UTICA, NY - Utica University's women's lacrosse team is set to conclude the 2026 regular season schedule with two Empire 8 home matchups. On Wednesday, April 22nd, Hartwick will come to Gaetano Stadium for a 4:00 pm matchup before the Knights challenge Utica at 1:00 pm on Saturday, April 25th. The Pioneers, who have already clinched a playoff berth, will look to maximize their chances at a high seeding in the conference tournament.

Follow Along: Those interested in following the games can find the video streams HERE, with live stats available HERE.

Last Week's Recap: Utica put together a strong 2-1 week, bouncing back from a non-conference setback with a pair of decisive Empire 8 victories. The Pioneers opened the stretch with an 18-8 loss to the University of Rochester, where Bella Kolb (New Hartford, NY/New Hartford) led the offense with a hat trick and Makayla Purdy (Shirley, NY/William Floyd) made 13 saves while reaching the 300-career-save milestone. Utica quickly responded in conference play, erupting for 11 unanswered goals after conceding the opener against Russell Sage en route to an 18-6 win. In that contest, Maria Stuhlman (Whitesboro, NY/Whitesboro) and Alyssa Specchio (Chenango Forks, NY/Chenango Forks) led the team with six goals apiece, including Stuhlman's 100th of her career when she finished her hat trick.

The momentum carried into the weekend as the Pioneers delivered another dominant performance in a 16-3 win over Alfred. Utica built a 13-0 lead behind balanced scoring, with Stuhlman and Alexis Alteri (Clinton, NY/Clinton) each netting four goals, while Specchio and Jessica Marciano (Churchville, NY/Churchville Chili) added three apiece. Across the two conference victories, the Pioneers showcased both offensive depth and defensive control, outscoring opponents 34-9 while continuing to generate production from multiple contributors. For her efforts across the three-game stretch, Stuhlman was named the Empire 8 Co-Offensive Player of the Week, marking her third such honor of the 2026 season.

The Postseason Ahead: With a postseason berth already secured, Utica enters the final week with significant seeding still to be determined. Sitting at 5-2 in Empire 8 play, the Pioneers can finish as high as the #2 seed or as low as the #5 seed, depending on results in the conference over the coming week. While Utica holds the head-to-head tiebreaker over Nazareth, it falls short in that category against both St. John Fisher and SUNY Brockport, making a climb to #2 difficult but leaving a strong opportunity to secure a home game in the opening round, reserved for the top four seeds in the six-team bracket.

If Utica lands at #3 or #4, they would host a first-round matchup against one of the lower-seeded qualifiers, likely from a group that includes Nazareth, Alfred, or Russell Sage, depending on how the final spot shakes out. A drop to #5 would send the Pioneers on the road for the opening round, potentially facing a tightly packed middle seed such as Brockport or Hartwick. With three teams clustered at 5-2 and several key head-to-head tiebreakers in play, Utica's final two games will play a major role in shaping both their seeding and matchup, with the chance to secure a favorable path and avoid an early road contest in the Empire 8 Tournament.

Hawk's Eye View: After opening the season with a 21-9 win in their season opener, Hartwick lost seven consecutive games to put the team behind 1-7 overall and 0-2 in conference at that point in the year. The six games since have shown a different squad, as the Hawks have stayed unbeaten and outscored their opponents 97-26. Across their seven total wins, only one game has had a goal difference of less than 10 (8-5 vs. Nazareth on 4/4). Now 7-7 overall and 5-2 within the conference, Hartwick will challenge Utica and St. John Fisher in the final week of the regular season.

A trio of underclass attackers has fueled the Hartwick offense in 2026, made up of Lily Dempsey, Adelyn Esce, and Parker Laurin. Dempsey has tied Esce with 46 points, achieving the count via 28 goals and 14 assists, while Esce has netted 20 goals and a team-high 26 assists. The team's goal lead belongs to Laurin with 33 goals, while assisting nine. Senior Jammie Decker has been dominant in gaining possession for the Hawks, leading the team in both draw controls (55) and ground balls (33), while sitting just one caused turnover short of freshman Gabby Fitzgerald's team-best (19). Junior Brooke Lynett has played the majority of time between the pipes, maintaining a .490 save percentage and a 10.40 goals allowed average in 605:46 of play.

Knowing the Knights: SUNY Geneseo has played to an 8-6 overall record in 2026, with a 6-1 record inside the E8. The team began the season with three straight losses in games in which they scored eight goals, before three straight wins over Oswego State (15-14), Hamilton (11-8), and Hartwick (15-5). After two more losses, the Knights began the bulk of their in-conference schedule, winning five of their last six games, and each of the last three. The span has included home wins of 26-1 (4/4 vs Russell Sage), 25-0 (4/15 vs Keuka), and 23-1 (4/18 vs SUNY Poly). The team's lone E8 loss came in a 13-10 defeat at home by St. John Fisher on April 8th. Over the coming week, Geneseo will complete its non-conference schedule with games against Union on Tuesday, Alfred on Wednesday, and Utica on Saturday. 

The Knights have had a balanced offense in 2026, but the duo of Rosemary Mahoney and Natalie Long has led the way. Mahoney leads the team with 44 points, a product of 20 goals and a team-high 24 assists. Long has scored a team-high 28 goals and chipped in eight assists as the only other player to reach 30+ total points. Mahoney additionally leads the squad in both caused turnovers (21) and ground balls (39), while junior Violet Piccinini leads the team with 60 draw controls. Geneseo has had four goaltenders appear in 2026, with all of them totaling between 60:00 and 165:00 in net. As a team, the Knights have posted a .475 save percentage and a 4.57 goals allowed average.

Up Next: The team completes its regular season after the two home matchups. With a playoff berth already clinched, the postseason schedule will rely on the upcoming shifts in seeding among participants. If Utica can secure the #2 seed, it will earn a first-round bye or earn a first-round home game with either the #3 or #4 seed. If the Pioneers slide to the #5 seed, they would not host another home game in 2026 unless in the case of a #5 vs #6 championship game.