Volleyball
20-12 in 2012, won Little East Conference Championship
Another year, another season of high expectations for the volleyball team. The four-time defending Little East Conference Champions are expecting no less that an unprecedented fifth straight title and a return trip to the NCAA Elite Eight.
Veteran coach Terry Condon feels that this squad is “well rounded,” despite losing All-American Shannon Thompson and major-role players Brooke Nemethy and Kayla Wilson from last year’s team. This season, look for the likes of Kirsten Morrison, Corrine Porter, Amber Clemons, Molly Witzmann, and Blair Boyer to step up and fill the holes left by the departing seniors. With nine new freshmen, this is the largest team Coach Condon has had in what will be her ninth season as head coach.
The Beacons finally have the luxury of playing a home schedule this year. Last season, they had to play every one of their games on the road while the Clark Center was being renovated.
It should be another exciting year for this squad as they begin their drive for five. They started off the year on the right foot at the Colorado College Invitational in Colorado Springs, where they beat Central College 3-0 and Pacific 3-2 to return to New England undefeated.
Women’s Soccer
18-3 in 2012, won Little East Conference Championship
Speaking of defending Little East Conference Champions teams with high expectations, the Women’s Soccer team is looking to pick up where they left off last season. It was a season that saw numerous firsts: an appearance in the national polls, Little East Conference regular-season and tournament championships, and a berth in the NCAA tournament. The Beacons even beat a team they had never beaten before, conference rival Keene State.
Coach Amy Zombeck expects teams from all over New England to be targeting this team, which returns 100-career-point scorers Krista Ledin (a Third Team All-American) and Tayla Andrews, as well as reigning team MVP Samantha Cristoforo. She also has her team understanding how tough it is to repeat as champions, and how hard they must work to continue their reign atop the Little East.
Aside from Andrews, Ledin, and Cristoforo, look to see Kara Peters, Ericka Garufi, Alexandria Levesque, Kaelyn DaCosta, and Hannah Lear step up and play huge roles this season, as well as provide a bright future for the Beacons. In their first match of the season, the ladies steamrolled University of New England 4-0 at home.
Women’s Tennis
3-10 in 2012
Despite coming off a 3-10 effort a year ago and a projection to finish towards the bottom of the Little East, coach Eric Berg still feels that his  team has the potential to surprise some people this year. The team is lead by the solid senior captains Anitra Kloczewiak and Samantha Counts.
The coach says that with a very young team, he expects Kloczewiak and Counts “to lead by example and urge the team on when needed.” He also feels that the underclassmen are “essential to our team chemistry” and have already shown flashes of promise on the court.
Aside from being picked last in the pre-season poll, the team has a little extra motivation this season: They hope to match the success of their male counter-parts, who captured the Little East Conference title this past spring.
Men’s Soccer
5-10-2 in 2012
The Men’s Soccer team comes into this season with a whole new look, starting with first-time rookie head coach Jake Beverlin. Beverlin takes over for long-time coach Myles Berry and brings a new attitude to this year’s Beacons.
The San Francisco State grad, who previously held positions at Boston University and Bunker Hill Community College (where he enjoyed tremendous success), also worked as an assistant with the Boston Breakers women’s soccer club.
Beverlin is bringing in nine new freshmen and nine transfers, six of them from Bunker Hill Community College. The team also kept a handful of returners, including Douglas Silveira, who was First-Team All-Conference last season, as well as Lucas Ordosgoitia, who started 16 games in 2012 as a mid-fielder.
With fresh talent, a good group of returners, and a proven winner in Jake Berverlin, this team could be very exciting to watch. The guys are currently 1-1 following a loss on opening day to Fitchburg State and a 3-1 win over Newbury College on Sunday. 
Cross-Country
The men’s and women’s cross-country teams head into a new season looking to hang with some of the top runners in both the Little East Conference and New England.
The men’s team is led by Jake Kerin, the writer of this article, and Tad Delaney, and supported by a solid cast of Joe Miller, Chhenlee Ly, Emilio Alvarez-Flores, and Ed McDonald. The women’s team will be spearheaded by freshman Angelica Pizzi and senior Ariana Leao. Danielle Valerie, Renee O’Brien, and Ashley Cahill round out what should be a solid squad on the women’s side, something UMass Boston has not had in quite some time.
The team is coached by Eric Ashe, a former standout at Boston University and a current member of the Boston Athletic Association. He knows what it takes to lead a rising cross-country team and will have his runners working hard in order to improve their times throughout the season.