Five Field Hockey Players Earn All-BIG EAST Recognition

PROVIDENCE, R.I.– Five Providence College field hockey players earned All-BIG EAST honors ahead of the league's championship weekend.  The conference released its post-season awards on Oct. 31.  Senior defender Corinne Kenney (Warrington, Pa.) was named to the All-BIG EAST First Team.  Sophomore midfielder Maddie Babineau (Milton, Ontario), junior forward Izzy Mendez (Cedar Grove, N.J.), junior midfielder Mary O'Reilly (Longmeadow, Mass.) and senior goalkeeper Lydia Rice (Carle Place, N.Y.) were named to the Second Team.

Providence's five All-BIG EAST selections are the second-most in program history.  In 1993, the Friars earned a program-best six all-conference picks.  Providence College also earned five selections in 2014, 2007 and 2006.  In each of the last five seasons, the Friars have had at least four All-BIG EAST honorees – four in 2015, 2016 and 2017 and five in 2014 and 2018.

Prior to the start of the 2018 campaign, Kenney was one of 11 players named to the Preseason All-BIG EAST Team.  She has started all 18 games for the Friars this season and has recorded five points on a career-best five assists, including a single-game high of three assists vs. LIU Brooklyn on Sept. 16.  Kenney missed the 2016 season with an injury, but returned to the field in 2017 and claimed All-BIG EAST Second-Team honors. She also is a three-time NFHCA Division I Academic Squad and BIG EAST All-Academic Team honoree.

Babineau started all 18 games for Providence this year and posted career highs in points (12), goals (three) and assists (six).  Her six assists also lead the team.  Babineau was credited with the game-winning goal in a 6-2 victory over league-foe Quinnipiac on Oct. 12 and notched a season-high two assists in a 4-1 win over Bryant on Sept. 2.  Over the course of her two-year career, she has started each of the Friars' 37 games and owns 18 points on four goals and 10 assists.  Babineau earned BIG EAST All-Academic Team honors as a freshman.

Mendez ranks second on the team in scoring this season with 15 points, having accumulated one assist and a team-best seven goals.  She notched a season-best three points against Quinnipiac on Oct. 12 with one goal and one assist.  For her career, Mendez has appeared in 47 games and has totaled 26 points on 12 goals and two assists.  Six of her 12 career goals have been game winners, including three game-winning goals in 2018.  Earlier this season Mendez earned BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll recognition (10/1). Last year, Mendez was honored as the program's most improved player as the recipient of the Mountain Climber Award.  She also is a NFHCA Division I National Academic Squad and BIG EAST All-Academic Team selection.

O'Reilly cracked double-digits in the scoring column for the first time in her career during the 2018 campaign with 10 points on four goals and two assists.  She was credited with the game-winning goal in a 2-1 victory over Fairfield on Oct. 7.  For her career, O'Reilly has appeared in 55 games and has registered 22 points on seven goals and eight assists.  O'Reilly claimed BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll accolades on Oct. 22 of this season.  She also has been honored as a NFHCA Division I Academic Squad selection (2017) and a two-time BIG EAST All-Academic selection (2017, 2018).

Rice had an impressive season in her first year as the starting goalkeeper at Providence. Rice logged 1,120 minutes in the cage finished second among BIG EAST goalkeepers in shutouts (five), tied for first in save percentage (0.755) and third in goals against average (1.52).  She collected a career-high 16 saves against Liberty in the regular-season finale on Oct. 26.  On Sept. 9, she was named to the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll and also earned BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Week honors on two occasions (Oct. 1 and Oct. 15).

Providence enters the BIG EAST Conference Tournament as the No. 3 seed, having posted an 11-7 overall record and a 4-3 mark in the league play.  The Friars will face No. 2 seed Liberty in the semifinals on Friday, Nov. 2 at 4:00 p.m.  The first semifinal of the day will feature top-seeded Connecticut and No. 4 seed Villanova at 1:00 p.m.  This year's tournament is hosted by Liberty University in Lynchburg, Va.  The winner of each semifinal will advance to the Championship Game on Sunday, Nov. 4 at 1:00 p.m.  Each game of the tournament will be broadcast live on the BIG EAST Digital Network via FOX Sports Go.

BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Year
Agueda Moroni, Liberty

BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year
Cecile Pieper, Connecticut

BIG EAST Freshman of the Year
Cheyenne Sprecher, Connecticut

BIG EAST Coaching Staff of the Year
Connecticut

All-BIG EAST First Team
Svea Boker, Connecticut, Jr., F
Amanda Collins, Connecticut, Sr., F*
Amelia Iacobucci, Connecticut, Sr., F/M
Cecile Pieper, Connecticut, Sr., B*
Cheyenne Sprecher, Connecticut, R-Fr. GK
Jill Bolton, Liberty, So., M
Ashley Dykema, Liberty, So., B/M*
Agueda Moroni, Liberty, Sr., F*
Rebecca Birch, Old Dominion, Jr., B
Erin Huffman, Old Dominion, Jr., F*
Corinne Kenney, Providence, Sr., M/B
*unanimous selection

All-BIG EAST Second Team
Toni Tiedtke, Connecticut, Jr., M/F
Abby Julius, Liberty, Sr., M
Madison Babineau, Providence, So., M
Izzy Mendez, Providence, Jr., F/M
Mary O'Reilly, Providence, Jr., M
Lydia Rice, Providence, Sr., GK
Elisa Ruiz Martinez, Quinnipiac, Sr., MF
Riley Dolan, Villanova, So., M
Erika Miller, Villanova, Sr., GK
Christen Pennington, Villanova, Jr., M/B
Megan Vermeil, Villanova, Jr., F

Completed Event: Field Hockey versus Georgetown on September 26, 2025 , Win , 2, to, 0

Completed Event: Field Hockey versus Hofstra on September 28, 2025 , Win , 3, to, 1

Completed Event: Field Hockey at Connecticut on October 3, 2025 , Loss , 1, to, 3

Completed Event: Field Hockey at Vermont on October 5, 2025 , Win , 2, to, 1 , (OT)

Completed Event: Field Hockey versus Quinnipiac on October 10, 2025 , Loss , 1, to, 2

Completed Event: Field Hockey versus Sacred Heart on October 12, 2025 , Win , 3, to, 1

Completed Event: Field Hockey at #7 Liberty on October 17, 2025 , Loss , 0, to, 2

Completed Event: Field Hockey at Villanova on October 24, 2025 , Loss , 2, to, 4

Completed Event: Field Hockey versus #19 Brown on October 26, 2025 , Loss , 1, to, 5

Completed Event: Field Hockey versus Temple on October 31, 2025 , Loss , 2, to, 3 , (OT)

Providence College Athletics

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Maddie Babineau

Amanda Collins

Izzy Mendez

Mary O'Reilly

Lydia Rice

Five Field Hockey Players Earn All-BIG EAST Recognition

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