Marlborough, Mass. - August 18, 2026 - MIT received 11 of 12 first place votes and has been projected to win its fourth consecutive conference title as the New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) released the 2026 Women’s Soccer Preseason Coaches Poll on Tuesday Morning.
MIT, which will enter the 2026 campaign ranked eighth in the United Soccer Coaches Division III National Poll after another appearance in the NCAA Division III Championship Tournament Round of 16, returns five All-Conference selections from a season ago including Fourth Team All-American Madeline Seebeck. In 2025, not only did the Engineers win the NEWMAC title for the ninth time under head coach Martin Desmarais, but MIT tied the program records for wins with 22 and shutouts with 20 last year. Since Desmarais took over in Cambridge in 2008, MIT is 138-16-14 in NEWMAC play and since 2017, MIT has only shouldered three setbacks in 83 regular season conference matches (76-3-4).
Springfield, the runner-up in last year’s NEWMAC Championship Tournament, received one first place vote and will look to continue its upward projectory under second year head coach Kursten Shade, who returns a young squad to Alden Street including rising sophomore Katie McFerran.
Babson and Emerson finished third and fourth, respectively, in this year’s preseason coaches poll and were only separated by three total points. Kerry Baldwin will lead an experienced Beavers team as her first year as a head coach as her roster will sport reigning NEWMAC Defensive Player of the Year Caroline Sutherland and reigning NEWMAC Rookie of the Year Izzy Lee. Emerson head coach David Suvak will return NEWMAC First Team selection and leading goal scorer from a season ago, Rowan McCrary, this fall against a challenging slate of non-conference foes including 2025 national runner-up Emory University in September.
WPI, Wheaton and Wellesley finished fifth, sixth and seventh, respectively, in this year’s poll. Both WPI and Wheaton earned upset wins in last season’s NEWMAC Championship Tournament as WPI, the sixth seed took down third-seeded Emerson, 2-1, in the quarterfinal round, while Wheaton, the fifth seed defeated fourth-seeded Babson, 3-1, on the road in the first round. Wellesley, which was the eighth seed a season ago, nearly knocked off MIT in the quarterfinals as the Blue forced MIT to overtime after 90 scoreless minutes.
WPI will return a trio of All-Conference performers in 2025 including First Team selection Jess English, while Wheaton, despite graduating both of its leading goal scorers from last season, will look to rising sophomore Karina Contreras to power the Lyons offensive unit in 2026. Wellesley, which made its first NEWMAC Tournament appearance a season ago for the first time since 2017, will return 19 from last year’s roster including rising sophomore Elena Garcia, who led the Blue in scoring in 2025.
Clark and Coast Guard finished just three points apart in this year’s coaches poll. The Bears earned the seven seed in the 2025 NEWMAC Championship Tournament, while Clark was on the outside looking in after a tiebreaker with Wellesley. Clark has one of the top scoring threats in the league returning to the pitch in 2026 as Georgia Louis, a NEWMAC First Team honoree in 2025, finished with eight goals and nine assists for 25 points last year ranking amongst the top-five in each statistical category. Coast Guard will look to be led by midfielders Ella Pottle and Bella Brittain this fall.
Salve Regina and Smith tied for tenth in the poll and Mount Holyoke rounded out the final slot for the 2026 campaign. Salve will return rising sophomore Paige Jessuck, who led the Seahawks with seven points in 2025, while Smith will see balanced scorer Una Keller, who notched six goals and six assists, return to the pitch for the Bears this fall. Mount Holyoke’s Ania McMichael, who led the Lyons in scoring last season, will also make a return to the pitch in 2026.
2026 NEWMAC Women’s Soccer Preseason Coaches Poll
Team, Points (First-Place Votes)
1 - MIT, 121 (11)
2 - Springfield, 102 (1)
3 - Babson, 97
4 - Emerson, 94
5 - WPI, 78
6 - Wheaton, 77
7 - Wellesley, 54
8 - Clark, 53
9 - Coast Guard, 50
T10 - Salve Regina, 27
T10 - Smith, 27
12 - Mount Holyoke, 12
A look at the NEWMAC Women’s Soccer Head Coaches
MIT - Martin Desmarais - 19th Season - 274-66-40
Springfield - Kursten Shade - 2nd Season - 11-9-0
Babson - Kerry Baldwin - 1st Season - 0-0-0
Emerson - David Suvak - 17th Season - 128-120-31
WPI - Steph Riley-Schafer - 14th Season - 127-74-35, Melissa Hart - 13th Season - 100-94-23
Wheaton - Mary-Frances Monroe - 15th Season - 98-143-21
Wellesley - Greg Margolis - 6th Season - 22-40-12
Clark - Brienne Smith - 17th Season - 110-141-29
Coast Guard - Susan Grant - 20th Season - 100-192-27
Salve Regina - Tanya Roberts - 5th Season - 18-41-14
Smith - Kathy Brown - 35th Season - 332-233-67
Mount Holyoke - Breena Proctor - 7th Season - 12-73-16
*The NCAA Does Not Include The 2020 COVID Cancelled Season As Years of Service
The first game of the 2026 season features Smith College and UMass-Boston on Tuesday, September 1 at 12:00 pm. Seven other NEWMAC teams will also open their slate that day including Babson, Salve Regina, WPI, Emerson, Wellesley, MIT and Clark spanning from 2:30pm to 7:00 pm, while NEWMAC play kicks off with Salve Regina and Mount Holyoke on Saturday, September 19 at 12:00 pm.
A conference champion will be crowned on Saturday, November 7 with that team receiving the league’s automatic berth to the 2026 NCAA Division III Championship Tournament. MIT will look to claim its fourth consecutive NEWMAC title this fall and eighth in the last nine seasons.
About the NEWMAC
The NEWMAC is an association of 13 selective academic institutions: Babson College, Clark University, U.S Coast Guard Academy, Emerson College, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Mount Holyoke College, Saint Anselm College (beginning reclassification process with NCAA in 2027-28), Salve Regina University, Smith College, Springfield College, Wellesley College, Wheaton College, and Worcester Polytechnic Institute, that are committed to providing high quality competitive athletic opportunities for student-athletes within an educational and respectful environment that embodies the NCAA Division III Philosophy. The conference also partners with seven Associate Members: New York University (Men's Volleyball, 2026-2027), Norwich University (Football), Simmons College (Rowing), SUNY Maritime College (Football), SUNY New Paltz (Men's Volleyball, 2026-2027), U.S. Merchant Marine Academy (Football), and Vassar College (Men's Volleyball, 2026-2027), while sponsoring 21 sports.