DOBBS FERRY, N.Y. – For the 11th year, Mercy University Athletics will recap the year by counting down the Top 10 most memorable moments of the 2025-26 season, with all 10 sports represented.
Mercy University Athletics will release a Top 10 moment, as chosen by the athletics staff, with a recap every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for the next three weeks culminating with the top moment from the 2025-26 athletic year being unveiled on Monday, August 3rd.
No. 4 – Women's Basketball Wins First Ever ECC Regular Season Championship and Qualifies for NCAA Tournament
Checking in at No. 4 in our 2025-26 Top 10 Moments is women's basketball who won their first-ever ECC Regular Season Championship and qualified for the NCAA Tournament.
Head Coach Scott Lagas and the Mavericks were picked second in the ECC Preseason Poll after going 18-10 during the 2024-25 season.
Mercy opened their 2025-26 season on November 15th with a 64-61 upset win over defending East Region Champion No. 10 Bentley at Southern Connecticut State. Junior Grace Lesko had a career-high-tying 30 points, going 10-of-14 from the floor with a game-high nine rebounds and junior Amani Abuhatab added 15 points. The Mavericks earned their first-ever win over Bentley and their first ranked win under Lagas. Mercy opened their season with a win for the fourth straight season.
The Mavericks capped off their season-opening weekend with a 70-56 loss at Southern Connecticut State on November 16th. Abuhatab and Lesko both scored in double figures as Mercy dropped to 1-1 on the year. Following the week, Lesko was named ECC Player of the Week and Abuhatab was tabbed to the Honor Roll.
Lagas and the Mavericks hosted Adelphi in their home opener on November 19th. Lesko had a game-high 23 points and senior Megan Marcotte added nine points and eight rebounds as Mercy won their first home opener since 2023. The Mavericks ended the week with a 58-45 loss at Pace on November 22nd. Lesko had a team-high 14 points as Mercy dropped to 2-2 on the year. Lesko was named to the ECC Honor Roll on November 24th.
Mercy resumed action on November 30th with a 68-56 loss at Assumption. Lesko and Abuhatab combined for 37 points as the Mavericks fell to 2-3 on the year. Lesko was again named to the ECC Honor Roll on December 1st.
The Mavericks snapped a two-game losing streak with a 71-52 win at Staten Island in their ECC opener on December 3rd. Abuhatab and Lesko both had double-doubles as Mercy won their ECC opener for the second straight year. Mercy made it two wins in a row when they earned a 73-54 win over District of Columbia on December 6th. Lesko had a game-high 24 points, Abuhatab scored 15 points and junior Molly Boek added 11 points as Mercy improved to 4-3 overall and 2-0 in ECC play. Lesko was named ECC Defensive Player of the Week and Abuhatab was tabbed to the Honor Roll on December 8th. Lesko was also named MBWA Division II-III Co-Player of the Week.
Lagas and the Mavericks hosted RV Daemen on December 12th. Abuhatab scored 25 points as Mercy dropped a 60-49 decision to the Wildcats. The Mavericks bounced back two days later with a 66-50 win over D'Youville. Lesko scored a game-high 29 points and senior Kyla Nembach added eight points as Mercy moved to 5-4 overall and 3-1 in ECC play. Lesko and Abuhatab were named to the ECC Honor Roll on December 15th and Lesko was named MBWA Player of the Week Honorable Mention.
Mercy headed down to Florida where they faced Southern New Hampshire in their first game of the trip on December 19th. Eight different Mavericks scored as Mercy dropped a 70-39 decision to the Penmen. The Mavericks bounced back two days later with a 73-56 win at Florida Tech. Senior Angelina Barrera, Lesko, and Abuhatab scored in double figures and sophomore Morgan Miller added nine points as Mercy improved to 6-5 on the year. Lesko was tabbed to the ECC Honor Roll on December 22nd.
The Mavericks closed out the 2025 portion of their schedule with a 69-52 win at Goldey-Beacom on December 31st. Lesko had a game-high 21 points, and 11 rebounds and Barrera added 10 points, eight rebounds and four blocks. Barrera was named ECC Defensive Player of the Week on January 5th and Lesko was tabbed to the Honor Roll.
Lagas and the Mavericks made it three wins in a row with a convincing 77-39 win over Bloomfield on January 5th. Barrera and Lesko had double-doubles and sophomore Haylee Ellwood scored a career-high 10 points as Mercy improved to 8-5 for the second straight year. The Mavericks extended their winning streak to four games with a 76-52 win over Dominican on January 8th. Miller and Lesko both had a game-high-tying 19 points as Mercy improved to 9-5 for the first time since the 2023-24 season and defeated the Chargers for the first time since 2017. Mercy ended the week with a 71-51 win at Roberts Wesleyan on January 11th. Abuhatab scored a game-high and career-high 26 points, Lesko added a double-double and Miller contributed 11 points as Mercy moved to 10-5 overall and 4-1 in ECC play. The Mavericks were off to their best start since the 1985-86 season and now had double-digit wins for the fifth straight season for the first time since 1987-93. Lesko was named ECC Co-Player of the Week on January 12th and Barrera and Miller were tabbed to the Honor Roll. Lesko was also named MBWA Player of the Week Honorable Mention.
