Public High School Girls' National Top 25: Familiar Foe Awaits No. 1 Darien

The next three days will feature some of the most intense lacrosse of the season. By Sunday, the dust will have settled on teams in the latest USA Lacrosse Public High School Girls’ National Top 25, presented by CWENCH Hydration.

Darien (Conn.) will meet a familiar foe in the Class LL state final when they meet New Canaan (Conn.) on Saturday. It’s the fifth straight year the teams have played for the title with them splitting the previous four meetings. Darien won last year and earned their finals berth with a 17-1 semifinal win over Conard (Conn.).

New York state semifinals are Friday and the championships are Saturday. Sayville (N.Y.) will try to extend its perfect season against Rye (N.Y.) in the Class C semifinal.

Sayville beat South Side (N.Y.) 8-5 in the Long Island title game. Trailing at halftime by a goal, Jenna Messina and Carly Cangelosi scored to give the Golden Flashes the lead that they would not relent again. The other side of the C bracket has Jamesville-DeWitt (N.Y.) vs. Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake (N.Y.). Sayville is looking for their second state title in three years. 

West Chester Henderson (Pa.) will play Conestoga (Pa.) for a third time, and this time its for the Warriors’ shot at their first state AAA championship on Saturday at Penn State. Henderson won both previous meetings, including in the District 1 final.

Ridgewood (N.J.) avenged a pair of earlier defeats when it mattered the most. The Maroons beat Westfield (N.J.) 9-7 in the North Jersey Group 4 semifinals behind three goals and three assists from Katie Adams and a hat trick from Delaney McCrone. In the sectional final, Adams scored with 56 seconds left in overtime for an 8-7 win over top-seeded Morristown (N.J.). McCrone had four goals in their first sectional crown since 2023. Ridgewood will face Cherokee (N.J.) in the Group 4 state final Saturday. 

Other notable developments:

— Garden City (N.Y.) will take on Nyack (N.Y.) in the Class B semifinal in a Top-15 matchup. The winner plays Victor (N.Y.) or Queensbury (N.Y.) in the final. Garden City beat another ranked team, Westhampton Beach (N.Y.), 13-6 for the Long Island Class B championship with Teagan Gately making 14 saves and Kimberly Colucci scoring four goals.

— Nyack got seven goals and two assists from Abby Gould and four goals and seven assists from Ella Gould for a 21-10 win over Warwick (N.Y.) in the Class B regional championship. They are in their first state semifinal since 2010.

— West Chester Henderson defeated Springfield-Delco (Pa.) for the second time this season 9-7 in the semifinals Tuesday thanks to a 16-3 edge in draw controls, including a perfect second half in which they rallied from a 5-4 deficit. Reese Heim won 11 draws and Bailey Schalleur had a hat trick. Springfield was coming off a huge win over Archbishop Carroll (Pa.) to avenge one of their regular-season losses. 

— Conestoga handled a Manheim Township (Pa.) team that reached the semifinals despite losing their best player, UNC-bound Liv Parmer, before the season even started. ‘Stoga was a 13-4 winner Tuesday as Julia Cowgill had a hat trick, Tori Hewitt had four points, Lu Misener scored twice and had four draws and Price Orcutt had a goal and five draws. The Pioneers are the defending state champions.

— Another Top-25 matchup on the radar features Huntington (N.Y.) vs Suffern (N.Y.) in the Class A semifinal. Huntington defeated a ranked Massapequa (N.Y.) team 9-6 in the Long Island championship with Emily Fitzgerald making 10 saves and Savanna Appleton had two goals and two assists.

— Madison McCarren scored seven goals and had an assist and Elizabeth Torres had six goals and two assists to lead Suffern to an 18-6 win over Valley Central (N.Y.) in their Class A regional final. The Mounties are trying to advance to a second straight state final.

— The Huntington-Suffern semifinal winner could meet Penfield (N.Y.) in the final. Penfield plays Shaker (N.Y.) after slipping by West Genesee (N.Y.) 12-11 with a huge rally. Penfield trailed, 11-7, going into the fourth quarter but clawed all the way back with Reegan Sercu scoring the tying and game-winning goals. 

— Moorestown (N.J.) advanced to the Group 3 state title game with a 10-5 win over Shawnee (N.J.) as Ella Brittain, Mazey Hinshillwood and Meghan Hock all had hat tricks. They’ll face Summit (N.J.) on Friday, their fourth state final in the last five years. 

— Cold Spring Harbor (N.Y.) faces Pleasantville (N.Y.) in the Class D semifinals. Olivia Mulada scored four goals and had seven draw controls in a 9-7 win over Bayport-Blue Point (N.Y.) in the Long Island championship. Penn Yan (N.Y.) and Canton (N.Y.) play each other in the other semifinal. 

— In the regional updates, the Midwest Region has a new No. 1 after Olentangy Liberty (Ohio) followed up its win over Hudson (Ohio) with a state championship win. The Northeast Region rankings were unchanged. The Mid-Atlantic Region had no new teams, but teams did shuffle after Ridgewood's great run to the state final game, and Springfield-Delco (Pa.) moved up a spot by upending a talented private Archbishop Carroll before falling to the top team in Pennsylvania. The South and West Regions were not updated with most of the teams' seasons concluded.

By focusing exclusively on public school programs, these USA Lacrosse National Top 25 and Regional Top 10 lists (also found here in our rankings hub) highlight the best teams that have built powerhouse rosters through local development and strong grassroots efforts.

Compiled by USA Lacrosse writers with input from coaches around the country, rankings and records usually reflect results as of previous Tuesday.

