GORHAM, Maine - Earning the no. 2 seed and a first-round bye, the University of Southern Maine Huskies are gearing up to compete at the 2025 Little East Conference Softball Championship Tournament, May 7-10. Hosted by the no. 1 seed Eastern Connecticut State University Warriors, the top six teams in the final regular season standings qualify for the double-elimination championship tourney.
With a first-round bye, the Huskies will face the winner of game two featuring No. 3 Plymouth State vs. No. 6 UMass Dartmouth on Thursday, May 8 (3:00 pm). Plymouth State and UMass Dartmouth will square off on Wednesday at 3:00 pm.
The 2025 Little East Conference Champion will receive the conference's automatic berth into the NCAA Division III National Championship Tournament, beginning with the Regional Championships starting Thursday, May 15. Sixty-four teams will be selected to the NCAA tournament field. The NCAA will host an online selection show on Monday, May 12 (11 am EST) announcing the participating teams and regional sites.
THE BASICS
When: Wednesday, May 7 – Saturday, May 10, 2025
Where: Mansfield, Conn. – Eastern Connecticut State University – Clyde Washburn Field.
Participating Teams: Eastern Connecticut, Plymouth State, UMass Boston, UMass Dartmouth, Southern Maine, Western Connecticut
Online Broadcasts:
LEC Network Live / Archived Video Streaming Pricing
$10 - Single Game Pass
$40 - All-Tournament Pass (all baseball tournament broadcasts)
$75 - All Spring Championships Pass (all Baseball, Men's Lacrosse, Women's Lacrosse, Outdoor Track & Field, Softball, Men's Tennis broadcasts)
The History:
Southern Maine has won the LEC tournament championship six times (1997, 1999, 2012, 2013, 2015, 2021) and has finished as the tournament runner-up seven times (2000, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2008, 2010, 2014). The tournament championship was first sponsored by the Little East Conference in 1997.
In 28 appearances in the Little East Conference Tournament Championship (1997-2024* - no tourney in 2020), Southern Maine has played in 105 games and has a record of 62-42 (.598 winning percentage).
2025 Little East Conference Tournament Seeds
- Eastern Connecticut (20-16, 13-3 LEC)
- Southern Maine (20-18, 10-6 LEC)
- Plymouth State (25-14, 9-7 LEC)
- UMass Boston (27-10-1, 8-7-1 LEC)
- Western Connecticut (22-18, 8-8 LEC)
- UMass Dartmouth (20-16, 7-9 LEC)
2025 LEC Championship Format
Wednesday – May 7, 2025
Game 1: No. 4 UMass Boston vs. No. 5 Western Connecticut - 12:00 p.m.
Game 2: No. 3 Plymouth State vs. No. 6 UMass Dartmouth - 3:00 p.m.
Game 3: Game 1 Loser vs. Game 2 Loser - 6:00 p.m.
Thursday – May 8, 2025
Game 4: No. 1 Eastern Connecticut vs. Game 1 Winner - 12:00 p.m.
Game 5: No. 2 Southern Maine vs. Game 2 Winner - 3:00 p.m.
Game 6: Game 3 Winner vs. Game 5 Loser - 6:00 p.m.
Friday – May 9, 2025
Game 7: Game 4 Winner vs. Game 5 Winner - 12:00 p.m.
Game 8: Game 6 Winner vs. Game 4 Loser - 3:00 p.m.
Game 9: Game 8 Winner vs. Game 7 Loser - 6:00 p.m.
Saturday – May 10, 2025
Game 10: Game 7 Winner vs. Game 9 Winner - 12:00 p.m.
Game 11: if necessary - 3:00 p.m.
Sunday – May 11, 2025
Rain date
About the 2025 Huskies
Picked to finish fourth in the 2025 Little East Conference preseason coaches poll, the Huskies worked their way up to number two finishing the 2025 regular season with an 10-6 record in-conference play. Returning just one regular starter from the 2024 squad that finished as the LEC tourney runner-up, the Huskies, led by veteran head coach
Sarah Jamo, now in her 13
th season, progressed throughout the season after starting 2-8 in Florida to close out the season with an 18-10 record.
