NEW HAVEN, Conn. (April 30, 2026) – No. 3 seed and host Wilmington University scored the game’s final four goals to earn a 13-9 victory over Dominican University New York in the championship final of the 2026 Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference Women’s Lacrosse Championship tournament on Saturday afternoon at the Wilmington University Athletics Complex.
Tournament information is available at the CACC Championship Central web page at https://caccathletics.org/tournaments/?id=34.
Wilmington wins its first CACC championship in its first appearance in the conference final. Dominican had won the last three league crowns and was making its fifth consecutive trip to the title game. The Wildcats, who won three games in five days in the CACC playoffs, earn the conference’s automatic berth into the 2026 NCAA Division II Championship tournament.
Wilmington led, 7-5, at halftime but the Chargers’ Madison Mileti scored twice early in the third period to even the score. DUNY later erased another two-goal deficit, tying the game at 9-9 with 14:31 remaining in regulation time. But the Wildcats kept Dominican off the scoreboard for the rest of the contest. Tournament Most Valuable Player Leah Rycroft notched the go-ahead goal at the 13:27 mark and Kirra Crowley struck with 11:02 to play. Wilmington maintained the 11-9 edge until securing the championship with two scores in the closing minutes.
Rycroft, Crowley, and Anastasia Giannoulis each totaled five points for the Wildcats. Mileti led all scorers with six goals and an assist.
The Wildcats completed a home lacrosse championship sweep for their school. Earlier in the day, the Wilmington men’s lacrosse team won the CACC championship with a 9-5 win over Chestnut Hill College at WilmU’s Athletics Complex.
Wilmington awaits the NCAA Division II Selection Show on Sunday at 8:30 p.m. Dominican, ranked fourth in the East Region, also hopes to hear its name called.
2026 CACC WOMEN'S LACROSSE CHAMPIONSHIP
First Round (Tuesday, April 28 at Sites of Higher Seeds)
#4 Georgian Court 17, #5 Bridgeport 6
#3 Wilmington 19, #6 Chestnut Hill 4
Semifinals (Thursday, April 30, at Sites of Higher Seeds)
#1 Dominican 11, #4 Georgian Court 7
#3 Wilmington 14, #2 Jefferson 7
Championship Final (Saturday, May 2, at Wilmington University, Newark, Del.)
#3 Wilmington 13, #1 Dominican 9
2026 CACC WOMEN’S LACROSSE ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
Iris Gluck, Jefferson
Caitlin Petrellese, Georgian Court
Madison Mileti, Dominican
Leila Paz, Dominican
Jenna Rigo, Dominican
Kirra Crowley, Wilmington
Anastasia Giannoulis, Wilmington
Ella Royer, Wilmington
Leah Rycroft, Wilmington
Allison Schiavone, Wilmington
Caitlyn Welker, Wilmington
MVP: Leah Rycroft, Wilmington
Founded in 1961, the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference has been affiliated with NCAA Division II for 20 years. Conference institutions compete for championships in 17 sports – seven for men, nine for women, and one co-ed. The CACC contains 11 full members in Connecticut, Delaware, New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania. Membership includes the University of Bridgeport, Caldwell University, Chestnut Hill College, Dominican University New York, Felician University, Georgian Court University, Goldey-Beacom College, Holy Family University, Post University, Thomas Jefferson University, and Wilmington University.