National Top 25

1. Darien (Conn.), 21-0 (1)
2. Sayville (N.Y.), 19-0 (2)
3. Manchester Valley (Md.), 19-0 (3) 
4. Garden City (N.Y.), 18-2 (4)
5. West Chester Henderson (Pa.), 24-1 (5) 
6. Conestoga (Pa.), 23-2 (6) 
7. Huntington (N.Y.), 18-2 (7) 
8. Penfield (N.Y.), 17-3 (11) 
9. Nyack (N.Y.), 16-4 (13) 
10. Springfield-Delco (Pa.), 20-4 (12) 
11. West Forsyth (Ga.), 22-0 (8) 
12. Milton (Ga.), 19-2 (9) 
13. Severna Park (Md.), 15-4 (10) 
14. Ridgewood (N.J.), 20-4 (16) 
15. Morristown (N.J.), 18-6 (14) 
16. Suffern (N.Y.), 17-2 (17) 
17. Westfield (N.J.), 17-6 (15) 
18. Moorestown (N.J.), 16-5 (19)
19. Massapequa (N.Y.), 15-4 (18)
20. Marriotts Ridge (Md.), 15-5 (20) 
21. Manhasset (N.Y.), 15-3 (21) 
22. Cold Spring Harbor (N.Y.), 14-5 (22)
23. Coronado (Calif.), 17-3 (25) 
24. Westhampton Beach (N.Y.), 11-9 (23)
25. West Islip (N.Y.), 15-2 (24) 

Also considered (alphabetical order): Anderson (Texas), Battlefield (Va.), Bayport-Blue Point (N.Y.), Broadneck (Md.), Cape Henlopen (Del.), Century (Md.), Chatham (N.J.), Douglas Freeman (Va.), Downingtown West (Pa.), Glenelg High (Md.), Great Valley (Pa.), Haddonfield (N.J.), Hudson (Ohio), James Madison (Va.), Jamesville-DeWitt (N.Y.), La Costa Canyon (Calif.), Marple Newtown (Pa.), Mendham (N.J.), Mira Costa (Calif.), New Canaan (Conn.), Northport (N.Y.), Olentangy Liberty (Ohio), Pittsford (N.Y.), Ponte Vedra (Fla.), Robinson (Va.), Rumson-Fair Haven (N.J.), Rye (N.Y.), South Carroll (Md.), South Jefferson (N.Y.), Summit (N.J.), Twin Valley (Pa.), Upper Arlington (Ohio), Urbana (Md.), Victor (N.Y.), Ward Melville (N.Y.), Western Albemarle (Va.), Westminster (Md.), Wilton (Conn.), Wyomissing (Pa.), Yorktown (N.Y.), Yorktown (Va.)

Northeast Top 10

1. Darien (Conn.), 21-0 (1)
2. Sayville (N.Y.), 19-0 (2)
3. Garden City (N.Y.), 18-2 (3) 
4. Huntington (N.Y.), 18-2 (4) 
5. Penfield (N.Y.), 17-3 (5)
6. Nyack (N.Y.), 16-4 (6) 
7. Suffern (N.Y.), 17-2 (7)  
8. Massapequa (N.Y.), 15-4 (8)
9. Manhasset (N.Y.), 15-3 (9)
10. Cold Spring Harbor (N.Y.), 14-5 (10)

Mid-Atlantic Top 10

1. Manchester Valley (Md.), 19-0 (1) 
2. West Chester Henderson (Pa.), 24-1 (2)
3. Conestoga (Pa.), 23-2 (3)
4. Springfield-Delco (Pa.), 20-4 (5) 
5. Severna Park (Md.), 15-4 (4)
6. Ridgewood (N.J.), 20-4 (8) 
7. Morristown (N.J.), 18-6 (6)
8. Westfield (N.J.), 17-6 (7) 
9. Moorestown (N.J.), 16-5 (9) 
10. Marriotts Ridge (Md.), 15-5 (10)

South Top 10

1. West Forsyth (Ga.), 22-0 (1)
2. Milton (Ga.), 19-2 (2)
3. Ponte Vedra (Fla.), 17-3 (3)
4. Anderson (Texas), 13-1 (4) 
5. Lambert (Ga.), 18-3 (5)
6. Pinecrest (N.C.), 21-0 (6)
7. Cambridge (Ga.), 17-5 (7)
8. Lake Mary (Fla.), 18-4 (8) 
9. Plant (Fla.), 15-2 (9) 
10. Chapel Hill (N.C.), 21-4 (10)

Midwest Top 10

1. Olentangy Liberty (Ohio), 20-3 (2) 
2. Upper Arlington (Ohio), 22-2 (1) 
3. Hudson (Ohio), 20-1 (3) 
4. New Trier (Ill.), 18-6 (4) 
5. Minnetonka (Minn.), 16-1 (5) 
6. Mariemont (Ohio), 19-2 (6) 
7. Eureka (Mo.), 19-1 (7) 
8. Barrington (Ill.), 23-3 (8)
9. Orono (Minn.), 14-2 (9)
10. York (Ill.), 21-4 (10)

West Top 10

1. Coronado (Calif.), 17-3 (1) 
2. La Costa Canyon (Calif.), 16-3 (2)
3. Mira Costa (Calif.), 16-3 (3)
4. San Ramon Valley (Calif.), 15-4 (4)
5. Del Oro (Calif.), 20-0 (5)
6. Grant (Ore.), 17-1 (6)
7. Redwood (Calif.), 16-6 (7) 
8. West Linn (Ore.), 14-3 (8) 
9. Evergreen (Colo.), 10-8 (9) 
10. Park City (Utah), 19-2 (10)