Your eyes do not deceive you! It’s time to talk about women’s lacrosse in the Big East for the 2026 season!
Given when Marquette’s season will start, and then working backwards from there on a timeline to bring you a season preview, I need to make my preseason all-conference picks now so I am well out in front of the league making things official between now and the start of the season. We’ve got a preseason Offensive and Defensive Player of the Year pick, a preseason All-Big East Team, and a predicted
order of finish for all seven teams in the league.
Let’s get right to it, shall we?
Preseason Offensive Player of the Year: Rayea Davis, Connecticut
I’m not comfortable at all in the slightest with this pick. It’s the obvious pick after Rayea Davis finished second in the Big East in points per game to Marquette’s Meg Bireley last season, and Bireley’s career is now over. Davis is one of just five women to average 4.00 points per game or better last season, and Marquette’s Tess Osburn is the only other returning player in that group.
HOWEVER
Denver’s Olivia Ripple finished second to Bireley in goals per game last year. Georgetown’s Gracie Driggs and Xavier’s Lola Mancuso finished tied for third. All three of those women are returning for the 2026 season. Davis ended up sixth on that list, but she ended up second in points because she was also seventh in the league in assists last year, and only Georgetown’s Anne McGovern averaged more assists amongst returning players.
I feel like the coaches usually undervalue assists when they vote for this, so I’m going to stick with Davis as my pick, but don’t be surprised to see Ripple in here.
Preseason Defensive Player of the Year: Abby Beran, Connecticut
You win 2025 Defensive Player of the Year at the end of your sophomore season, you get to be the preseason DPOY at the start of the 2026 campaign. That’s just math. Also math: Beran leading the Big East in ground balls — the only player averaging more than 2.6, and she was over 3.0 — and caused turnovers last season, and she wasn’t too shabby in draw controls, coming in at #9 with more than three per game.
Preseason All-Big East Team
Abby Beran, D, Connecticut
Hannah Bodner, M, Marquette
Rose Christie, M, Villanova
Rayea Davis, A, Connecticut
Gracie Driggs, A, Georgetown
Megan Klingenberg, D, Denver
Lola Mancuso, A, Xavier
Tess Osburn, A, Marquette
Olivia Ripple, M, Denver
Kendall Steer, D, Georgetown
Mary Velner, D, Marquette
Emma Verhoest, DC, Villanova
Leah Warehime, GK, Georgetown
Beran and Davis get free passes to the all-conference team because of their individual awards. I mentioned Driggs, Mancuso, Osburn, and Ripple in my discussion of OPOY, so there you go. I did not fit in a mention of Bodner, who was eighth in the Big East in goals per game last year and seventh in points per game on her way to being named Midfielder of the Year at the end of the 2025 season. Bodner and Verhoest were also unanimous picks for the 2025 All-Big East First Team (as was Beran) so obviously both of them have to be on this list as a midfielder and draw specialist respectively.
That left me with some spaces to fill to get to a real lineup that you’d put on the field: Three defenders, one midfielder, and a goalie. I should point out: Denver lists Olivia Ripple as a midfielder, but the Big East honored her as an attacker last year. I’m taking advantage of what the Pioneers say to help balance out my all-conference team.
Christie was an easy add, as she was the third returning First Team midfielder. Klingenberg and Velner both get through as the only other defenders that earned all-conference honors and return in 2026, with both ending up Second Team last season. I had to get a goalie and I had to get a defender after that. Defender was somewhat of a shot in the dark, as I already had one from UConn, Denver, and Marquette. Steer had a Defender of the Week last year and was one of the better caused turnover players on the Hoyas roster last season. Maybe the coaches will double up from one team, but I wanted to spread the honors around. Finally, I went with Warehime in net. She was fourth amongst regular starting goalies in goals against average last season behind three seniors, so she shoots up the rankings as a result. I suppose there’s a chance that the coaches go with Denver’s Lexi Gwaku, who let in just 6.50 goals per 60 minutes in her 322 minutes played, but she was the clear backup to Emelia Bohi, so it’s hard to give her the nod here.
Projected Order Of Finish
1 — Denver
2 — Connecticut
3 — Marquette
4 — Georgetown
5 — Villanova
6 — Xavier
7 — Butler
#1 and #7 were easy here. Denver has a grand total of one regular season loss to a Big East team since the league’s setup was changed heading into 2019. Yes, that one game was last year, but it was in overtime. I will pick against the Pioneers when they do not win the regular season title. Butler went 0-6 last year, giving Xavier their first ever league win, so that’s how the Bulldogs end up last.
UConn is the obvious #2 pick since I’ve picked two Huskies as the award winners. Marquette has an all-Big East attacker, midfielder, and defender going into the season, so I’ll go full homer pick with the Golden Eagles in third. Georgetown has a slightly better profile in the all-conference team that I put together, so they get be fourth in front of Villanova. That of course leaves Xavier in sixth.
Marquette’s season is set to start first with a home exhibition game against University of Chicago on January 31st, then for real at home against Eastern Michigan on Friday, February 6th. First draw for the season is schedule for noon Central time in the Valley.
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