Marlborough, Mass. - August 19, 2026 - MIT received 11 of 12 first place votes and has been projected to win its second straight conference title as the New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) released the 2026 Women’s Volleyball Preseason Coaches Poll on Wednesday morning.
MIT, under the direction of six-time NEWMAC Coach of the Year Paul Dill, will welcome six newcomers to his squad in addition to returning reigning NEWMAC Athlete of the Year, AVCA Region 2 Player of the Year and AVCA First Team All-American setter Kayleigh May. The Engineers will also welcome back Eileen Sadati, who was a First Team All-NEWMAC selection and Honorable Mention All-American in 2025. MIT reached the NCAA Regional Championship match for the fifth consecutive season last year and since the COVID canceled 2020 campaign, the Engineers have gone 149-21 overall and 50-3 in regular season NEWMAC matchups.
Babson earned an at-large berth to last year’s NCAA Division III Championship Tournament after pushing MIT to five sets in the NEWMAC title match. The Beavers, who will return NEWMAC All-Conference First Teamers Zoe Ackerman and Angelina Holm as well as AVCA Honorable Mention All-American right side Hailey Fouche, knocked off No. 20 Claremont-Mudd-Scripps and took No. 7 Colby to five sets in the second round.
Springfield was also the recipient of an at-large berth to last season’s NCAA Division III Championship Tournament where they Pride matched up with No. 18 Emory. Under Moria Long’s direction, Springfield has now made 11 appearances in the NCAA Tournament in the past 15 seasons and will return a pair of NEWMAC All-Conference Second Team honorees in setter Tori Colosimo and middle blocker Jodi Saelua.
Smith, Coast Guard and Emerson finished in the middle of the pack in this year’s preseason coaches poll with Smith taking fourth, Coast Guard taking fifth and Emerson taking sixth. All three were present in the 2025 NEWMAC Championship Tournament with Coast Guard taking down Smith in three sets in the quarterfinal round. Smith will rely on senior outside and 2025 NEWMAC All-Conference honoree Mia Etheridge to power the Bears offense this fall as head coach Greg Walker returns a veteran squad of six seniors who will be looking for their second NEWMAC title in three years.
Coast Guard will return 2025 NEWMAC All-Conference honoree and outside hitter Amelia Matson, while Emerson, which did not have a single senior on its team last fall, looks to build on its 18 win season from a year ago and rely on rising seniors Hannah Miller, Kori Meissner, Rachel Dickerson and Lauren Yoo to make a run back to the conference tournament. Emerson head coach Ben Read sits just two wins shy of 300 for his career.
In the seventh slot is Wellesley, which is followed by WPI and Wheaton in this year’s poll. Blue head coach Dorothy Webb, who sits 13 victories shy of 700, will rely on rising junior Else Kunze-Hoeg this fall as one of 11 returners to the squad, while WPI will sport a large roster of 22 including seniors Zeala VanDamme, Kylie Welcher and Taylor Simpson. The trio will look to bring the Engineers back to the postseason for the first time since the 2019 campaign. Wheaton graduated its two offensive options after last fall, but will return seniors Mary Caroline Mazzanti, Jackie Hochberg and Ajsa Orban to the team this year.
Mount Holyoke, Salve Regina and Clark round out the coaches’ poll in 2025. The Lyons of Mount Holyoke took the seventh seed in last year’s NEWMAC Championship Tournament marking the program’s first postseason appearance since 2007. Mount Holyoke graduated a large class of seniors in the spring of 2026, but will look to libero Kyra Staples and outside hitter Serena Li if they want to make it back to the conference playoffs for the second straight season. Salve Regina will take on its fourth season in the NEWMAC and will be under the direction of first-year head coach Katelyn Beaubrook. Beaubrook will work with an experienced roster of 11 upperclassmen including five seniors and six juniors in 2026. Clark also returns an experienced roster of five seniors and four juniors as the Cougars will look for a return trip to the postseason for the second time under Matthew Heckler.
2026 NEWMAC Women’s Volleyball Preseason Coaches Poll
Team, Points (First-Place Votes)
1 - MIT, 121 (11)
2 - Babson, 110 (1)
3 - Springfield, 98
4 - Smith, 90
5 - Coast Guard, 82
6 - Emerson, 70
7 - Wellesley, 57
8 - WPI, 51
9 - Wheaton, 41
10 - Mount Holyoke, 32
11 - Salve Regina, 25
12 - Clark, 15
A look at the NEWMAC Women’s Volleyball Head Coaches
MIT - Paul Dill - 31st Season - 792-221
Babson - Eric Neely - 16th Season - 327-124
Springfield - Moira Long - 641-284
Smith - Greg Walker - 7th Season - 108-54
Coast Guard - Mark Thomas - 9th Season - 123-67
Emerson - Ben Read - 21st Season - 298-259
Wellesley - Dorothy Webb - 34th Season - 687-302
WPI - Mickey Cahoon - 20th Season - 231-256
Wheaton - Craig Letourneau - 25th Season - 373-333
Mount Holyoke - Iris Carpio - 10th Season - 81-119
Salve Regina - Katelyn Beaubrook - 1st Season - 0-0
Clark - Matthew Heckler - 3rd Season - 15-36
The first game of the 2026 season features Emerson and Wentworth on Tuesday, September 1 at 3:00 pm. Five other NEWMAC institutions will begin their 2026 seasons the same day including Coast Guard, Salve Regina, WPI, Mount Holyoke and Wheaton spanning from 6:00 pm to 7:00 pm that evening, while NEWMAC play kicks off on Tuesday, September 22 at 6:00 pm with a match between WPI and MIT in Cambridge.
A conference champion will be crowned on Sunday, November 15 with that team receiving the league’s automatic berth to the 2026 NCAA Division III Championship Tournament. MIT will be in pursuit of its second straight NEWMAC crown and fifth since 2021.
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.