BEVERLY, Mass. (11/5/2026) - Four members of the Nichols College field hockey team have been recognized by the Conference of New England (CNE) with All-Conference honors for the 2026 season, as announced on Friday afternoon.

Senior defender Katherine Hearn earned Second Team recognition, while junior forward Emma Bianculli, senior forward Sofia Calabro, and sophomore midfielder Alyse Mutti were each named to the All-CNE Third Team. The four selections represent Nichols' recognition across all three areas of the field, and is the most All-Conference selections for the program since the 2018 postseason.

Additionally, all four Bison are first-time recipients of postseason honors from the CNE.

Hearn, a native of Sutton, Massachusetts, helped anchor the Nichols defensive unit throughout the season, starting in each of her 12 appearances throughout. In that time, the Bison captain recorded a team-high six defensive saves, which included a career-high two in the team's second game of the season versus Wheaton (9/5). Additionally, her six defensive saves on the campaign went down as the highest single-season total in her collegiate career.

Bianculli, a native of East Walpole, Massachusetts, finished the season among Nichols' offensive leaders, totaling seven goals and six assists for 20 points in 19 games. The junior also recorded a team-high 55 shots and 36 shots on goal, while also contributing a pair of game-winning goals against the University of Hartford (9/11) and Elms College (10/27). Her performance this season in nearly every statistical category were also career-high numbers for the Bison junior.  

Calabro, a senior from Johnston, Rhode Island, paced the Bison offensively with nine goals and three assists for a team-best 21 points, which featured a pair of multi-goal performances against Gordon (10/1) and WestConn (10/14), and a total of seven multi-point outings. As a starter in all 19 games this fall, the senior captain also chalked up 38 shot attempts with 25 shots on goal.

Mutti, who joined the Bison program ahead of this past fall, contributed on both ends of the field during her sophomore campaign, finishing with two goals and two assists for six points in 15 appearances, in which she was a starter in each. The North Reading, Massachusetts native also added three defensive saves on the season, and notched a game-winning goal at Framingham State (9/8).

Nichols recently closed out its 2026 campaign with a narrow 2-0 loss at No. 3 Roger Williams as the No. 6 seed in the tournament. Overall, the Bison finished with a 6-13 (2-5) mark.