Anchorwomen basketball gears up for 2025-26 season: A season preview

Tim Yean

Sports Editor

Jenna Cosgrove enters her eighth year as the head coach of the Rhode Island College women's basketball team as she looks to guide the Anchorwomen’s rebound from a first-round playoff exit in the Little East Conference playoffs last season. 

RIC scored 19-7 overall last year and tied for first at the conclusion of the regular season with eventual LEC champion University of Massachusetts Dartmouth with a 14-2 conference record, but were toppled in the first round by the eventual runner-ups of the LEC Tournament Championship game, the University of Southern Maine Huskies, 71-57.

The Anchorwomen aim to return to the NCAA Tournament this year following a tough first-round exit in the LEC playoffs last year. (photo cred. Tim Yean)

Staff changes

The Anchorwomen will be without assistant coach and RIC Athletic Hall of Famer Claudia DeFaria for the first time in six seasons. She had served as the coordinator of women’s basketball operations prior to her second assistant coaching stint with the Anchorwomen, and was the associate head coach for them from 2008-13.

Jontai Williams was hired to fill DeFaria’s spot in the coaching staff. A former student-athlete at Saint Michael’s College, Williams has extensive coaching experience across multiple levels of basketball. He most recently served as the head assistant boys basketball coach for the Rocky Hill Country Day prep school, helping the Mariners to a playoff run in the New England Preparatory School Athletic Council playoffs.

Derek Shanks and Meghan Reall both return from last year’s team for their fourth and third seasons respectively.

Player losses and returns

The Anchorwomen have big shoes to fill with the losses of 1,000-point scorers Angelina Nardolillo and Madison Medbury to graduation. Both accumulated numerous accolades in their final season with Rhode Island College. They were two of three players who averaged double figures in scoring for RIC. Medbury played a key role as the team’s lead playmaker and sharpshooter, leading the team in assists and three-point makes and attempts last year as the team’s main scoring option. Nardolillo was the leading rebounder for the Anchorwomen averaging 10 rebounds per game. 

The Anchorwomen also graduated Jayda Bing, who started six of eight games after returning from injury, and Maggie Schwab, a consistent part of the Anchorwomen rotation.

Junior Meagan Schuermann is the only returning player for the Anchorwomen to average double digits. She should arise as one of coach Cosgrove’s key assets throughout the campaign on both ends of the court, being the team’s returning leader in steals, rebounds and blocks. 

Sophomores Naima Bleou and Shalyn Smith may see an uptick in their role at point guard, averaging 1.6 and 1.5 assists per game, respectively, as the second and third leading assist-getters returning from last year.

Eight of ten players on this year’s roster are returning, five of those eight sophomores. RIC will be rolling out a young team in which nearly everyone will see an increase in playing time. Returning alongside the previously mentioned are junior guard Maggie McKitchen and junior forward Emma Tenters and sophomore guards Janae Gomes, Jaina Yekelchik and Nichole Ljuljic.

Newcomers

Only two players were added to the roster this year, one transfer and one freshman. Junior Abby Wager is a transfer from Southern New Hampshire University, a Division II program. She averaged 9.4 points per game, 2.3 rebounds per game and 2.9 assists per game in her sophomore season with the Penmen. She should make a strong impact this year coming down to Division III.

Eva Monahan is the lone freshman Anchorwoman on the roster, coming from the Winchendon School in Winchendon, Massachusetts. She was a three-sport athlete, also playing volleyball and softball during her time as a Winchendon Wapiti. She was a two-time All-Conference selection during her high school basketball career. 

What will this team look like?

The graduation of two one-thousand-point scorers is bound to switch things up. It looks like a youth movement at Rhode Island College this season. It will be interesting to see the ebb and flow of this squad as the year progresses. The big question mark is who else will make that huge leap in production besides Schuermann. 

The Anchorwomen were third in three-point attempts in the LEC last year. Will they continue to lean on the perimeter? What will RIC look like inside the paint? Right now, the answer doesn’t seem too clear.

Coming up

The Anchorwomen will open up their season abroad with a two-game road trip to Western New England University and Brandeis University on Monday, Nov. 10 and Thursday, Nov. 13. Their first home game at the Murray Center will be Saturday, Nov. 15, versus The College of New Jersey. That matchup will be the beginning of a six-game defense of home court.