Press Release Written by Nathan Foltz

NEWARK, Del. - Wrapping up their 2026 regular season as the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference's No. 3 seed, the Wilmington University women's lacrosse team finished with a 15-2 overall record and a 7-2 mark in the CACC.

The Wildcats defeated the Purple Knights of the University of Bridgeport, 23-5, in the final game of the regular season, locking in their playoff seeding and setting up a showdown with Chestnut Hill on Tuesday, April 28, at 3:30 p.m. Tuesday's contest will mark the Wildcats' 11th-straight CACC Tournament appearance.

Ways to follow:

• Live stats vs. Chestnut Hill: https://wildcats.athletics.wilmu.edu/sports/wlax/2025-26/boxscores/20260428_ki25.xml 
• Live Video: https://caccnetwork.com/athleticswilmu/?B=3981970
• CACC Tournament Central: https://caccathletics.org/tournaments/?id=34

Admission to WU Athletics Complex:

• CASH ONLY on TUESDAY!
• Adults- $10
• Seniors/Children/WU Students w/ School ID- $5
• Children under 3 years of age- admitted for free
• NO PETS ALLOWED AT THE WU ATLETICS COMPLEX... YOU WILL BE ASKED TO LEAVE

Scouting the No. 3 Wilmington University Wildcats:

The No. 3 Wildcats will take on No. 6 Chestnut Hill at the WU Athletics Complex. Wilmington defeated the Griffins in the regular season 19-4 on Tuesday, April 7, in Philadelphia, outscoring their opponent in every quarter. As she usually does, Ella Royer led the charge against Chestnut Hill, scoring four goals with three assists, while first-year Wildcat Kirra Crowley scored three goals with an assist. Anastasia Giannoulis scored three goals, while Alea Javorowsky finished with two goals and a team-high four assists. Poppy Fornoff, Michaella Cook, and Madi Todd all scored two goals as well. Eden Ward dished out an assist to make it nine Wildcats with points in the game. Ella Royer also led with 11 draw controls for the Wildcats, while Eden Ward added five. Leah Rycroft led the defense with three caused turnovers.

The Wildcats are led by the senior midfielder, team captain Ella Royer, who has collected a laundry list of accolades throughout her career. She has been a First-Team All-CACC selection in her first three years at Wilmington and has been named CACC Player of the Year each of the last two seasons. Her 79 goals lead the conference and are 4th in Division II, adding to her career total as the all-time leading goal scorer in NCAA Division II history. She's joined on the attack by a dangerous trio of Wildcats, who have combined to rank Wilmington as Division II's 4th-ranked scoring offense.

Senior Alea Javorowsky, Wilmington's all-time leader in assists, has been racking up helpers again this year, finishing the regular season with 78, the most in Division II. Graduate student Tristan Holdsworth also occupies a spot in the top 15 nationally, assisting on 44 goals. The duo can put it in the back of the net as well, with Javorowsky notching 19 goals (97 points, second on the team to Royer's 99) and Holdsworth picking up 31 scores (75 points). First-year Wildcat, junior Kirra Crowley, is the fourth piece of the puzzle, as she ranks second in the CACC and 26th in Division II with 55 goals while trailing just behind Holdsworth in points on the team at 73. Junior Leah Rycroft, another newcomer, has been a strong addition as well, racking up 47 goals on the year, 5th-most in the conference. Four other Wildcats have reached double-digit points as well.

In goal, the Wildcats have deployed the dynamic duo of sophomores Ashleigh Lawry and Allison Schiavone throughout the season. While splitting netminding duties in each game this year, the pair has combined for a .589 save percentage, the best in Division II. They have allowed 6.12 goals per game on the year, the third-best mark in the country.

The Wildcats are strong defensively, causing 9.53 turnovers per game, fifth in the CACC, and control 14.29 draws per game, best in the CACC. Leah Rycroft leads the team with 22 caused turnovers, while Ella Royer is just behind her with 20. Rycroft also leads the team with 31 groundballs, and Royer leads the way in draw controls with 75.