Hitting .255 as a team, the Huskies' are led by juniors
Kendall Migliorini (Salem, NH) and
Ella Bezanson (Amesbury, Mass.) Migliorini is hitting .305 (32-for-105) with 13 doubles and three home runs for a team-leading 23 RBI. Bezanson is hitting .303 (37-for-122) with seven doubles, three triples and a home run for 15 RBI. In conference play, Bezanson is hitting .370 (20-for-54) while Migliorini has 13 of her 23 RBI against LEC opponents. Junior
Mackenzie Renner (Alton, NH/Prospect Mountain) is sitting just under .300 at .290 (29-for-100) with five doubles, two triples and two home runs and 21 RBI, while the Huskies' lone senior
Meaghan Dufresne (Mattapoisett, Mass./Old Rochester Regional) is hitting .281 (32-for-114) with 18 RBI on eight doubles, a triple and three home runs.
Junior
Lexus McIntosh (Lancaster, NH/White Mountains Regional) and freshman
Mia Coots (Hartland, Maine/Nokomis) have shared the pitching load. A second-team All-LEC pitcher in 2024, McIntosh earned three wins in the circle during the Huskies' 2024 tourney run. Firing 108 innings in 2025, McIntosh has a 2.92 ERA (2.21) against LEC opponents), with 67 strikeouts. She has conference wins over Eastern Connecticut (2-1), Keene State (6-2), Plymouth State (5-2), and WestConn (5-1).
Freshman
Mia Coots (Hartland, Maine/Nokomis) is 12-7 entering the tourney and 6-1 against LEC opponents with wins over WestConn (5-1), UMass Boston (4-2), Keene State (8-0), VTSU-Castleton (5-0), UMass Dartmouth (8-7) and Eastern Connecticut (2-1). Holding a 2.15 ERA with 100 strikeouts in 120.1 innings pitched, Coots has four shutouts to her credit as a rookie.
USM has wins against each of the teams in the tournament field: Eastern Connecticut (2-0), Plymouth State (1-1), UMass Boston (1-1), WestConn (1-1) and UMass Dartmouth (1-1).
About Plymouth State
Hitting .296 as a team, Plymouth State is led by Kenzie Bessette's .475 batting average (57-for-120). Bessette also has 30 stolen bases to her credit. Kaity Montelongo is hitting .333 for the Panthers. Avery Couch is hitting .319 with a team-leading 35 RBI with six doubles, a triple and six home runs.
Kate McGrath and Emily Antrim has led PSU's pitching unit. McGrath is 11-6 in 20 appearances with three saves. Firing 95.6 innings, she has 53 strikeouts and a 2.05 ERA. Antrim is 8-6 in 17 appearances and 97.1 innings pitched. Antrim has struck out 45.
Facing Plymouth State on the road in the regular season the two teams split the series. Southern Maine won game one 5-2 and dropped a 3-1 decision in game two. Bezanson had a two-run triple in the fifth to put the Huskies ahead 3-1, while Migliorini had a sac fly RBI. McIntosh earned the win in 5.1 innings, allowing one earned run on four hits and four walks, while Coots earned the save in 1.2 innings with a pair of strikeouts.
About UMass Darmouth
Led by RaeLynn Perregaux's .452 batting average, the Corsairs are hitting .297 as a team and have four players above .300 in their lineup. Perreaguax's 30 RBI lead the way, followed by Larissa Piessens 26. Piessens is hitting .320 with 10 doubles, a triple and a home run.
Edy Crawford and Lily Routhier lead UMD's pitching staff. Crawford is 11-10 with a save, and a 3.08 ERA in 125 innings of work. She has 41 strikeouts to her credit. Routhier is 8-3 with a 4.25 ERA in 79 innings. She has 20 strikeouts.
USM split with the Corsairs at home scoring in the bottom of the seventh to earn an 8-7 win in game two. Migliorini had a three-run double to pace the offense as USM collected 11 hits in the game, including five for extra bases.
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