March Madness 2026: Vermont is a women's NCAA tournament Cinderella candidate ready for its breakthrough
Vermont is no stranger to NCAA postseason tournaments . When the women's basketball team faces No. 3 Louisville on Saturday in the Round of 64, it'll mark the third time in four years that the Catamounts have made it to the Big Dance.
The reigning two-time America East champs boast the fourth-best defense in the country, with opponents averaging 51. 6 points per game. They also bring back most of the same roster that traveled to N.
C. State last year as a 15-seed, and three seniors who faced UConn in the tournament's first round in 2023. "The first time we were there with this program in years was at UConn," said two-time America East Coach of the Year Alisa Kresge.
"As we have Keira [Hanson] and Nikola [Priede] and Cat [Gilwee] going into their third time, they're talking about the experience and we can't be afraid of that moment. We know what it feels like. " Nikola Priede against the NC State Wolfpack during the first round of the 2025 NCAA tournament.
(Photo by Lance King/NCAA Photos via Getty Images) Lance King via Getty Images Seizing the moment is something the University of Vermont athletic department has taken advantage of, with the men's soccer team capturing its first national title as an unlikely Cinderella in 2024. The Catamounts boast their own bit of basketball history, too, when the 13-seed men's basketball team upset No. 4 Syracuse in the 2005 men's NCAA tournament.
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