BEVERLY, Mass. - The University of Hartford softball team has clinched its first Conference of New England (CNE) playoff championship after having completed a tough task winning two games on Tuesday to make this championship pod play.

No. 5 University of Hartford Hawks (20-18 Overall, 11-9 CNE)
No. 1 Endicott College Gulls (22-12 Overall, 15-5 CNE)

Game Headlines:
The Hawks and Gulls will meet at 11:00 AM on the Gulls home field this Thursday, May 6th in a pivotal CNE Championship Pod matchup. The winner will advance to Friday, but the loser will need to win the day's third game to advance further in the tournament.

Hartford Headlines:

• The Hawks made the CNE both the playoffs and now the championship pod for the first time in program history in 2026 with a 11-9 conference record.
• The Hawks completed the impossible this past Monday, defeating both #6 Wentworth Institute of Technology and then #4 Western New England University in a 1-0 tense finish. Senior Carly Mayhood (Newton, N.J.) earned the win for the Hawks in the first match up as she was stellar for the Hawks throwing all six innings allowing just the two runs to go with three strikeouts. Mayhood tossed 95 pitches in her eighth win of the season. Sophomore Ella Zobel (Clarence, N.Y.) came in for the second game and she picked up her seventh win on the season tossing all seven innings and more importantly only allowing three base runners. Ella finished with five strikeouts and just two hits allowed. 
• In the Wentworth game, junior Adelie Beebe (Sacramento, Calif.) led the offensive eruption going 2-for-3 with a homer, four RBIs and a walk. Coyle went 2-for-2 with a triple, two runs scored and a RBI. Miccio broke the program-record for longest single-season hitting streak reaching in her 18th consecutive game. Gia went 2-for-4 with a double, a pair of ribbys and a run scored. Baran added another two hit day which saw seven Hawks register at least a hit. 

Endicott Headlines:

• The Gulls clinched the #1 seed in the CNE tournament going 22-12 in the regular season and 15-5 in the CNE. At home Endicott went 6-2 with a 11-5 road record. 
• Endicott's offense ranks 2nd in the CNE with a .320 team batting average and 209 overall runs scored. The Gulls are led by Abby McClaflin who ended the year hitting .429 with three homers and 23 RBIs. Kylyn McLaren also hit .409 with 14 extra base hits and a team-high 30 RBIs. Five more Gulls finished the season hitting over .300. 
• The Gulls pitching staff has been great all year with a conference low 90 earned runs allowed all year. Analise Grady leads the staff with a 1.83 ERA over 84 innings with a 7-4 record and nine saves this season. Emma Sheehan is next with a 7-2 overall record and a ERA of 2.41 in 32.0 innings pitched. Kristen Beebe adds a 7-3 record, 2.73 ERA in 77 innings in the circle. Beebe leads the team with 96 punch outs.
• Defensively the Gulls rank 3rd in the CNE with a .961 fielding percentage. 

All-Time Against Endicott College:
The Hawks are 4-2 all-time against the Gulls with a 3-1 home record and 1-1 road record. This season Hartford and Endicott split a double-header in West Hartford, with the Hawks winning game one and the Gulls taking game two. 

ABOUT THE CONFERENCE OF NEW ENGLAND:
Originally founded in 1984 as the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC), and reconstituted as the Conference of New England (CNE) in 2024, the CNE is an NCAA Division III athletic conference composed of 11 full member and five associate member institutions throughout the New England region. Its membership aims to provide student-athletes with a positive experience in their pursuit of excellence through high academic standards, quality competition, and a meaningful student life. The Conference administers championships in 21 intercollegiate sports.

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