Field Hockey

UAlbany & Vermont Sit Atop #AEFH Preseason Poll as Preseason All-Conference Also Released

BOSTON – Vermont and UAlbany tied for first in the 2026 America East Field Hockey Preseason Poll, while the Preseason All-Conference team was also released on Tuesday afternoon.
 
Vermont received a league-best three first place votes after earning a share of its first regular season title last year and reaching the conference championship. The Catamounts had 21 total points to tie UAlbany which also had 21 along with a first place vote. UMass Lowell captured a pair of first place votes and took third in the poll with 16 points. Maine (13), New Hampshire (11) and Bryant (8) rounded out the poll.
 
UAlbany, Vermont and Maine each had three players recognized on the Preseason All-Conference team, while UMass Lowell had a pair and Bryant had one. Included in that group is defending Goalkeeper of the Year Merle Vaandrager of UAlbany and Defensive Player of the Year Pilar Lorenzini also from the Great Danes. Reigning Rookie of the Year Veerle Nijhuis of Vermont was also named to the team.
 
Preseason Poll
Pl. School Pts. (1st)
T1. Vermont 21 (3)
T1. UAlbany 21 (1)
3. UMass Lowell 16 (2)
4. Maine 13
5. New Hampshire 11
6. Bryant 8
 
Preseason All-Conference
F Alicia Battistelli (Vermont)
F Callie Caito (Bryant)
F Consu De Castro (Vermont)
D Nicole Kowalewski (Maine)
F Saylor Kuefler (Maine)
F Jette Kurz (UAlbany)
D Pilar Lorenzini (UAlbany)
M Veerle Nijhuis (Vermont)
M Alice Van Hemelen (UMass Lowell)
F Karli Penrod (UMass Lowell)
D Eloise Penty (Maine)
GK Merle Vaandrager (UAlbany)
 
 
Need to Know:
  • Vermont secured a league-high three first place votes after earning a share of the 2025 regular season title and reaching the conference championship as the No. 1 Seed last year.
  • The Catamounts had three preseason all-conference selections in Alicia Battistelli, Consu De Castro and Veerle Nijhuis. Battistelli was a first-team honoree last season while the other two were named to the second team.
  • UAlbany tied for first in preseason poll after going 3-2 in conference play and falling in the conference semifinal a season ago. On defense this year the Great Danes will have reigning Defensive Player of the Year Pilar Lorenzini and Goalkeeper of the Year Merle Vaandrager.
  • UMass Lowell captured a pair of first place votes after tying for third in the conference last year and beating Vermont during the regular season.
  • Maine took fourth in the preseason poll, just edging out defending champion New Hampshire, which lost numerous starters due to graduation.
  • New Hampshire’s title marked the sixth different program to win the conference title over the past six seasons. The last program to win consecutive championships was Stanford in 2019 and 2020.
 
The 2026 season begins on Friday, August 28 with all six teams in action. Vermont hosts Northeastern, UAlbany welcomes Wagner and Maine is at home against Liberty. New Hampshire travels to face St. Joseph’s, Bryant is at Quinnipiac and UMass Lowell travels to Stanford.
 
Fans will once again be able to watch nearly every #AEFH contest this season. Select games will air on The AE on ESPN 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.
 
About the 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 -