Not-So-Little Wins: Women’s and Men’s Lacrosse Win the 2026 Little Three Title

Women’s lacrosse dominated Williams this weekend on Senior Day to win their fourth Little Three in the last five seasons. The Red and Black saw a crucial win against #5 Amherst earlier this season, beating the Mammoths 9–7 on Wednesday, April 1. Then, the Cards followed it up with a second win, claiming the Little Three title outright on Saturday, April 18. 

Earlier this month, the Cards traveled up to Amherst, Mass., to take on the Mammoths. Despite being down 5–4 at the half, Wes battled back in a dominating third quarter, scoring four goals and holding the Mammoths to only one goal and two shots. Addie Cummings ’26 had two in that quarter, and Mya Waryas ’27 and Becca Dibble ’26 added a goal each. Elle Priesing ’26 saw a breakout game, scoring four goals on five shots. Additionally, Priesing scored the final goal, putting the Cards up 9–6 in the fourth. 

This game avenged the Cards’ triple-overtime loss to the Mammoths last year during the regular season. 

Then, the Cards met Williams at home on Senior Day. The Cards saw a monster performance out of star goalkeeper Izzy Weintraub ’26, tying her career high with 12 saves, holding the Ephs to just three goals, and a 80% save percentage clip. Weintraub and the Cardinal defense also held the Ephs to no goals in the second and third quarters while the Cards went on a nine-goal unanswered scoring streak. 

After this performance, Weintraub won both NESCAC Player of the Week and National Division III Defensive Player of the Week. 

“I can’t do anything I do on the field without everyone else in front of me,” Weintraub said. “I give so much credit to my defense in front of me; they do an outstanding job. They set the tone for the games, and as a unit, we do such a great job of staying positive down there and staying locked in, and that translates. All credits to those in front of me. I can’t do what I do without them.” 

The offense was led by the four-point duo of Cummings (3G, 1A) and Dibble (3G, 1A). Waryas also added three goals. Up 11–3 in the fourth quarter, the Cards finished with all 12 seniors on the field and a roar of applause from fans, parents, and students. 

“Having a grade of 12, we always talk about how we each bring something to [the] table,” Weintraub said. “Senior day is a lot of emotions, but [it’s also about] looking back and reflecting on our four years here and what we’ve accomplished. We’ve been talking about how these are the moments that we’ve been looking forward to since our freshman year, and to be able to end the game with all seniors on the field was just an awesome experience.” 

This weekend, the #3 Cards welcome the #6 Ephs back to Middletown for the quarterfinal round of the NESCAC playoffs. First draw is at 12:00 p.m. on Smith Field. 

Men’s lacrosse defeated Williams this past weekend to win the Little Three title for the third time in a row. The Cards secured their win against Amherst earlier this season with a record-breaking 16–4 win. 

The Red and Black hosted the Mammoths earlier this month, marking their first league home win of the season. The Cards came in hot with Ben Burns ’26 scoring two goals in the first quarter. Burns scored once again in the second, followed by an unassisted marker by Kyle Short ’28 and a goal by James Bailey ’26. After Bailey’s goal put Wes up 5–1, the Mammoths attempted a comeback with three goals, making it 7–4 Cardinals at halftime, with Bailey scoring with only 43 seconds left in the quarter. The Red and Black dominated the third quarter with six unanswered goals and a weak performance for Amherst’s offense. Bailey set up Gavin Lechner ’27 for an early goal in the third quarter. Matt Morrow ’27 and Lechner struck again before Will Miller ’26 scored his 16th goal of the season. Short and Burns closed off the third quarter 12–4. The last quarter saw three more Cardinal goals, not even five minutes into the quarter, with the game ending in a 16–4 Cardinal victory. 

“I think it was the largest margin of victory against Amherst ever as a program, which was really cool,” Miller said. “But I think it simply comes down to the team, all 56 guys coming out just super energized and hungry to win.”

This past Saturday, the Cards continued their strong regular season, defeating the Ephs 17–9 in Williamstown, Mass. Wesleyan started off strong once again, with a 3–1 lead in the first quarter, thanks to goals by Burns and Charlie Knapp ’26 and a faceoff win by Jack Doherty ’28. Conor Selfridge ’26 closed the first quarter with three straight saves, making it 3–2 Wes. The game turned in the second with the Red and Black seizing seven unanswered goals to take a 10–2 lead at halftime. Wesleyan continued this momentum with a 3–1 run to start off the third quarter, with Miller and Burns scoring after Williams made a late two-point push in the second half. Burns finished with five goals and one assist, tying his season-high of six points. Miller and Griffyn Flood ’29 scored with just over two minutes left, leading to a 17–9 victory for the Cards.

“Winning the Little Three is always one of our goals, and it gives us a great boost of confidence heading into the playoffs,” Lechner said. “Our goals heading into the playoff season is to play as a team, play confident, and keep winning.”

The Cards welcome the #6 Hamilton College Continentals to Middletown this weekend for the first round of the NESCAC playoffs. First face-off is Saturday, April 25 at 1:30 p.m. on Citrin Field.

Leila Feldman can be reached at lfeldman01@wesleyan.edu.

Alessandra Woo can be reached at aawoo@wesleyan.edu.