2026 Princeton Women's Lacrosse Season Outlook
2/5/2026
There will be no sneaking up on anyone for Princeton in 2026 as the Tigers enter the season as a consensus Top-10 team following a run to the NCAA Quarterfinals last May.
The Tigers are ranked No. 6 in the Preseason IWLCA Coaches Poll and the Nike Lacrosse Media Poll and come in at No. 5 in USA Lacrosse Magazine’s rankings, leading the way for an always-strong Ivy League.
Princeton returns an experienced group with nine starters back for 2026 including Jami MacDonald (12th in career points by a Tiger; 189), Haven Dora (Princeton’s all-time leader in assists; 107), Abigail Roberts (8th all-time in draw controls by a Tiger; 126) and Amelia Hughes (7th all-time in saves by a Tiger; 509) in addition to returning third-team IWLCA All-American defender Dylan Allen.
The Orange and Black will be tested throughout the season, with seven games on the schedule against teams that played in the 2025 NCAA Tournament. Of Princeton’s eight non-conference games, five come against teams ranked inside the Preseason IWLCA Coaches Poll including Top-10 games at No. 7 Maryland and No. 10 Virginia among the team’s first five contests.
Princeton will play six of its first seven games of the season away from Class of 1952 Stadium, setting the stage for a sprint to the conclusion of the regular season where the Tigers will play six of its final eight games – including four Ivy battles – at home.
Starters Returning – Haven Dora, Jami MacDonald
Other Letterwinners Returning – Dylan Casazza, Kendall Dean, Maddie Mitchell, Meg Morrisroe, Grace Mulham, Merrill Watson
Newcomers – Kate Dente, Grace Farrell
The Tigers were explosive on attack in 2025, and the expectation is that the firepower continues to be well-balanced and ever-present in 2026. Seniors Jami MacDonald (58g, 34a, 92p) and Haven Dora (29g, 60a, 89p) are past Tewaaraton Award Watch List selections and experienced National Team medal-winners who return to provide a wealth of leadership and skill as one of the most dynamic duos in all of college lacrosse. The third-most experienced member of the attacker group is junior Meg Morrisroe who had 38 goals last season. To the outside, the graduation of all-time leading goal-scorer McKenzie Blake looms large. To the Tigers, they know they return three of their top four scorers who combined for 41% of Princeton’s goals scored last season. The next wave of attack includes sophomore Grace Mulham who had seven goals in seven games before her season was cut short due to injury. She’s healthy as 2026 opens and ready to take on more of a role when the Tigers have the ball. Dylan Casazza, Kendall Dean and Maddie Mitchell all had points last season for the attacking group and are fluent in the offense. Merrill Watson missed all of 2025, but has returned to form for 2026 and adds another option with collegiate experience as she enters her junior season. In terms of newcomers, there are two new weapons in the attack’s arsenal in Kate Dente and Grace Farrell. Both were All-Americans in high school, with Dente ranked among the Power 100 Incoming Freshman by Inside Lacrosse and Farrell bringing a 2007-goal, 315-point high school career with her to Sherrerd Field.
Starters Returning – Maggie Molnar, Colette Quinn
Other Letterwinners Returning – Maggie Bacigalupo, Lane Calkins, Cassandra Kitchen, Ava Keenan, Ella Sloan
Newcomers – Becca Kirschner, Devan Lange, Mary Catherine O’Connor
There’s a strong two-way midfield presence returning in Maggie Molnar (16g, 23p, 29dc, 13gb) and Colette Quinn (18g, 23p, 11dc, 7 gb) who played in all 20 games last season with roles in all three zones. Molnar is a gritty player who is unafraid to get in the mix when the ball is on the ground and she was 8-for-12 on free positions to rank third on the team. Quinn almost quadrupled her point output during her sophomore season, showing tremendous progress she’s hoping to match in year three. Lane Calkins set career highs in games played (17), goals (10) and points (13) as a junior in 2025 and is one of Princeton’s most reliable midfielders in the defensive third and when in transition. Ella Sloan missed all of 2025 with injury, but appeared in nine games with six goals as a first-year player in 2024. Sloan, Quinn and Maggie Bacigalupo are contending for draw-specialist duties as the Tigers enter the season looking for someone to step up and own a position held down by Sophie Whiteway who graduated last year as Princeton’s all-time leader in draw controls with 249. Princeton’s other returners in the midfield are junior Ava Keenan and sophomore Cassandra Kitchen – who was a productive two-way middie in high school before missing all of last year with injury. In terms of newcomers, the Tigers welcome Becca Kirschner who was an All-American in high school while amassing 233 career points and 105 draws. She’s joined by two-way midfielder Devan Lange who was a key contributor at Long Island power St. Anthony’s and another two-way stalwart in Mary Catherine O’Connor who had 204 points and 150 draws at Trinity Hall.
Starters returning – Dylan Allen, Zoe Bye, Abigail Roberts, Juliana Williams
Other letterwinners returning – Addison Barrett, Kate Garlinghouse, Siena Puglisi
Newcomers – Genevieve Nelson, Sydney Sookdeo
Coaches love experienced defensive units and Princeton has one with four returning starters in 2026. The group of Dylan Allen, Zoe Bye, Abigal Roberts and Juliana Williams played a combined 73 games with Allen and Roberts starting all 20 contests and Bye (19 games played, 18 starts) and Williams (14 games played, 12 starts) almost always on the field. Allen was a third-team IWLCA All-American and a first-team All-Ivy selection last year who posted 21 caused turnovers and 24 ground balls while consistently marking the opposing team’s top options. She might be one of the best in the nation at single-handedly clearing, with her teammate Roberts also in the conversation. Abigail led the Tigers with 40 ground balls last season, adding 78 draw controls as she hunted anything that hit the floor en route to a second career second-team All-Ivy selection. Zoe Bye (10ct, 11gb) may not have stats that jump off the page, but that’s because her coverage skills often deny the opponent from feeding in her direction. Juliana Williams developed into a formidable member of the group, playing in 14 games last season after appearing in just five over her previous two seasons. Sophomore Addison Barrett will move into the defensive group for this season, adding more length to the group. She is joined by fellow returners Kate Garlinghouse and Siena Puglisi who are well-versed in the system entering their junior seasons. There are two newcomers in the group in Sydney Sookdeo and Genevieve Nelson. Sookdeo joins the Tigers after spending time with Canada’s U19 Development Team in recent years.
Starters returning – Amelia Hughes
Other letterwinners returning – Elizabeth Gonnella, Ellie Nicklas
Newcomers – Jackie Feldman
Amelia Hughes has played in all 54 of Princeton’s games over her three previous seasons and is coming off a 2025 season where she had career bests in GAA (11.79), saves (180) save percentage (.481) and wins (15). Two years ago, she was the Ivy League Goalkeeper of the Year and enters her senior season with three career All-Ivy selections to her credit. Her experience and resume have the Tigers confident in their presence in the cage, bolstered even more by the talented competition behind Hughes. Elizabeth Gonnella appeared in eight games and played over 200 minutes as a freshman while posting a .465 save percentage and an 11.29 GAA after entering college ranked among the Top-50 incoming recruits in the country by Inside Lacrosse. Another top recruit is part of the crop of newcomers for the Tigers this year in Power-100 Incoming Freshman selection Jackie Feldman who was a two-time All-American at St. Thomas Aquinas in Florida. Junior Ellie Nicklas rounds out the tight-knit netminder group as one of its more vocal leaders.
