BOSTON – For the fourth time in the last five season, Binghamton has captured the America East women’s soccer regular-season title. The Bearcats locked up the No. 1 seed for the championship with its comeback tie vs. Maine on Sunday. The rest of the tournament picture remains uncertain with just two points separating six teams, who are fighting for five spots.
Binghamton still sits atop the league standings with 15 points, followed by Bryant, Maine and UMBC all tied for second place with 11 points. UAlbany and Vermont follow with 10 points and UMass Lowell has nine. New Hampshire and NJIT, which have been eliminated from championship consideration, have six and four points, respectively.
Every game matters with three points being awarded to the winning team, one point to each team in the event of a tie and zero points to the losing team. The top six teams in the standings at the end of the season will qualify for the 2026 America East Women’s Soccer Championship, set to take place Nov. 5-15.
Need to Know
- Binghamton secured four points last week to capture the regular-season crown for the fourth time in the last five years. The Bearcats are unbeaten in their last seven games, all America East contests (4-0-3).
- UMBC is the only other #AEWSOC squad to have locked up a tournament bid. It’s the Retrievers’ first since 2014.
- Bryant beat Maine and tied UMBC last week to earn a key four points. Shannon Mejia stopped all 10 shots she faced to
- Vermont is unbeaten in its last eight games (4-0-4).
- Binghamton’s Rebecca Kessler’s 10 shutouts are tied for the most nationally and she is also fourth nationally with a .357 goals-against average
- Binghamton’s Jahkaya Davis leads the league with seven goals.
- The #AEWSOC preseason poll and All-Conference teams were announced on July 30. Three-time defending league champion Maine was chosen the 2026 favorite while last year’s regular-season champion Binghamton was second - link.
Weekly Award Winners – Oct. 26
Offensive Player of the Week
Greta Caulton, New Hampshire – Sr., Forward, Amherst, N.H.
- Totaled eight points in a perfect 2-0 week for UNH.
- Scored three goals in UNH’s 4-3 win vs. Vermont on Sunday.
- It was the first hat trick in a league game since Binghamton’s Olivia McKnight accomplished the feat on Oct. 23, 2022.
- Had two assists in New Hampshire’s 4-1 win over UMass Lowell on Thursday.
- This is Caulton’s first career #AEWSOC Offensive Player of the Week honor.
Defensive Player of the Week
Hailey Ahmed, UMBC – So., Defender, Oceanside, Calif.
- Played all 90 minutes at center back to help UMBC deliver a shutout effort in a scoreless tie with Bryant.
- Helped hold the Bulldogs to just five shots.
- This is Ahmed’s second #AEWSOC Defensive Player of the Week honor of the season (10/5).
Goalkeeper of the Week
Shannon Mejia, Bryant – Sr., Goalkeeper, Milford, Mass.
- Stopped all 10 shots she faced to earn two shutouts last week.
- Made seven stops in a 1-0 win over Maine on Thursday.
- Had three saves in a scoreless tie vs. UMBC on Sunday.
- This is Mejia’s second #AEWSOC Goalkeeper of the Week honor of the season (10/5).
Rookie of the Week
Elsa Freeman, UMass Lowell – R-Fr., Midfielder, Portland, Maine
- Scored a pair of goals last week.
- Netted the game winner in a 2-0 victory over NJIT on Sunday.
- This is Freeman’s first career #AEWSOC Rookie of the Week honor.
2026 #AEWSOC Weekly Award Winners
Aug. 17 - Offensive Player & Rookie of the Week: Brooke Clagett, UMBC; Defensive Player of the Week: Sophia Garofalo, Binghamton; Goalkeeper of the Week: Amara Codd, UMBC
Aug. 24 - Offensive Player: Paige Luke, Binghamton; Defensive Player of the Week: Ale Victoriano, Binghamton; Goalkeeper of the Week: Sonja Zeepvat, New Hampshire; Rookie of the Week: Taylor Stuart, NJIT
Aug. 31 - Offensive Player: Samantha Zaslaw, Bryant; Defensive Player of the Week: Sophia Garofalo, Binghamton; Goalkeeper of the Week: Rebecca Kessler, Binghamton; Rookie of the Week: Oluchi Njoku, UAlbany
Sep. 8 - Offensive Player: Aja Turner, Maine; Defensive Player of the Week: Olivia Nardone, UMBC; Goalkeeper of the Week: Amara Codd, UMBC; Rookie of the Week: Eleni Stowell, Vermont
Sep. 14 - Offensive Player: Isabella Meadows, Maine; Defensive Player of the Week: Meghan Bernetti, Maine; Goalkeeper of the Week: Rachel Welch, UMass Lowell; Rookie of the Week: Paige Eckert, NJIT
Sep. 21 - Offensive Player: Aubrey Bough, Vermont; Defensive Player of the Week: Olivia Grisdale, Maine; Goalkeeper of the Week: Elena Barenberg, Maine; Rookie of the Week: Alyssa Reiter, NJIT
Sep. 28 - Offensive Player: Paige Luke, Binghamton; Defensive Player of the Week: Sophia Garofalo, Binghamton; Goalkeeper of the Week: Sophia Kling, Vermont; Co-Rookies of the Week: Brooke Clagett, UMBC & Chelsea Donaldson, Binghamton
Oct. 5 - Offensive Player: Jahkaya Davis, Binghamton; Defensive Player of the Week: Hailey Ahmed, UMBC; Goalkeeper of the Week: Shannon Mejia, Bryant; Rookie of the Week: Brooke Clagett, UMBC
Oct. 12 - Offensive Player: Isabella Meadows, Maine; Defensive Player of the Week: Olivia Grisdale, Maine; Goalkeeper of the Week: Claudia Volino, UAlbany; Rookie of the Week: Lila Algarin, UAlbany
Oct. 19 – Co-Offensive Player: Isabella Meadows, Maine & Nora Belin, UMass Lowell; Defensive Player of the Week: Märta Sundberg, UMass Lowell; Goalkeeper & Rookie of the Week: Kaele Smith, NJIT
Oct. 26 – Offensive Player: Greta Caulton, New Hampshire; Defensive Player of the Week: Hailey Ahmed, UMBC; Goalkeeper of the Week: Shannon Mejia, Bryant; Rookie of the Week: Elsa Freeman, UMass Lowell
Links
Info
Fans will once again be able to watch nearly every #AEWSOC contest this season with the majority of games airing on ESPN+ and the ESPN app while others will air on AmericaEast.TV. Those games will be available on computers, OTT devices and the America East app, which is available on all IOS and Android devices and can be found by searching ‘America East Conference’ in app stores.
Follow the @AmericaEast channels on Instagram and X to stay up-to-date on America East women’s soccer news all season long and use #AEWSOC to join the conversation.
ABOUT AMERICA EAST
Founded in 1979, the America East Conference is an elite NCAA Division I athletic conference that fosters an environment for student-athletes to become champions. Comprised of academically renowned, like-minded member institutions located in the Northeast region of the United States, America East is committed to broad-based excellence and progressive in its approach to supporting its more than 3,500 student-athletes across 18 sponsored sports. For more information, visit www.AmericaEast.com and follow the America East Conference and its social media channels, @AmericaEast.
- America East Conference – Where Champions Rise -