The 2026 high school field hockey season opens this week. Below are the preseason rankings.
In-season rankings will follow each week through the regular season before final rankings are released after post-season play concludes.
1. Mamaroneck — The Tigers have multiple holes after having graduated six starters, including four who gained 2025 All-State honors. Mamaroneck finished 20-3 last season, the last loss stinging since it was in the state Class A championship game. Will Mamaroneck win the Section 1 title and make its way back to a fourth straight state final (it won in 2023 and 2024)? Hard to tell. But with 70 players trying out for varsity and JV this season and two-time All-State player and Div. I commit Lily Brickman and 2025 All-State honoree
Meredith D'Arcy among multiple strong returning players, it doesn't seem to be a stretch to think so.
2. Lakeland — The Hornets' incredible 16-year Section 1 title streak ended last year. But Lakeland was still one of the top teams in Section 1 and it returns a core that could star for any team in the state, including 2025 All-State players Gianna Santini and Meaghan Heyde. Figure Lakeland will be very much in the mix for the Section 1 Class B title.
3. John Jay-Cross River —The Wolves were 13-5 last year. That could just as easily have been 17-1 or even better. John Jay dropped regular-season overtime games to Rye and Lakeland, fell by a goal to Mamaroneck and fell in double-overtime to top-seed Rye in the Section 1 Class B playoffs. A bounce or deflection here or there and, well, it's a different season. As it was, it was a season off which to build. John Jay should do just that as it returns three All-State players in Fin Degl, Callan Keeley and goalie McKenzie Ryder. Ryder is of particular note because multiple top teams graduated their No. 1 goalie.
4. Rye — The Garnets edged defending Class B champ Lakeland by a goal during the regular season as part of a 14-2 regular-season campaign that earned Rye the No. 1 seed in the Section 1 Class B playoffs. There it fell to Horace Greeley in the final to finish 16-3. The Garnets graduated their two All-State players, including their goalie. But they return multiple All-Section players and, if history holds, will be very much in a section title hunt.
5. Yorktown — During a 13-win 2025 season, the Huskers' only losses were to teams that finished in the top five. They return All-State midfielder Lily Diaz, as well as several other strong players. Every year, this team is a worry for anyone it faces. This year should be no different.
6. Horace Greeley — The Quakers, who ended Lakeland's Section 1 championship streak in a Class B semifinal before edging top-seeded Rye in the final, did just about everything right last year except win a state championship. Few teams have been hit as hard by graduation. Greeley has lost four All-State players, but returns All-State forward Sienna Tavolacci. Greeley has been in the position of having to replace multiple stars before and while it doesn't have half the tryout numbers of some other elite programs, it always seems to bounce back.
7. Clarkstown — It's very unlikely the mixed South/North squad will repeat its 2025 14-win regular-season performance this season. But credit Clarkstown for its tough schedule, which can only help it in the playoffs. During the regular season it will face Rye, Mamaroneck, Lakeland, Yorktown, Horace Greeley and John Jay-Cross River, as well as a couple of teams currently just outside the top 10. That may not be the way to build an impressive record but it is certainly a way to improve for when the season really counts.
8. White Plains — The Tigers are coming off a 15-win season. Like some other smart teams, the Tigers clearly aren't focused on their regular-season record in 2026. but on the bigger picture. Their schedule includes an opener against Horace Greeley and games against Mamaroneck, Rye and Yorktown.
9. Bronxville — The Broncos will be the Section 1 favorite in Class C. The goal will be to not only win the section, but also to advance past the state regional semifinals, where they were routed last year. Bronxville's regular-season games vs. Class B powers Lakeland, Yorktown and John Jay-Cross River can only help both its quest for another sectional crown and its goal, if it achieves that, to advance in the state playoffs.
10. Rye Country Day — The Wildcats' lack of games vs. Section 1 teams each year puzzles and frustrates because RCDS, always strong, could no doubt compete with or, in some instances, beat many of Section 1's top-10 teams. It makes the list after, in 2025, winning its third New York State Association of Private Schools championship over a four-year period.
On the bubble: Arlington, Hackley, John Jay-East Fishkill, Mahopac
Nancy Haggerty covers sports for The Journal News/lohud.
This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Mamaroneck tops 2026 preseason field hockey rankings
