Tabor girls basketball will always find itself in the NEPSAC AAA conversation. Last year, with Lydia Caputi moving up to head coach for the first time, the Seawolves found themselves ahead of schedule.
Despite graduating three high-major stars in 2025, Tabor returned with almost no falloff. They even briefly held the top spot in our NEPSAC rankings last winter before bowing out against Hoosac in the semifinals.
This year, count the Seawolves among many (maybe all?) teams in AAA with a viable championship claim. They have at least one superstar prospect in the region. But who else will help the team maintain contention?
Here's our season preview.
MORE TEAM PREVIEWS: Berkshire |Newman | Hoosac | Sacred Heart
State of the program
The Seawolves have long been one of NEPSAC's legacy girls basketball programs. They've won titles in 1995 and 1997, 2002-2004, 2010 and 2011, and most recently in 2022, according to NEPSAC's championship history.
Tabor has reached the semifinals of Class AA, and now Class AAA, every year since that 2022 title — but hasn't broken through to the championship game since. The Seawolves graduated five seniors and significant guard talent, including Molly Corcoran (now at Colgate), Callie Cosgrove (St. Anselm), Tess Adams (Bentley) and Sophia Florio (Union), as well as forward Kaitlyn Jones (NYU).
The coach
Lydia Caputi enters her second season leading the Seawolves' bench. Last year, she swapped spots on the sidelines with longtime head coach Will Becker, who remains on staff as an assistant.
Caputi played at Tabor and graduated in 2014, going on to a college career at Bowdoin. She previously coached as an assistant at Trinity and was a director of basketball operations at Dartmouth before taking over the Westminster program for a season. Caputi then returned to Tabor as an assistant in 2023.
The star players
Corinne Lomax (Watertown, Conn.) erupted as a breakout junior last winter, averaging a double-double and landing on our All-Class AAA First Team. She continued soaring during the grassroots season with Mass Rivals, rising to No. 65 in ESPN's national 2027 rankings, and committed to Arizona at the start of September. Lomax has put in significant work on 3-point shot as part of her recent growth.
DECISION MADE:Â Why Lomax chose the Wildcats
Our second-ranked senior prospect in New England has the pressure of a college decision behind her now. Lomax now wants to be a role model for a younger Tabor team and impart some of the lessons she's learned from the grind of a winter prep season.
"You gotta get in the gym," she said. "The best time to work out is when you don't feel like it and you're tired and you're discouraged. Always, your work ethic should stay the same. And with new players, especially two freshmen — we didn't have any freshmen last year, so that's definitely a big difference. They have a big adjustment coming in to that stuff, but I'm really excited. I try to model having good work ethic and getting in the gym (on) early mornings."
Lily Davis (Waterford, Conn.) dominated the open gym I attended on Oct. 8. The 2028 point guard ascended to the starting five last year and will be a core playmaker as a junior. Davis' driving speed and layup touch have always been signature skills, but she's gotten physically stronger and also looks more balanced in her decision-making off the dribble.
"She has a bigger role with Molly not being here. I like that she can she can get to the basket, attack, do all these things, but she's also a pass-first point guard for our team," Lomax said.
The under-the-radar player
Colgate commit Lauren Fitzgerald is a top 2027 prospect at No. 14 in our rankings. But her impact sometimes goes underrated and she'll be relied on even more heavily as a senior.
Fitzgerald is a 6-foot-1 wing with an elite first step to attack closeouts. Her length and mobility at her position make her one of the most versatile defenders in NEPSAC. At the open gym I watched, Fitzgerald seemed stronger, and she was the only player who made consistent 1-on-1 stops against Lomax. Caputi wants to see Fitzgerald be confident seizing chances to take over games on both ends of the floor.
"It's (about) that permission to dominate — you have to give yourself that permission, and she has slowly started to, which I think is great," Caputi said. "It won't always be Corinne that finishes with 25 and 30 (points). That's the beauty of having having a really balanced roster. ... We'll have a different high score every single game. Could it be Lauren Fitzgerald every game, though? Yeah, it could be, because she knows how to dominate. So (now) it's: OK, go do it."
The newcomers
Tabor's newcomers will determine the ceiling of this team. The Seawolves have a handful of promising young transfers in the fold.
We could see 2030 guard Zahara Wilson (Springfield, Mass.) make an impact quickly, and I'll be remembering classmate Ally Ulysse (North Easton, Mass.) as well. McKayla McLoughlin's toughness at the guard position will be critical to filling out the backcourt depth. She hails from Port Chester, N.Y. and already has four Division 1 offers from Le Moyne, St. Peter's, Central Connecticut and Iona as a true 2028.
Allie McBride (Etna, N.H.) is an instant top sharpshooter as a 2028 transfer from Holderness, and she'll help space the floor with returning 2028 guard Mackenzie Martinez (Walpole, Mass.).
I'm most intrigued by the potential of 2029 wing Sadie Hartley-Matteson (Rochester, Mass.). She flew far under the radar at Old Rochester before transferring and and has a promising blend of athletic traits and skill at 6-foot-1. Hartley-Matteson can drive the ball and finish around the rim, and she also shows flashes of knockdown shooting.
"It's (about) setting an expectation, but the expectation not necessarily being outcome-focused," Caputi said of Hartley-Matteson. "The expectation is that you put the ball on the floor and you attack when you have the opportunity to put the ball on the floor and attack. I don't need the bucket, but I do need you to challenge yourself in new ways because that's how you're going to continue to grow as a player, and it's how you're going to continue to impact our team."
Our expectations
I'd almost guarantee Tabor's top three level up from last year. We know Lomax can dominate and she still has more to unlock as a centerpiece to an offense. Davis continues to make significant jumps year-over-year; I think she'll be one of NEPSAC's best point guards this winter. And Fitzgerald has the opportunities for statement games herself.
The unknown lies with the youth around those three. Lomax, Fitzgerald and Holy Cross rowing commit Reese Friedman (Mattapoisett, Mass.) are the only seniors. How much can we expect in the first year this group is together?
Tabor might take its hits early as its surrounding talent adapts to the gauntlet of the Class AAA schedule. But this squad has legitimate championship upside and I'll be fascinated to see what it looks like by March.
