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Opening day of the 2026 NCAA Division I women's lacrosse season is Feb. 6.
Throughout the month of January, we'll pose three burning questions for each team ranked in the USA Lacrosse Division I Women's Preseason Top 20, presented by CWENCH Hydration, starting with No. 20 James Madison and finishing with No. 1 North Carolina.
Join the conversation on social media @USALMag (IG/X/FB). Wrong answers only.
Virginia has gone 27-12 in its first two seasons under head coach Sonia LaMonica — not too shabby at all for a team that plays in the sport’s toughest conference. Last year, the Cavaliers earned the No. 5 national seed in the NCAA tournament but fell to ACC rival Duke in the second round.
Much of last year’s roster returns for 2026, headlined by ACC Midfielder of the Year Kate Galica. But there’s a new defensive coordinator in town and potentially a goalie battle brewing.
It’s all in the name of progress, though. See, the Cavs aren’t looking to repeat last season, at least not the final weekend of it.
They’re looking ahead to a deeper run.
Two things can be true: Roster consistency helps — you can’t teach NCAA tournament experience — but it’s not everything. Take UVA’s offense, which returns 86 percent of its output, including juniors Galica (47G, 9A, 179DC), Jenna DiNardo (53G, 21A) and Madison Alaimo (22G, 58A).
LaMonica isn’t complaining.
“It’s great to have those players, and we have quite an intact group there,” LaMonica said.
But … there’s a but.
“There’s still a lot to grow and develop, even with a lot of returners,” she said. “Many of our returners are still harnessing their leadership skills, and we’re seeing growth in that area, too.”
Similarly, three of UVA’s four starting defenders are back on the field — seniors Nicole Cruthirds, Lara Kology and Olivia Bruno.
But the Cavs bring in a new defensive coordinator in Shanna Brady. Is it back to the drawing board? No, but there was a greater focus on the basics in the fall.
“We’ve kind of gone back to fundamentals defensively,” LaMonica said. “We’ve been building the pieces. It takes some time, but it’s been great to see this group come together.”
Will we see 1-v-1? Zone?
“We’re going to be ready for anything,” LaMonica said.
Yeah, we talk about championship weekend and being a program back in contention — that’s where we want to be each and every year.
Sonia LaMonica
The answer was Mel Josephson in 2024 and 2025, and she’s back for her senior season after producing a .409 save rate last year. UVA snagged one of the biggest players to enter the portal over the summer, though, in 2025 Big 12 Goalkeeper of the Year Elyse Finnelle.
Finnelle led Florida to a pair of final fours but was in constant contention for the starting job with Georgia Hoey, the Gators’ opening-day starter in 2025 and for parts of 2024 (Hoey got injured that year). So, she’s used to a goalie battle.
LaMonica noted that Finnelle’s class schedule kept her off the field for much of the fall, but she put in extra reps with goalie coach Kady Glynn.
“She’s starting to settle in, and I’m interested to see how she’s gotten her footing as her schedule changes,” LaMonica said. “Mel had a great fall. Mel does well when she’s challenged, and I think she’s elevated her game this year.”
As for who has the edge? LaMonica said, “It’s too early to tell.”
Virginia hasn’t gotten to the national semifinals since 2014. The Cavs’ No. 5 national seed put them in contention for that last season, but we already covered what happened in the second week of May.
LaMonica didn’t give us the “one game at a time” cliché when we asked about whether UVA discusses Memorial Day weekend plans.
“Yeah, we talk about championship weekend and being a program back in contention — that’s where we want to be each and every year,” LaMonica said. “It’s not an easy feat. We’ve had a great team these last two years, but we need to get to the elite level. To be elite, it ultimately comes down to being effective in the pressure moments and finding ways to help.”
LaMonica said the experience should help (though she pointed to ACC rival North Carolina and Chloe Humphrey as an example of why experience isn’t everything).
“We need to elevate our play and be more consistent in the pressure moments,” LaMonica said. “We’ve gotten knocked out in the second round of the NCAA tournament two years in a row. We haven’t had our best games.”
The Cavs hope to flip that script in 2026.
Beth Ann Mayer is a Long Island-based writer. She joined USA Lacrosse in 2022 after freelancing for Inside Lacrosse for five years. She first began covering the game as a student at Syracuse. When she's not writing, you can find her wrangling her husband, two children and surplus of pets.
