WLAX regional preview

2026 NCAA Women's Lacrosse Regional Preview

By Andrew Barbieri
Doyle preview pic

The Rundown

The undefeated and second-ranked Salisbury University women's lacrosse team hosts the regional semifinal and final of the 2026 NCAA DIII Women's Lacrosse Tournament. The Sea Gulls will face No. 14 York (Pa.) on Saturday at 11:30 a.m. with the winner to do battle against the victor of No. 5 Denison and No. 19 CNU on Sunday at 1 p.m. for a spot in the Final Four at Judson Stadium in Rochester, NY, on Friday, May 22. 

Defense preview WLAX

How We Got Here 

Salisbury enters the weekend with an 18-0 record, standing as one of the last unbeaten teams in DIII women's lacrosse. The Sea Gulls amassed nine wins against ranked opponents, including three against top-10 squads. The Gulls boast a 7.44 scoring margin and claimed their sixth straight conference title by dispatching CNU 11-9 in the C2C Championship. After earning a bye in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, The Maroon and Gold powered through Union, 17-9 to reach its tenth consecutive regional semifinal.  

Audrey preview

Second Round Recap

Miranda Mears and Audrey Harrington did the heavy lifting for the Sea Gulls in their victory over the Garnet Chargers. The senior duo each tallied six-point outings, with Mears finding twine six times and Harrington netting a goal to go along with five helpers. Trailing 4-1, Salisbury rattled off five straight scores with four coming a player down. A 10-3 stretch in the 2nd and 3rd quarters gave SU enough firepower to advance to the Sweet Sixteen.  

2nd round WLAX advance
Live Video (All Games)
Live Stats (All Games)
Tournament Webpage (Schedule, Parking Info)

Players to Watch

Mears PTW
Miranda Mears | Sr. | A
Audrey PTW
Audrey Harrington | Sr. | A
Abby Fleishell PTW
Abby Fleishell | Sr. | D
  • Audrey Harrington - Harrington has carried along the tradition of prolific "X" attackers for SU after being named the conference's Offensive Player of the Year in 2025 and 2026. Harrington has distributed a conference-leading 2.00 assists per game and stands at 43 markers and 36 helpers. The Mount Hebron High School product tied the program's single-game goal record with seven goals in a top-ten battle against William Smith on March 16 and has recorded two eight-point performances during the 2026 campaign.
  • Miranda Mears - Mears has fired in 53 goals and has picked up one helper. The former Parkside Ram compiled her third First Team selection and leads the C2C in shot percentage (56.6%). Mears posted back-to-back five-goal outings against Shenandoah and No. 6 Gettysburg on March 7 and March 11, respectively, and netted six tallies on the road at Mary Washington on April 4. 
  • Avery Dunbar - Dunbar has elevated her production from her freshman campaign, logging 15 goals and 27 assists in 15 games. The Shawnee High School product sits at 1.80 assists per game. Dunbar has reeled in two C2C Offensive Player of the Week laurels and has put up four or more points in five contests.
  • Lauren Hackett  - Hackett has produced career-highs with 47 points on 23 goals and 24 helpers. The senior has logged five or more points in five games in 18 starts.
  • Regan McDonnell - McDonnell took in her second straight All-C2C selection and has been a lethal two-way threat for the Maroon and Gold in her second year, regularly patrolling the midfield. McDonnell has scored in 15 of 17 affairs, tallying 30 goals and four helpers, while collecting 24 ground balls, 22 caused turnovers and 59 draw controls. McDonnell filled up the stat sheet in SU's come-from-behind victory against No. 7 York (Pa.), going for three goals, an assist, three grounders, three caused miscues and three draw controls.
  • Leah Doy - The sophomore from New Market, Md. posted her first career hat-trick in the first bout against CNU and has recorded a modest 23 points on 19 tallies and four helpers.
  • Grace Doyle - Doyle was a 2025 All-Chesapeake member and has proven to be a formidable force on both sides of the field and has recorded 60 goals, seven assists, 38 ground balls, 46 caused turnovers and 111 draw controls in her career.
  • Grace Milliron - Miliron has paced the offensive midfield with two hat-tricks against No. 6 Gettysburg and No. 12 Franklin and Marshall throughout en route to 11 goals and six assists in her senior campaign.
  • Abby Fleishell - Fleishell has proved again to be one of the top shutdown defenders in the nation. Fleishell was named the USA Lacrosse Preseason Defender of the Year in January and was tabbed the IWLCA Defender of the Week on April 14 for a six-ground ball, five-caused turnover afternoon in a 6-4 dub over No. 18 TCNJ. The Century High School product has totaled 44 ground balls, 29 caused turnovers and 54 draw controls on the season.
  • Reagan Davis - Davis has helped anchor the Sea Gulls defensively. Starting in 60-straight contests, Davis garnered a C2C Defensive Player of the Week nod for a four-caused turnover game against No. 6 Gettysburg on March 11. The Westminster High School tallied 21 ground balls and 17 forced turnovers on the year.
  • Sydney Block - Block made 12 appearances last season and has carved out a role on the Salisbury backline. The former Parkside Ram has started in 17 of 18 games played and chased down 15 ground balls and caused seven errors.
  • Paige Ellis - Ellis has solidified the crease for Salisbury a second straight season. The two-time All-C2C choice stands 21st in the country in goals against average (7.66) and is second in the conference with a 45.4 percent save percentage. Ellis boasts a 17-0 record so far this season and denied No. 21 CNU 11 times in a 15-9 Gull victory two weekends ago.

