MID-ATLANTIC
1. Good Counsel (Md.), 21-0
The Falcons completed their first unbeaten season in school history with a third straight Washington Catholic Athletic Conference title. Good Counsel outscored opponents, 388-116, this season. The Falcons rewrote their record books along the way. Northwestern-bound Hannah Rudolph snapped former Penn State All-American Kelly Lechner’s scoring record and finished with more than 400 points in her career. Stony Brook commit Hailey Huebner far exceeded former Virginia/Team USA’s Morgan Stephens’ record of 62 caused turnovers in a year. And junior Dani Serrano (Marquette commit) finished the year with 107 assists to snap former Duke player Brigid Smith’s school record. Previous: 1
2. St. Paul's (Md.), 16-5
The Gators finished their season with their third IAAM championship in four years thanks to steady improvements through the year. Seeded third for the playoffs, they avenged two regular-season losses in the final two games of the season, culminating with a 7-6 win over McDonogh (Md.), in which Susan Radebaugh made 10 saves. Their defense allowed just 5.25 goals per game this season, the lowest of an IAAM team in the last 15 years. Previous: 2
3. McDonogh (Md.), 17-2
The Eagles put together a strong year under new head coach Megan Nicotra. McDonogh was unbeaten in the IAAM regular season to earn the top seed for the playoffs. The defending champions reached the championship game before falling to St. Paul’s. Their only other loss was a one-goal defeat by Episcopal (Pa.). Previous: 3
4. St. Anne’s-Belfield (Va.), 22-1
The Saints captured their second Virginia Independent Schools Athletic Association Division I state championship in three years. They took the title with another strong defensive showing against St. Stephen’s & St. Agnes (Va.). The Saints had their best wins over Stone Ridge (Md.), St. John’s College (D.C.), Archbishop Spalding (Md.), Bishop Ireton (Va.) and Georgetown Visitation (D.C.). Their lone loss came at the hands of Good Counsel. Previous: 4
5. Episcopal (Pa.), 21-2
The Churchwomen finally solved Agnes Irwin (Pa.) to capture the Independent Schools state championship tournament with a 9-6 win to end their year. Boston College commit Quinn Whitaker led the offense with six goals as Episcopal won its first PAISAA championship since 2016. Whitaker led the offense this year with 58 goals, 17 assists and also had 66 draw controls along with 26 caused turnovers. Georgetown-bound senior Sydney Richter topped the team with 109 draws, also had 17 assists and scored 25 goals. Maura Irish had 52 goals, 14 assists, 60 draw controls and a team-best 38 caused turnovers. Sophom*ore Caitlin McCarthy led the team with 34 ground balls and had 36 caused turnovers as the PASLA Breakout Player of the Year. Colorado-bound Jenna Morley was the defensive MVP and had 33 ground balls. Previous: 5
6. Stone Ridge (Md.), 16-4
The Gators capped their season with a second straight Independent School League AA tournament championship. Sophia Stoltz led the offense with four goals, including the game-winner. The Gators’ win avenged one of their regular-season losses. Good Counsel, St. Anne’s-Belfield and Sacred Heart Greenwich (Conn.) were the only other teams to top them. The Gators defeated St. Paul’s, Georgetown Visitation (D.C.), St. Ignatius Prep (Calif.) and SSSA to highlight their year. Previous: 6
7. Maryvale (Md.), 16-3
Another team that improved through the season, the Lions grew stronger every week after having to replace 15 seniors from a year ago. They had a six-game winning streak that helped them garner the No. 2 seed for the IAAM semifinals. A 13-4 semifinal loss ended the season for Maryvale. Their only losses were to Archbishop Spalding (Md.) early in the year, to top-seeded McDonogh in the regular season and eventual IAAM champion St. Paul’s. Previous: 7
8. Agnes Irwin (Pa.), 15-5
The Owls came up short of sweeping Episcopal in the title game. After winning their two meetings in the regular season, the Owls lost, 9-6, to conclude their season. Agnes Irwin played its best lacrosse in the second half of the season after a 3-3 start to the year. They were the only team to beat Episcopal all year, and also won games against Sacred Heart Greenwich (Conn.) and Penn Charter (Pa.). Previous: 8
9. Archbishop Spalding (Md.), 12-5
The Cavaliers’ season ended in the IAAM semifinals with a 10-7 loss to top-seeded McDonogh. Spalding had won five of their last six games before falling to McDonogh for the second time this season, albeit by a closer score in the rematch. Spalding’s top win this year was over Maryvale. Leading scorer Gabby Greene (Florida) headlines the seniors graduating, but Notre Dame commit Maeve Cavanaugh leads the returning group. Previous: 9
10. Severna Park (Md.), 18-1
The Falcons captured a state public school record 16th state title. Severna Park defeated Dulaney (Md.) 12-6 for the Class 3A state championship. Maria Bragg scored four times and Bella Van Gieson and Erin Hussey each scored two goals apiece. Severna Park built a 7-4 lead by halftime and blanked Dulaney for the final quarter and half of the third quarter. They also won the Anne Arundel County girls tournament for the third straight year despite losing top player Alyssa Gore-Chung early in the season. Previous: 10
