NEW HAVEN, Conn. – The Mercy University Women's Basketball Team faces Franklin Pierce University on Saturday, November 14th at 3 p.m. at Southern Connecticut State University. Mercy then plays at RV Southern Connecticut State on Sunday, November 15th at 1 p.m.
Who, When and Where
Date/Time: Saturday, November 14th 3 p.m.
Records: Mercy (0-1), Franklin Pierce (0-0)
Location: New Haven, Conn.
Date/Time: Sunday, November 15th 1 p.m.
Records: Mercy (0-1), RV Southern Connecticut State (0-0)
Location: New Haven, Conn.
Last Meeting vs. Franklin Pierce
Mercy dropped an 87-55 decision to Franklin Pierce on December 30, 2009.
Last Meeting vs. Southern Connecticut State
Mercy dropped a 70-56 decision at Southern Connecticut State on November 16, 2025.
Scouting the Mavericks
The Mavericks opened their 2026-27 season with a 75-58 loss at #11 Bentley on Monday. Mercy was led by graduate student Molly Boek who had a team-high 13 points on 6-of-8 shooting. Junior Laeticia Hardy had 12 points and juniors Gabrielle Martin and Morgan Miller both had six points. Graduate student Kyla Nembach had five points, and junior Sophia Hoyt contributed four points. Freshman Callie Mullin and sophomore Ella Wilson both had three points and junior Caitlin Leary, sophomore Allie Regan and freshman Kosi Anyanwu all had two points.
Mercy enters the 2026-27 season picked second in the ECC Preseason Poll after going 22-8 last season, qualifying for the NCAA Tournament for the second time in three years. The Mavericks advanced to the ECC Championship Final for the second time in three years and won a share of the program's first ECC Regular Season Championship. Mercy ended last season with their most wins since 1985 and won a program-record 15 ECC games. The Mavericks have won 17 or more games for four straight seasons for the first time since 1982-86. Mercy has won double-digit ECC games for four straight years for the first. The Mavericks are looking to win their first ECC Championship and qualify for the NCAA Tournament for the third time in four seasons. Mercy also looks to qualify for the ECC Championship for the seventh straight season.
Reigning ECC Coach of the Year Scott Lagas returns 11 student-athletes from last year's team and adds a strong recruiting class consisting of four freshmen and two transfers. Leading the returners is junior Morgan Miller who averaged 6.4 points per game last year. Junior Sophia Hoyt also returns after posting 4.8 points, 4.2 rebounds, and a team-high 1.8 steals per game. Graduate students Kyla Nembach and Molly Boek also return after recording 4.0 and 3.2 points per game, respectively. Nembach was also second on the team last year with 2.7 assists per game.
Juniors Gabrielle Martin, Caitlin Leary, and Haylee Ellwood and sophomores Saige Youngberg, Allie Regan, Ella Wilson, and Emily Thornton also return for Lagas. Youngberg and Thornton will both be making their collegiate debuts this season after missing last season due to injury.
Lagas welcomes junior transfer Laeticia Hardy who started her collegiate career at Division I Long Island University before playing at Northern Oklahoma College Enid last year. Hardy played in 16 games as a freshman at LIU in 2024-25 and averaged 8.6 points and 7.9 rebounds per game last year at Northern Oklahoma College. Sophomore Emma Sollenne joins Mercy from Division I Mercyhurst University where she played nine games last season.
Mercy also welcome freshmen Callie Mullin, Scarlet Cubero, Tessa Porch, and Kosi Anyanwu to the fold this year. Mullin was named Tablet All-Star as a senior at Xaverian High School, Second Team CHSAA All-League and scored over 1,000 career points. Cubero joins Mercy from Saint Mary's High School where she won the State Championship as a freshman and senior. Porch was named All-NEPSAC First Team, All-FAA First Team and was NEPSGBCA Class B All-Star as a senior at Hamden Hall Country Day School, scoring over 1,000 career points. Anyanwu joins Mercy from the United Kingdom where she played for the Nottingham Wildcats club team, winning a National Championship.
The Mavericks opened their 2026-27 season with a 71-47 loss in an Exhibition at Division I Sacred Heart on Friday. Mercy was led by Mullin who had a game-high-tying 19 points. The Mavericks look to defeat Bentley in the regular season for the second straight year and are 1-6 all-time against the Falcons. Mercy looks to win their season opener for the fifth straight season.
Scouting the Ravens
Franklin Pierce went 2-25 last season and were picked 10th in the NE10 Preseason Poll. Leading the returners for the Ravens is Emily Mennillo who averaged a team-high 10.5 points and 2.5 assists per game last year. Liv Murray returns after averaging 5.9 points per game and Armani Rivera is back after posting 5.1 points per game.
Scouting the Owls
Southern Connecticut State went 25-6 last season, winning the NE10 Championship, and advancing to the Second Round of the NCAA Tournament. The Owls were picked second in the NE10 Preseason Poll and are receiving votes nationally in the WBCA Top 25 Poll. Taeya Steinauer returns after averaging 11.2 points and 2.0 steals per game last year. Jada Williams is also back after averaging 8.4 points and 5.2 rebounds per game last year.
Next Game
Mercy plays at Caldwell on Wednesday, November 18th at 5 p.m.