Opposing Teams

  • 16-4 (6-1 MAC Commonwealth) in 2026
  • Fifth consecutive MAC Commonwealth title.
  • Making third appearance in the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament in five years.
  • Beat Wooster in NCAA Second Round on Sunday, 14-7.
  • Ranked Wins: No. 10 F&M, No. 13 Stevens, No. 15 Messiah, No. 21 Trinity (Conn.) and No. 25 Scranton
  • Offensive Player to Watch - #34 Sydney Mentzer: The MACC Midefielder of the Year was a force against Salisbury earlier in the year with four goals and four assists. On the year, the senior leads the Spartans in goals (54), assists (27), draw controls (90) and caused turnovers (26).
  • Defensive Player to Watch - #17 Kate Walsh: The Bel Air, Md. product earned MACC Defender of the Year, notching 15 caused turnovers and 34 ground balls. 
  • Goalkeeper - #33 Audrey Simoes: Simoes carries a 14-4 record and has made 132 saves to hold a 52.0 percent save percentage and a 7.79 goals against average.
  • 19-1 (7-0 NCAC) in 2026
  • fourth straight NCAC title, 19th conference title in program history, toppled Wooster 19-10 in conference title game.
  • Eighth consecutive appearance in the regional semifinal and 12th overall.
  • Ranked Wins: #4 Gettysburg (11-10), #6 W&L (15-11), #17 Messiah (12-11) and #19 CNU (16-7).
  • Offensive Player to Watch - #14 MK Barnhart: The NCAC Offensive Player of the Year broke the Denison single-season record with 46 assists. The sophomore from Rehoboth Beach logged seven games with three or more assists and paired it with 22 goals. 
  • Defensive Player to Watch - #16 Grace Schlossberg: The junior from Baltimore averages 2.84 ground balls per game, combining it with 25 CTs to help anchor a defense that allowed 6.55 goals per game, good enough for 18th in the country.
  • Goalkeeper - #40 Julianne Henigan: The junior keeper flexes a 16-1 record with 109 saves on 98 goals and a 6.91 GAA.
  • 15-6 (1-1 C2C) in 2026
  • 3-5 versus ranked teams this season
  • Rallied from down 7-4 against No. 11 W&L to win 8-7 in overtime in NCAA Second Round
  • Appearing in third Sweet 16 in program history.
  • Offensive Players to Watch - #22 Elena Sorkin and #14 Faith O'Connor: The duo has tucked 70 and 68 goals, respectively to make up 48 percent of the team's goal production.
  • Defensive Player to Watch - #1 Brookelyn Morrison: While having a career year offensively (46-30-76), the senior has been CNU's most productive player at gaining possession with 48 grounders, 52 caused turnovers and 124 draw controls.
  • Goalkeeper - #34 Hadley Chadwick: Chadwick has made 75 career starts and touts a 40.1 percent save percentage and a 10.01 GAA.
Division III Tournament Bracket

#GoGulls | #ChampionsWearGold

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