LEXINGTON, Va. – The Old Dominion Athletic Conference recently announced the seedings for the 2026 Men's Lacrosse Championship, and Washington and Lee earned the top seed for the third straight season.
The No. 18 nationally-ranked Generals completed the regular season with an overall record of 12-5 and an ODAC record of 9-1 to claim the league's No. 1 seed. The third-ranked Lynchburg Hornets came in as the conference's No. 2 seed, finishing 9-1 in conference play but losing the head-to-head tiebreaker to the Generals.
Roanoke and Hampden-Sydney rounded out the Top-4 seeds and those who will host games during the quarterfinal round. Randolph-Macon is the No. 5 seed this year, with Virginia Wesleyan, Bridgewater and Shenandoah completing the eight-team field.
As the No. 8 seed, Shenandoah (5-12, 3-7 ODAC) will travel to W&L for the quarterfinal round on Monday evening at 7:00 p.m. in a rematch of the teams' April 7 contest that favored the Blue and White, 26-4.
Should the Generals advance to Friday's semifinal round, they would host the winner of the Hampden-Sydney/Randolph-Macon quarterfinal. W&L defeated the Tigers, 19-8, this season, with the Yellow Jackets handing the Generals their only ODAC loss, 10-8, back on March 28.
Statistically, W&L is having another highly potent season on offense, averaging 17.5 goals per game, the third-best mark in program history and sixth-best in Division III this season. Prior to their season finale, the Generals also were second in Division III in assists per game (11.5) and third in shot percentage (.373).
The W&L attack has been led by the superb play of senior
James Haley and first-year
Luke Caldwell, combining for 163 points on 86 goals and 77 assists. Haley leads the team in both goals (46) and points (84), while Caldwell has a team-best 39 assists to go along with 40 goals. Both players have also caused six turnovers each and combined for 58 ground balls. Haley's 84 points and Caldwell's 39 assists both lead the ODAC.
First-years
Tucker Davis and
Garrett Ferguson have also been strong additions to the W&L offense this season. Davis has 51 points on 32 goals and 19 assists, while Ferguson has scored 31 goals.
Seniors
Colin Beatty and
Elliot Cohen have led the midfield efforts this season. Beatty is tied for second on the team in caused turnovers (14) and is third in ground balls (47), while also contributing seven points up top on five goals and two assists. Cohen is sixth in points at 25 on 10 goals and 15 assists, plus 26 ground balls and three caused turnovers.
On defense, senior
Jay O'Keefe has a W&L-best 24 caused turnovers plus 29 ground balls, and he has also scored five goals. Senior defenseman
Chris Datz has caused 14 turnovers with first-years
Eli Smink and
Lawson Marshall combining for 20 caused turnovers. Sophomore goalie
JJ Kim has gotten a team-high nine starts and played a high of 412:57 between the pipes, yielding an 8.14 goals-against average. He has also caused 11 turnovers this season, tied with Smink for third most on the team.
The Generals have won 63.9 percent of their face-offs this season, led by sophomore
Israel Mikkelson who is 116-for-174 (.667) with a team-best 73 ground balls. Junior
Thomas Moxley has taken a team-high 197 face-offs this season, winning 61.4 percent, while first-year
Hunter Hodges has posted a 0.616 (61-99) winning percentage in his first collegiate season.
The Hornets and Generals will get the 2026 ODAC Championship underway on Monday at 7:00 p.m. on Wilson Field. For more tournament information, click
here.
Nestled in the mountains of Virginia, Washington and Lee University is a proud member of NCAA Division III and the Old Dominion Athletic Conference. Founded in 1749, W&L is the ninth-oldest college in the United States and a top-ranked liberal arts university. With over 500 student-athletes in 24 varsity sports, the Generals have celebrated over 265 conference championships. Learn more about the Blue and White by visiting www.generalssports.com or on social media at @WLUGenerals.
