Babson’s Tournament Teams Celebrated in Athletics Commencement Ceremony

Babson College’s celebration of the Class of 2026 continued Monday by honoring more than two dozen graduating student-athletes who were competing this past weekend during the undergraduate and graduate Commencement ceremonies.

The special ceremony at the Carling-Sorenson Theater celebrated graduating members of the baseball and men’s lacrosse teams.

“I played four years of football and lacrosse in college,” Babson President Stephen Spinelli Jr. MBA’92, PhD said during the ceremony. “My Jiffy Lube partners were teammates, and I learned a lot from those experiences on a team. You are my kindred spirits.”

See highlight of the ceremony in the post below.

Men’s Lacrosse

The men’s lacrosse team, which won the New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) tournament title for the fourth year in a row, advanced to the NCAA tournament quarterfinals for the first time in program history. The Beavers (18-3) won two NCAA tournament games at home, defeating Massachusetts Maritine, 26-8, and St. Lawrence, 13-9. In the national quarterfinals, Babson fell to RIT, 21-14, Friday night in Brunswick, Maine.

Graduates on the team include Hong Ahn ’26, Joey Allen MSEL’26, Tyee Ambrosh ’26, Beau Burns MSF’26, Hugh Curran MSEL’26, Mason Dorr MSF’26, Luke D’Orsi ’26, Samuel Erjavac ’26, John Feeks ’26, Thomas French III ’26, Terry Li ’26, Patrick McAleavey MSF’26, Samir McElroy ’26, William Reading ’26, Braden Reilly ’26, Drew Scott ’26, Jackson Simon ’26, and Bennett Smith ’26.

Baseball

The baseball team, which also won the NEWMAC tournament championship for the second time in three years, played in the NCAA tournament for the seventh time in program history. The Beavers (27-17) lost their opening game, 11-7, at Southern Maine on Saturday, but rallied to defeat RIT, 9-8, on Sunday, before being eliminated by Southern Maine, 14-4.

Graduates on the team include Michael Camardi ’25, MSEL’26, Joseph Carrea MSEL’26, James Clark ’26, Connor Doan ’26, Ryan Grace MSEL’26, Ryan Hvozdovic ’26, Calvin Place MSF’26, Vinnie Purpura ’26, Cooper Smith MSF’26, Owen Stephens ’26, and Zander Teator ’26.

Spring Successes

Meanwhile, the historic spring season for Babson Athletics continues.

The women’s tennis team advanced to the NCAA tournament semifinals for the first time in program history with a 4-0 victory over the University of Chicago in the quarterfinals. Two-time national champion Matia Cristiani ’26, the top-ranked singles player in Division III, and her sister, Alessandra Cristiani ’27, led the way, both winning their singles and doubles matches. The Beavers (18-4) face Washington University in the national semifinals at 5 p.m. Tuesday at Chattanooga, Tennessee.

Also, two high jumpers on the men’s and women’s track & field teams are making history after officially being selected to compete in the NCAA Division III Outdoor Championships on Friday at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse.

Skyler Mott MBA’27, who competes at noon Friday, is the Babson men’s sixth national qualifier since 2022 and the first high jumper in program history to qualify. And, Amrit Rehal ‘28, who competes at 3 p.m., is the Babson women’s first qualifier since 2022 and the program’s first field athlete in school history to earn a spot at nationals.

Finally, men’s golfer Aman Vantipalli ’28 shot a 2-under 70, including an eagle and four birdies, in the final round of the NCAA Division III National Championship in Florida. Vantipalli, who finished in a tie for 49th place at 7-over, posted the program’s lowest round in NCAA Championship competition and became the first Babson competitor in program history to finish under par twice over four rounds in the national tournament.