Mercy made it six wins in a row when they earned a 75-50 win at District of Columbia on January 14th. Miller scored 16 points, Lesko had a game-high 18 points and Barrera and Abuhatab also scored in double figures. Sophomore Caitlin Leary chipped in six points as Mercy won six games in a row for the first time since the 2023-24 season. The 25-point win over UDC was the largest margin of victory over UDC in program history. The Mavericks extended the winning streak to seven games with a 66-50 win over Staten Island on January 17th. Sophomore Sophia Hoyt recorded her first career double-double with 15 points and 13 rebounds and Abuhatab, Lesko and Miller also scored in double figures. Mercy improved to 12-5 overall and 6-1 in ECC play. Hoyt was named ECC Defensive Player of the Week on January 19th and Lesko was tabbed to the Honor Roll. Lesko was also named MBWA Player of the Week Honorable Mention.
Mercy made it eight wins in a row when they earned a 76-60 win over Queens on January 21st. Barrera, Abuhatab, Hoyt and Lesko scored in double figures as the Mavericks improved to 13-5 overall and 7-1 in ECC play. The Mavericks ended the week with their ninth straight win with a 71-54 win at Molloy on January 24th. Barrera recorded a game-high 21 points and her 100th career block, becoming the fifth Maverick in program history to record 100 career blocks. All nine wins during the streak came by double digits. Barrera was named ECC Defensive Player of the Week on January 26th and Lesko was tabbed to the Honor Roll. Barrera was also named MBWA Player of the Week Honorable Mention.
The Mavericks won their 10th straight game with a 69-65 win at St. Thomas Aquinas on January 31st. Barrera recorded her 1,000th career point and Lesko scored 30 points as Mercy moved to 15-5 overall and 9-1 in ECC play for the first time. Barrera became the 22nd Maverick in program history to record 1,000 career points. Lesko was named ECC Co-Player of the Week on February 2nd, and Barrera was tabbed to the Honor Roll. Lesko was also named MBWA Player of the Week Honorable Mention.
Lagas and the Mavericks saw their 10-game winning streak come to an end with a 77-67 loss to Felician at the Judge Athletic Center. Abuhatab, Boek and Lesko scored in double figures. Mercy bounced back with a 68-54 win over Roberts Wesleyan on February 8th. Barrera, Lesko, Hoyt and Ellwood scored in double figures as Mercy moved to 16-6 overall and 10-1 in ECC play. The Mavericks secured their sixth straight ECC Championship berth and now had double-digit wins in ECC play for the fourth straight season for the first time in program history. Lesko and Barrera were named to the ECC Honor Roll on February 9th.
Mercy picked up their second ranked win of the season with a 58-54 win at No. 13 Daemen on February 13th. Lesko, Abuhatab and Hoyt scored in double figures as the Mavericks overcame a nine-point fourth quarter deficit. Mercy handed Daemen their first ECC loss and first loss against an East Region team this season. The Mavericks ended Daemen's 15-game winning streak against ECC competition and Mercy was off to their best start since the 1984-85 season. The Mavericks capped off the weekend with a 60-46 win at D'Youville. Abuhatab had a game-high 18 points as Mercy improved to 18-6 overall and 12-1 in ECC play. The 12 ECC wins tied a school record and Mercy had won 13 of their last 14 games. Lesko was named ECC Co-Player of the Week on February 16th and Abuhatab was tabbed to the Honor Roll. Lesko was also named MBWA Player of the Week Honorable Mention.
Mercy was under consideration for a spot in the NCAA Tournament in the first regional rankings released on February 18th. The Mavericks earned a 73-55 win at Queens on February 18th with Lesko, Abuhatab and Barrera combining for 63 points. Mercy now had a school record 13 ECC wins and secured a first-round bye in the ECC Championship. Lagas and the Mavericks finished off the week with a 72-57 win over Molloy on February 22nd. Abuhatab, Lesko, Miller and Nembach scored in double figures as Mercy moved to 20-6 overall and 14-1 in ECC play. The Mavericks now had 20 wins in a season for the second time in three seasons and for the seventh time in program history. Abuhatab was named ECC Player of the Week and Lesko was tabbed to the Honor Roll. Abuhatab was also named MBWA Player of the Week Honorable Mention.
