Providence women’s basketball coach Erin Batth speaks after beating URI
The Friars edged the Rams, 48-45, in Wednesday’s rivalry game at the Ryan Center.
- Providence women’s basketball nonconference schedule features a challenging matchup against national powerhouse South Carolina.
- The Friars will play three home games against local rivals Bryant, Rhode Island, and Boston College.
- The team will rely heavily on newcomers after graduating 10 players from last season’s roster.
A trip to face a national power and three home games against local rivals highlight the nonconference schedule released by the Providence women on Monday, June 23.
The Friars complete their preparation for Big East play with a visit to South Carolina, a three-time NCAA Tournament champion under coach Dawn Staley since 2016-17. That tip with the Gamecocks comes on Dec. 28 and follows matchups with Boston College, Bryant and the University of Rhode Island.
Providence begins with an Oct. 29 exhibition against Franklin Pierce before its official season opener against Howard on Nov. 4. The Eagles also visit Nov. 15 as part of six consecutive games at Alumni Hall.
Providence leaves campus for the first time to compete at the Emerald Coast Classic, a two-day event in Florida. The Friars take on Middle Tennessee State in a Nov. 24 opener and could face either Mississippi State or Alcorn State the following day. A meeting with the Bulldogs would give Providence a pair of SEC foes on the schedule.
Bryant heads downtown for a Nov. 30 tip and the Rams follow on Dec. 10, a rematch of what was a low-scoring contest at the Ryan Center last year. The Friars survived in a 48-45 grinder to claim bragging rights for the season. Stonehill is next on Dec. 13, Providence’s last game before a 15-day holiday break.
South Carolina has reached the Final Four in each of the last five editions of March Madness and in seven of the last 10. Staley has lost just four conference games since 2019-20 and authored a perfect 38-0 campaign in 2023-24. The Gamecocks fell to Connecticut in last season’s title game, an 82-59 blowout that saw Paige Bueckers and the Huskies complete a return to the sport’s pinnacle.
The Friars graduated 10 players off last year’s 13-19 team and will be almost entirely brand new in terms of their returning roster. Orlagh Gormley and Audrey Shields earned some bench minutes as first-year prospects and Sami Mancini spent the second semester on campus as a redshirt. Providence will feature a new group of transfers and prep recruits otherwise.
Sabou Gueye (Florida A&M), Nalani Kaysia (George Mason), Teneisia Brown (Fairleigh Dickinson), Payton Dunbar (Virginia) and Eseosa Imafidon (Louisville) all arrive through the transfer portal, with Imafidon set to redshirt and debut in 2026-27. Brown prepped at St. Andrew’s before stops at Merrimack and with the Knights. She was the Defensive Player of the Year in the Northeast Conference last season while averaging 15.1 points and 9.7 rebounds.
The Friars also made a staff change under coach Erin Batth, with Elissa Cunane hired as an assistant to replace Kaili McLaren. Batth was an assistant coach and worked primarily with frontcourt players while Cunane suited up for North Carolina State from 2018-22. McLaren was hired away to Vanderbilt by coach Shea Ralph, a reunion between two former Connecticut players.
Broadcast information and game times will be confirmed at a later date.
Providence women’s basketball nonconference schedule
Oct. 29 – Franklin Pierce
Nov. 4 – Howard
Nov. 10 – Central Connecticut State
Nov. 15 – Boston College
Nov. 18 – Northeastern
Nov. 21 – Yale
Nov. 24 – Middle Tennessee State (Emerald Coast Classic)
Nov. 25 – Mississippi State/Alcorn State (Emerald Coast Classic)
Nov. 30 – Bryant
Dec. 10 – Rhode Island
Dec. 13 – Stonehill
Dec. 28 – at South Carolina
On X: @BillKoch25
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