – 111 Western New England student-athletes representing 11 Conference of New England (CNE) sponsored winter and/or spring sports have been named to the 2026 Spring All-Academic Team, as announced by the CNE this afternoon. The 111 Golden Bears named are the second-most recognized in a single year, one shy of last spring's 112 total honorees.
In all, 1,243 student-athletes across 11 core institutions and two associate members were honored. Women's track and field (159) and baseball (158) led all sports in total honorees across the conference this season. In January and June each academic year, the Conference recognizes an Academic All-Conference Team.
Each member institution is responsible for determining its qualified student-athletes. Criteria for recognition include: at least sophomore standing athletically and academically, and having completed at least one academic year in residence at their current institution. Additionally, a student-athlete must hold a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 3.3 or higher on a 4.0 scale and have been an active member of a roster for a conference-sponsored sport. Graduate transfers, regardless of enrollment at their current institution, are eligible. First-year students, freshmen, and undergraduate transfers in their first semester at their current institution are not eligible.
Western New England men's ice hockey leads the way with 15 total named representatives this season. Men's outdoor track and field followed with 14 honorees, while baseball had 13, and both softball and women's outdoor track and field had 12. Men's lacrosse, women's ice hockey, and women's lacrosse all had ten representatives, while women's basketball had eight honorees, men's basketball had five, and men's tennis rounded out the group with four this season. For more information on the 2026 Spring Conference of New England All-Academic Team, click
here. A full list of Western New England honorees can be found below.
Baseball (13):
Gabe Baber
Bobby Black
Ryan Bulger
Zach Drewry
Jack Gamache
Lucas Kamoen
Ryan Montini
EJ Quint
Sullivan Quirk
Brody Rogers
Connor Slifer
Kyle Welsh
Ben West
Men's Basketball (5):
Matt Houde
Nate Kasper
Will Laplante III
Cody Palazzesi
Zein Wahdan
Men's Ice Hockey (15):
Benito Calvanese
Daniel Demchuk
Matthew Dougherty
Mathew Fortin
Joshua Kingsbury
Lochlan Lauer
Camille Marcoux
Gavin Mastrodonato
Jimmy Mettler
Brayden Patricia
Luca Scaglione
Everest Schneider
Nick Theodos
Billy VanSumeren
Matty Zdanowicz
Men's Lacrosse (10):
Connor Callahan
Chris Catuosco
Christopher Crozier
Anthony Gesino
Logan Jenkins
Connor Mahan
Kai McDonald
David Noel
Devin Richard
Chance Starrett
Men's Outdoor Track & Field (14):
John Bieszczad
Dominic Burack
Conor Dillon
Brody Dugger
Joshua Farrell
Ethan Jacobson
Sean Maserati
Nolan Moore
Nolan Palmer
Alexander Schreiber
Nick Smith
Evan Stewart
Lance Tomlinson
Sean Young
Men's Tennis (4):
Michel Abizaid Nunez
Nolan Jermain
Quinn Northrop
Kyle Poccia
Women's Basketball (8):
Hannah Blake
Perry Blasetti
Sophie Hedge
Erin Reen
Katie Regan
Sarah West
Paige Winter
Eliana Wood
Women's Ice Hockey (10):
Hannah Baxter
Alana Bouthillette
Ziya Damas
Leah Dube
Valerie DuVal
Zoe Galanoudis
Mabel Gerard
Rachael Irving
Kelsey Joiner
Jenna Lynch
Women's Lacrosse (10):
Allison Cyr
Brooke Darling
Valerie DuVal
Lina Eves
Christina Harris
Ella Henry
Sydney Miles
Ella Nish
Emily Picolla
Gabby Sliwka
Women's Outdoor Track & Field (12):
Hannah Baxter
Emma Ellis
Olivia Emanuele
Olivia Kay
Mya Lipscomb
Ariana Masterjohn
Gabrielle Minuti
Raegan Mulverhill
Lia Pouliot
Elsa Raymond
Caitlin Reilly
Lauren Vossler
Softball (12):
Katelyn Bailey
Emma Ballschmieder
Ava Barnhart
Katherine Brooks
Brianna Cardona
Aubrey Gaudiosi
Riley Kane
Shea McDaniel
Evelyn Picone
Marley Rodriguez
Nicolina Salanto
Christina Salinas