As a team, Wilmington has the fourth-highest scoring offense in the country at 17.76 goals per game and tops the charts in assists per game (12.41), points per game (30.18), shooting percentage (.571), and save percentage (.589), with a third-ranked scoring defense to top it all off (6.12 opponent goals per game). They have a +13.2 goal margin in conference play this year, with their only defeats being one-goal losses to Dominican and Jefferson.

Wilmington All-Time in CACC Tournament:

2009 (0-1): L - #1 Georgian Court 23 - #4 Wilmington 7 (semifinal)
2010 (0-1): L - #2 Holy Family 12 - #3 Wilmington 9 (semifinal)
2011: DNP
2012 (0-1): L - #1 Holy Family 15 - #4 Wilmington 10 (semifinal)
2013: DNP
2014: DNP
2015 (1-1): W - #4 Wilmington 22 - #5 Chestnut Hill 20 (OT) (quarterfinal); L - #1 Holy Family 21 - #4 Wilmington 10
2016 (0-1): L – #3 Georgian Court 22 - #6 Wilmington 11 (quarterfinal)
2017 (0-1): L - #3 Philadelphia 14 - #6 Wilmington 6 (quarterfinal)
2018 (0-1): L - #4 Caldwell 18 - #5 Wilmington 12 (quarterfinal)
2019 (1-1): W - #3 Wilmington 18 - #6 Chestnut Hill 3 (quarterfinal); L - #2 Jefferson 12 - #3 Wilmington 12 (OT) (semifinal)
2020: No Tournament
2021 (1-1): W - #3 Wilmington 25 - #6 Holy Family 10 (quarterfinal); L - #2 Jefferson 18 - #3 Wilmington 11 (semifinal)
2022 (1-1): W - #5 Wilmington 18 - #4 Holy Family 11 (quarterfinal); L - #1 Georgian Court 22 - #5 Wilmington 6 (semifinal)
2023 (1-1): W - #3 Wilmington 18 - #6 Bridgeport 11 (quarterfinal); L - #2 Jefferson 22 - #3 Wilmington 12 (semifinal)
2024 (1-1): W – #4 Wilmington 18 - #5 Bridgeport 7 (quarterfinal); L - #1 Dominican 20 - #4 Wilmington 6 (semifinal)
2025 (1-1): W - #3 Wilmington 23 - #6 Bridgeport 16 (quarterfinal); L - #2 Jefferson 12 - #3 Wilmington 10 (semifinal)

All-Time: 7-13

Wildcats vs. 2026 CACC Tournament Participants:

No. 1 Dominican University of N.Y. Chargers (13-3, 9-0 CACC): 2026 – vs. L 12-11; All-Time – 14-11; CACC Tournament – 0-1
No. 2 Thomas Jefferson University Rams (13-4, 8-1 CACC): 2026 – vs. L 7-6; All-Time – 3-30; CACC Tournament – 0-5
No. 3 Wilmington University (15-2, 7-2 CACC)
No. 4 Georgian Court University Lions (9-8, 6-3 CACC): 2026 – at W 16-5; All-Time – 4-23; CACC Tournament – 0-3
No. 5 University of Bridgeport Purple Knights (8-6, 5-4 CACC): 2026 – W 23-5; All-Time – 8-0; CACC Tournament – 3-0
No. 6 Chestnut Hill College Griffins (8-6, 4-5 CACC): 2026 – at W 19-4; All-Time – 20-6; CACC Tournament – 2-0

2026 CACC Tournament Schedule:

FIRST ROUND (Tuesday, April 28, at Sites of Higher Seeds)
#3 Wilmington vs. #6 Chestnut Hill (3:30 p.m.)
#4 Georgian Court vs. #5 Bridgeport (1:00 p.m.)

SEMIFINALS (Thursday, April 30, at Sites of Higher Seeds)
#1 Dominican vs. Winner of #3 Wilmington/#6 Chestnut Hill (TBD)
#2 Jefferson vs. Winner of #4 Georgian Court/#5 Bridgeport (3:30 p.m.)

CHAMPIONSHIP FINAL (Saturday, May 2, at Wilmington University, Newark, Del.)
Semifinal #1 Winner vs. Semifinal #2 Winner (2 p.m.)