MIDDLEBURY, Vt. – The TCNJ women's lacrosse team saw its terrific 2026 campaign end with a 19-4 setback at top-ranked Middlebury in the NCAA quarterfinals on Sunday.
 
The Lions (18-3) met their match at the hands of the four-time reigning national champion Panthers, who advanced to their seventh consecutive Final Four and extended their remarkable streak of NCAA Tournament victories to 27. Middlebury (21-0) will head to Rochester Institute of Technology next weekend for a semifinal showdown with a NESCAC rival, either Tufts or Williams.
 
The senior class of Veronica Campbell, Meghan Hogan, Marissa Lucca, Sydney Sieja, and Hailey Wexler ended their tremendous careers with an Elite Eight bid as the capper to a resume that includes four NJAC titles, four NCAA Tournament berths, and a record of 62-17. Wexler, who eclipsed 200 career saves with nine on Sunday, was a freshman on the 2022 squad that reached the Final Four.
 
Lucca made history in her final game, scoring a pair of goals to equal Jenny LaRocca's single-season program record with 140 points. She finished her staggering three-year career with 210 goals (6^th in program history), 123 assists (3^rd), and 333 points (4^th).
 
TCNJ came out with a dogged defensive determination, staving off a 2-minute Middlebury possession with an interception by Emily Potenza. A pickoff on the other end, however, sprung the Panthers on a fast break that ended in a quick-strike goal and a 1-0 lead three minutes in. Middlebury added another 36 seconds later to quickly double the Lions' deficit, and two more goals in the span of 35 seconds forced the blue and gold into a timeout with 9:24 left in the first quarter.
 
Middlebury needed just a minute and 20 seconds out of the break to increase the lead to 6-0, and another minute and five seconds to up it to 7-0.  
 
In a valiant effort to stem the tide, Wexler made four consecutive close-range saves on a single Panther power play, a remarkable individual display from the fifth-year netminder playing in her first Elite Eight game.
 
Middlebury increased its lead to 9-0 before the Lions got off their first shot, a deflected effort by CJ Kole that was saved by Elizabeth Savage as the final seconds of the first quarter expired, and started the running clock with a goal 51 seconds into the second.
 
The Lions got on the board with 2:45 left before halftime. Kole picked up a loose ball and fed in front for Lucca, who sent a shot past Savage and into the back of the cage to make it 11-1. Lucca stopped the clock with another goal just before intermission, converting another pass from Kole to match the single-season points record.
 
Thanks in large part to Wexler, who saved two free-position shots in the quarter, and Nevins, who went 3-of-4 on draws in the frame, the Lions held Middlebury scoreless for the final 11:26 of the stanza.
 
The Panthers got back on track with a goal on the first possession of the second half, making it 12-2 on Lach's quick-stick strike. The hosts tacked on four more before Kole ripped the top right corner of the cage with a free-position shot to cut Middlebury's lead to 16-3 late in the third.
 
Wexler reached 200 career saves early in the fourth, shifting to her right to deny a hard shot by Britt Nawrocki with 12:45 remaining.
 
Ashly Herlihy got herself on the scoresheet, shoveling in a free-position goal with 8:05 to play, the last goal of the season for the Lions.
 
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• Middlebury held a 32-9 advantage in shots and put 28 of them on target
• TCNJ committed 15 turnovers to the Panthers' 10
• Middlebury had 14 ground balls to the Lions' eight and won the draw control duel by an 18-7 margin
• The Lions went 2-for-2 on free-position attempts, while the Panthers were 3-of-6

STANDOUT LIONS

• Kole finished with a team-high three points on a goal and two assists, also adding two ground balls, two caused turnovers, and two draw controls
• Lucca found the back of the cage on both of her shots
• Herlihy netted her 12^th goal of the season and first since April 15
• Potenza paired two caused turnovers with two draw controls
• Hogan and Mckenah Schilp each caused a turnover

NOTES

• Lucca's 84 goals in 2026 are tied for 3^rd-most in program history, just two off the single-season record
• Lucca ended the season ranked 3^rd in Division III in points and 6^th in goals, and finished her career just outside the top-10 in career points among all Division III players
• Kole moved into the all-time top-10 in career assists (75)
• Potenza is now 8^th all-time with 74 career caused turnovers
• Hogan ended her career tied for 23^rd with 54 career caused turnovers
• Herlihy is already tied for 10^th in program history in caused turnovers (71) after her sophomore season
• Williams' 64 caused turnovers in her debut season are 3^rd-most in a single season
• Wexler became the 12^th goalie in school history to reach 200 career saves
• Wexler finishes 3^rd in program history in career goals-against average (5.60) and 10^th in save percentage
• TCNJ racked up 167 assists this season, just two off the school record set in 2011
• The Lions' 294 caused turnovers are also 2^nd-most in school history (331, 2018)