The Mavericks were ranked No. 8 in the second NCAA regional rankings released on February 25th. Mercy earned a convincing 73-47 win over St. Thomas Aquinas on Senior Day on February 28th. Prior to the game, Mercy honored Barrera, Marcotte and Nembach. Lesko and Abuhatab combined for 51 points as Mercy secured a share of their first-ever ECC Regular Season Championship. Mercy ended the regular season 21-6 overall and 15-1 in ECC play. The Mavericks now had their most wins since 1985, and their 15 ECC wins were a program record. Mercy ended the regular season with six straight wins and had won 16 of their last 17 games. The win was also Lagas' 100th career win, becoming the third coach in program history to reach the mark. The Mavericks secured the No. 2 seed in the following week's ECC Championship. Lesko was named ECC Player of the Week for the fifth time and Abuhatab was tabbed to the Honor Roll on March 2nd.
Prior to the start of the ECC Championship, Lesko was named ECC Player of the Year and Lagas was named Coach of the Year. Lesko and Abuhatab were named First Team All-Conference and Barrera earned Second Team All-Conference.
The Mavericks were ranked No. 7 in the third NCAA regional rankings released on March 4th. Mercy opened play in the ECC Championship with a 61-55 win over No. 3 seed Molloy in a Semifinal matchup at Daemen on March 7th. Abuhatab had a game-high 20 points as Mercy advanced to the Final for the second time in three seasons. The Mavericks made it seven wins in a row and 17 out of their last 18 games. In a ceremony prior to the game, Leary was presented with the ECC Elite 20 Award for having the highest GPA out of all student-athletes participating in the ECC Championship. Leary currently has a 4.0 GPA as a Health Science -Pre-Occupational Therapy major.
The next day, Mercy played at No. 1 seed Daemen in the ECC Championship Final. Lesko had a team-high 24 points and nine rebounds as Mercy dropped a hard-fought 73-68 decision to the Wildcats. The Mavericks fell to the Wildcats in the Final for the second time in three years.
Mercy waited to hear their name called in the NCAA Tournament Selection Show on March 8th and found out they earned the No. 7 seed in the East Region and would face No. 2 seed Bentley in a First Round matchup on March 13th at Southern Connecticut State. The Mavericks earned their third NCAA Tournament berth and second in three years.
Prior to the start of the NCAA Tournament, Lesko was named D2CCA First Team All-Region, becoming the first Maverick in program history to receive All-Region honors from the D2CCA.
The Mavericks saw their historic season come to an end with a 74-47 loss to Bentley in the First Round of the NCAA Tournament on March 13th. Lesko, Barrera and Boek scored in double figures as Mercy ended the season 22-8. The Mavericks finished with their most wins since 1985, a share of their first-ever ECC Regular Season Championship and a program-record 15 ECC wins. Lesko ended the season with 551 points, setting a new school record for points in a season, surpassing the previous record of 548 set by Helen Peros in 1978.
The awards began to pour in for the Mavericks with Lesko being named WBCA All-American Honorable Mention, MBWA Division II Player of the Year and First Team All-Met. Lagas was named MBWA Division II Coach of the Year and Barrera and Abuhatab were tabbed Second Team All-Met.
Mercy also excelled in the classroom with Nembach, Miller, Lesko and Abuhatab being named College Sports Communicators (CSC) Academic All-District. Lesko was also named ECC Scholar-Athlete of the Year for women's basketball, and the Mavericks earned the ECC Academic Team of Excellence for women's basketball. Lagas and the Mavericks capped off the awards by being named to the WBCA Academic Top 25 Honor Roll with a Division II-best 3.853 GPA.
The Mavericks will look to continue their success under Lagas during the 2026-27 season.
Schedule for the Top 10 Moments of the 2025-26 Season
Every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for the next three weeks, the Mercy University Athletic Department will release the Top 10 moments one at a time beginning with the No. 10 moment on Monday, July 13th. The No. 1 moment will be unveiled on Monday, August 3rd.
No. 1 – August 3rd
No. 2 – July 31st
No. 3 – July 29th
No. 4 - July 27th
No. 5 – Women's Soccer Wins ECC Regular Season Championship and Advances to Second Round of NCAA Tournament
No. 6 – Baseball Finishes as ECC Runner-Up for First Time
No. 7 – Men's Lacrosse Qualifies for ECC Championship for 11th Straight Season and Ends Season Receiving Votes Nationally
No. 8 – Men's Soccer Qualifies for ECC Championship for Seventh Time in Eight Seasons
No. 9 – Field Hockey Nearly Qualifies for NE10 Championship
No. 10 – Men's Basketball Earns ECC Academic Team of Excellence and Kohen Rowbatham is Named Third Team All-ECC and All-Met Honorable Mention
