Good morning,

It’s been a long off-season. Long enough that last year’s games feel like something you dreamed rather than watched. What’s left are names, expectations, and a quiet sense that something’s about to start again.

That’s the space we’re in now. Before anything goes wrong or surprisingly right. If you need a refresher on who survived last year and who might be standing when this one ends, we’ve got you covered.

Today, our director of media, Adam Lamberti, put together a full look at the division 1 men’s and women’s 2025 season and what 2026 is shaping up to be, with help from a few familiar voices around here.

Let’s get into it. Happy Friday ☕️,
Matt & Deemer

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Champion: Cornell

Tewaaraton Winner: CJ Kirst - Cornell

Runner Up: Maryland

Final Four: Cornell, Maryland, Penn State, Syracuse

Last year was a big year for college lacrosse for both traditional blue blood programs as well as newcomers.

Cornell won it’s first championship since 1977, and it’s fourth national championship overall. Along with the Big Red returning to the limelight, several other programs made major strides toward their ultimate goal.

Syracuse ended a decade long Final Four drought, making their first semi-final appearance since 2013.

Penn State returned to the final four again after recent appearances in 2023 and 2019, their first ever semi-final appearance.

Ohio State won its first Big Ten title while Richmond has firmly entered the college lacrosse scene, securing the program’s first NCAA Tournament win.

The preseason top three consists of blue bloods Princeton and Syracuse, who are looking to win their first National titles since 2001 and 2009 respectively.

But it’s Maryland who is once again at the top of the polls after making the title game in back-to-back years.

But those three are far from being the only contenders.

UNC and Notre Dame will certainly be in the mix from the ACC while Ohio State and Georgetown are looking to finally get over the hump and secure their first national titles. And then, of course, defending champs Cornell will want to defend their title.

With Cornell superstar CJ Kirst graduated, the Tewaaraton races feel wide open. Joey Spallina, the star Syracuse attacker, will be sure to make a push, but don’t count out other attackers like Maryland’s Eric Spanos, Cornell’s Ryan Goldstein or UNC’s Owen Duffy.

Spallina will lead the charge offensively, but seniors Finn Thomson, Michael Leo and Luke Rhoa make the Orange that much more dangerous.

Defensively, Billy Dwan and Riley Figueiras make up a formidable 1-2 duo.

Read Syracuse’s full season preview here.

Georgetown has a complete roster from top to bottom. Colgate transfers Rory and Liam Connor was the final piece to the puzzle.

But for a program that has failed to make a title game, yet alone a Final Four since 1999, are they ready for the moment?

Read Georgetown’s full season preview here.

Attackman Owen Duffy is their superstar, but a talented recruiting class including midfielders Gary Merrill, Luke Bair and Anthony Raio is expected to contribute immediately.

Will it be enough for them to compete this year? Or is 2027 the year they have circled?

Maryland is the preseason #1, but Penn State also reached the Final Four last season and Ohio State won the conference.

Who wins the battle between these three teams? Or does a sleeper like Johns Hopkins spoil the party?

Cornell and Princeton have been the teams to beat in the Ivy League the past few years, and Harvard made the NCAA Tournament last season.

But for a Sean Kirwan led Dartmouth squad, can they become a powerhouse as well?

Champion: North Carolina

Tewaaraton Winner: Chloe Humphrey - North Carolina

Runner Up: Northwestern

Final Four: North Carolina, Northwestern, Florida, Boston College

Chloe Humphrey’s breakout year aided the Tar Heels to the title. The Tewaaraton winner was the first ever freshman to win the award, and her dynamic dodging makes her such a tough cover.

Madison Taylor and Rachel Clark had record-breaking years for Northwestern and Boston College while Florida emerged as a legitimate contender, making the Final Four.

The top four teams in the preseason poll were the Final Four attendees in 2025, but Stanford and Princeton are teams to watch.

Powered by preseason First Team All-American Aliya Polisky, Stanford seems primed for an offensive breakout in 2026. The same could be said for Princeton, who boasts an All-American attacker of their own in Haven Dora.

Maryland, Michigan and Johns Hopkins from the Big Ten are dangerous as well, but do they have the same firepower as the top teams?

Chloe Humphrey leads a Carolina team that returns an awful lot, but Northwestern brought in two impact transfers to go with Madison Taylor in JMU’s Maddie Epke and Syracuse’s Olivia Adamson.

With both teams reloading, is it fair to say we could see this rematch in the championship game in 2026? Time will tell.

Stanford and Princeton are lurking dangerously. Their high-powered offenses could pose a ton of problems for teams, but is it enough to supplant a team like Florida or Boston College?

The Tigers made headlines with snagging the Alexa Spallina, the #1 recruit in the 2025 class, and Emma Penczek, the #2 recruit in the 2025 class.

For a program building rapidly, will these talented freshman be able to compete with UNC and Virginia in the ACC? Or will they have to wait their turn?

Coach Class and Coach Dunn

In December, we had over 125 talented 2026’s and 2027’s ascend on Chase Fieldhouse in Wilmington, DE for our Women’s Committed event!

We return plenty of 2027’s from that event for our Committed Sixes event this summer. Playing by the fast-paced rules of the sixes game, we are super excited to watch the talent. Here are some 2027’s to watch for:

Gates is a tough cover with a nose for the goal. She has a great variety of dodges in her toolkit, including a gorgeous question mark goal at our Committed event in December. Gates is sure to make some more plays at our Committed Sixes event in June!

Clark made a living scoring on the inside at our Committed event in December. A smart lefty, she had perfectly timed cuts and worked well with with Notre Dame commit Shea Shoulberg throughout the event. Clark is sure to rack up more goals in our Committed Sixes event.

Avery stood out more and more throughout our Committed event with her consistent play. She has great footwork to match with dodgers, but also scooped up any loose ball that came her way, which should be an asset in Committed Sixes this summer.

Making tons of dazzling stops, Ciesinski’s athletic ability will be on full display in June, where she will be sure to rob attackers of goals with her quick movements on inside shots.

✏️ Read the full list of standouts from our Committed event in December here.

✅ Want to see more players attending our Committed Sixes event? Check out our @fclbestinclass Instagram page.

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