— Justin Feil
MIDWEST
1. Loyola Academy (Ill.), 22-3
Emma Burke, Jocelyn Park and a brilliant defense led the way to yet another state title for the Ramblers. Park had hat tricks in all three games this week, including seven goals in the quarterfinals against Evanston (Ill.) and four of the team’s seven goals in a defensive battle against Hinsdale Central (Ill.) in the semis. Emma Burke was dominant in the title game against Benet Academy (Ill.) with four goals, three assists, seven draw controls, four caused turnovers and three ground balls. And a defense led by Sophie Goldberg, Shannon Hendrick, Ingrid Kavanagh and Prairie Weber set a tone by holding the Red Devils to three goals and the Redwings to a single first-half goal as the Ramblers built an 11-1 lead.Previous: 1
2. Olentangy Liberty (Ohio), 18-4
The Patriots avenged a one-goal regular-season loss to undefeated New Albany (Ohio) with a one-goal win in the Region 1 championship game. Junior Corinna Hilmas, one of this year’s breakout stars, played a role in half of her team’s scoring with four goals and an assist in Liberty’s 10-9 win while senior Isabelle Pohmer also had a hat trick. Previous: 4
3. Upper Arlington (Ohio), 20-2
The Golden Bears quickly tossed aside any thoughts of an upset with a 13-7 victory over Worthington Kilbourne (Ohio) in the Region 3 title game. Lilly Boyle set the tone with a hat trick before the first quarter was even complete, ultimately scoring six goals, while Mary Kate Basil added five. UA has now won three straight regional titles and eight in the last nine seasons.Previous: 3
4. New Albany (Ohio), 21-1
While the Eagles’ tournament run came to an end at the hands of the Patriots for the second straight season, that doesn’t diminish a remarkable year. New Albany’s 21 straight wins to start the season included victories over three of the four teams to advance to the Division I state tournament. In their final game, an incredibly close contest with Liberty that was tied on seven separate occasions, the Eagles got five goals from Maddy Paz.Previous: 2
5. Kentucky Country Day (Ky.), 25-2
The Bearcats dominated their state title game with Eastern (Ky.) behind five goals and three assists from sophom*ore Ellie Beam, thus capturing their third state championship in the last four years. It was a dominant year, period, as KCD senior Dylan Yonover (52 goals, 68 assists), junior Leighton Spears (68 goals, 44 assists) and sophom*ores Ceci Flowers (65 goals, 35 assists) and Beam (82 goals, 56 assists) all finished with 100-plus points.Previous: 5
6. New Trier (Ill.), 17-6
Don’t let the Trevians’ early exit confuse you. New Trier is easily one of the best teams in Illinois and the Midwest as a whole. They just happen to share a sectional with another elite program in Loyola Academy, which New Trier took to four overtimes in their epic sectional title game clash. The Trevians were balanced all year, including seven players with at least 35 points led by senior Claire Ratke (24 goals, a team-leading 45 assists), junior Ellie Bornhoeft (41 goals, 21 assists) and sophom*ore Avery Anderson (a team-leading 42 goals, 14 assists). Previous: 6
7. Benet Academy (Ill.), 22-3
It wasn’t that long ago that the Redwings were hovering around the .500 mark (2019). Now they are a state runner-up. While the year came to a tough close (with a 14-5 title game loss to Loyola Academy), it was one Benet Academy will always remember fondly. As for that title game, keeper Maddie Jensen, a Michigan commit, came up with 10 saves as the Redwings battled valiantly after falling behind 11-1 at the half. Remarkably, Benet Academy tripled up on its state quarterfinal and semifinal foes.Previous: 7
8. Grand Rapids Catholic Central (Mich.), 21-0
The Cougars continued their dominant campaign, beating Lowell (Mich.) and Forest Hills Central (Mich.) by a combined margin of 39-10 to earn a state berth. Next up GRCC faces 19-3 Haslett (Mich.) in a state semifinal with Detroit Country Day (Mich.) and Mercy (Mich.) facing off on the other side of the Division II bracket.Previous: 8
9. Lakeville South (Minn.), 15-0
The undefeated Cougars, who wrapped up a perfect regular season with 10 straight wins by double digits, started the postseason with two more dominant performances. Lakeville South topped Mankato (Minn.) and Farmington (Minn.) by a combined margin of 36-4 to advance to the Section 1 title game. Ella Mills (five goals, two assists) and Charlotte Fannin (three goals, three assists) both delivered impressive performances in the sectional semifinals. Previous: 9
10. Carmel (Ind.), 19-3
After falling to Guerin Catholic (Ind.) in each of the last two state title games, the Greyhounds got revenge with a 10-9 victory over the Golden Eagles to secure the 2024 championship. Down 8-2, Carmel scored eight of the last nine goals of the game, led by Breckin Hare’s six goals and fellow junior Elle Tomalia's two goals and two assists. The Greyhounds also dealt with adversity in their 14-9 semifinal win over Zionsville (Ind.), as lightning postponed the game after less than seven minutes. Carmel handled the restart just fine behind big games from Sophie Mock (four goals, two assists), Hare (three goals, three assists) and Tomalia (four goals).Previous: 10
— Jonah Rosenblum
