MARLBOROUGH, Mass.—The Babson College women's basketball team was picked to finish runner-up in the New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) preseason coaches' poll that was released on Thursday morning.
Defending regular season and tournament champion Smith collected 11 of 12 first-place votes to finish atop the poll with 121 points. The Beavers received the remaining first-place vote and finished second with 104 points, while Emerson was voted third with 93 points. Springfield (83 points), defending tournament runner-up MIT (75) and Coast Guard (75) round out the top half of the poll.
The Green and White return three starters and five of the top seven scorers from a team that finished 16-10 overall last year. The Beavers wound up second in the NEWMAC regular season race with an 8-3 mark, and have advanced to three of the last four tournament finals. Led by third-year head coach
Kate Barnosky, Babson had a streak of 15 straight appearances in the NEWMAC Tournament semifinals snapped last March.
Babson opens the 2025-26 campaign with three straight road games, beginning at Roger Williams on November 7 in Bristol, R.I. at 7 p.m.
2025-26 NEWMAC Women's Basketball Preseason Coaches' Poll
| Rank |
School (first-place votes) |
Points |
| 1 |
Smith (11) |
121 |
| 2 |
Babson (1) |
104 |
| 3 |
Emerson |
93 |
| 4 |
Springfield |
83 |
| T-5 |
MIT |
75 |
| T-5 |
Coast Guard |
75 |
| 7 |
WPI |
65 |
| 8 |
Salve Regina |
60 |
| 9 |
Clark |
49 |
| 10 |
Wheaton |
32 |
| 11 |
Wellesley |
24 |
| 12 |
Mount Holyoke |
11 |
