RINDGE, N.H. (June 23, 2022) -- “No person in the United States shall, based on sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance.” Signed into law 50 years ago Thursday, Title IX has had far-reaching impacts across the education landscape, but it is perhaps most famous for its role in the advancement of women’s sports.

All year long the NCAA has been celebrating Title IX’s 50^th anniversary, and its work in elevating women’s athletics. All year long, the women’s teams of the Franklin Pierce University Department of Athletics joined the party in style. The Ravens saw three women’s teams capture their respective conference championship, while five went on to compete in the NCAA Championship. In all, Franklin Pierce’s 13 women’s teams combined to garner 29 All-Conference selections, eight All-Region accolades and five major league awards.

When all was said and done, eight of the 13 women’s programs made postseason appearances in 2021-22:

Women’s Golf

Since arch-rival Merrimack departed for Division I, there has been no doubt as to who the lone remaining power in Northeast-10 Conference women’s golf is. The Ravens rolled to their third straight NE10 title in October, as freshman Kesinee Prukmathakul (Bangkok, Thailand) took medalist honors and led the way to a 51-stroke victory (tournament recap). The title gave Franklin Pierce an automatic bid to the NCAA Championship, where the program made its third appearance with a 10^th-place finish at the East Regional. Prukmathakul would go on to earn NE10 Player and Rookie of the Year accolades, and also an All-East Region selection from the Women’s Golf Coaches Association. Head coach Tyler Bishop ’08 ’10 was named as NE10 Coach of the Year (NE10 awards).

Women’s Tennis

After earning its first NE10 title, first NCAA Championship appearance and first trip to nationals in 2020-21, the Ravens repeated on all three counts in 2021-22. Despite earning just the third seed, Franklin Pierce fought its way to the NE10 title match in October, and then dispatched fourth-seeded Adelphi, 4-1, to claim the trophy for the second straight year (match recap). In the spring, a 4-0 win over District of Columbia (match recap) punched the ticket for the team’s second straight trip to nationals, and earned the Ravens a Round of 16 date with No. 1 nationally-ranked Barry (match recap). Graduate student Estela Carra (Logrono, Spain), junior Liria Loria (La Paz, Bolivia), sophomore Zoe Asterio Correa (Toronto, Ontario) and junior Jillian Pagliuca (Taunton, Mass.) all earned All-NE10 honors (NE10 awards).

Women’s Ice Hockey

A decade of work came to a crescendo in the second half of the Ravens’ 10^th season on the ice. Three days after a demoralizing, 7-0 loss at home to Dartmouth (game recap), Franklin Pierce was soundly defeated again, 4-0, to open a weekend series at Union (game recap). The Ravens found something the next day against the ECAC opponent though, as they bounced back with a 4-2 win over the Dutchwomen to close out the first semester (game recap). It would be the start of an 11-game winning streak that saw the Ravens surge to the New England Women’s Hockey Alliance regular season title. A pair of postseason shutouts followed, capped by a 1-0 win over rival Saint Anselm in the NEWHA final (game recap), and Franklin Pierce claimed the program’s first NEWHA championship. Sophomore Suzette Faucher (Middleton, Wis.) was the NEWHA Goaltender of the Year, and the national leader in both save percentage (.961) and goals-against average (0.99), while head coach David Stockdale was the NEWHA Coach of the Year (NEWHA awards).

Softball

Speaking of program high-water marks, it was a banner year for Ravens softball. The team opened the season with a program-record 16-game winning streak, on the way to the team’s first-ever 30-win campaign. It was enough to allow the Ravens to earn the program’s first-ever NCAA Championship berth. The crimson and grey even picked up their first NCAA tournament win, with a 3-2 triumph over Bridgeport (game recap), before bowing out to host Georgian Court, 9-1 (game recap). Graduate student Gina Hinckley (Lancaster, Mass.), sophomore Ashley Cangiano (North Attleboro, Mass.) and freshman Lita Vorseth (Mesa, Ariz.) were all both All-Region (All-Region awards) and All-NE10 honorees, while freshman Bella Williams (Phoenix, Ariz.) earned All-NE10 laurels as well (NE10 awards).

Women’s Cross Country

The Ravens could manage only a 10^th-place finish at the NE10 Championship, but that did not stop graduate student Bethaney Donnelly (Manchester, United Kingdom) from chalking up an impressive program first of her own. Donnelly -- who had taken fourth at the conference meet to earn All-NE10 honors (meet recap) -- followed up with a third-place run in the NCAA Championship East Regional (meet recap), which made her the first runner in the history of the women’s program to earn a spot at the NCAA Championship national meet. The Briton traveled to Florida for nationals, where she finished 85^th (meet recap).

Women’s Outdoor Track & Field

The Ravens chalked up a trio of NE10 titles in the spring, as junior Nyjah Young-Bey (Montclair, N.J.) took the crown in both 200 and 400 meters, while senior Paola Brena (Queretaro, Mexico) won the high jump at the NE10 Championships (meet recap). Young-Bey and freshman Nouhayla Errahili (Fes, Morocco) would qualify to represent the Ravens in Michigan at the NCAA Championships, in the 400 meters and the high jump, respectively. Errahili, who also earned NE10 Rookie Field Athlete of the Year honors (NE10 awards), would finish fourth to claim All-America accolades (meet recap).

Women’s Soccer

After a one-year hiatus, the Ravens returned to the NE10 Championship following a fifth-place finish during the regular season. As the fifth seed, the crimson and grey went on the road for the quarterfinal round and took fourth-seeded Assumption to the limit. The two sides played to a 0-0 draw, but the Greyhounds ultimately advanced on penalty kicks (game recap). Junior Viridiana Vazquez Kloss (Veracruz, Mexico), freshman Aino Martikainen (Järvenpää, Finland) and freshman Jasmine Perez-Acosta (Cape Coral, Fla.) all earned both All-Region (All-Region awards) and All-NE10 accolades (NE10 awards). Kloss also earned a selection to the Academic All-America Third Team from College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA Academic All-America Teams).

Women’s Basketball

By virtue of the league allowing all its teams to qualify for the postseason in 2021-22, the Ravens returned to the NE10 Championship for the first time since 2016, but put together a strong showing with their opportunity. Despite being the Northeast Division’s sixth seed, Franklin Pierce went on the road and upset Southwest Division three-seed Adelphi, 61-58 (game recap), behind a game-best 18 points from senior Rylee Skinner (Leominster, Mass.). The Ravens gave Northeast Division second seed Bentley a game in the second round as well, before falling, 63-52. Senior Emma Carter (Bristol, Vt.) was an All-NE10 Second Team pick (NE10 awards).