NCAA D2 WLAX Bracket

Indianapolis, Ind.----The South Atlantic Conference regular season champion Wingate University Bulldogs have earned a bid to the NCAA Division II women's lacrosse tournament, earning the four seed in the Atlantic Region. The full field was announced Sunday night. The Bulldogs will face fifth-seeded Limestone in the opening round Thursday, May 8 at 3 p.m. in West Chester, Pa. The Bulldogs enter tourney play at 17-2 overall, going 11-0 in league play to capture the third straight regular season SAC title. The 'Dogs were ranked #15 in the most recent IWLCA top 25 poll.

West Chester is the number one seed in the region, with Slippery Rock earning the two seed. The top two seeds will host the opening round contests. East Stroudsburg is the three seed, with Wingate, Limestone and Frostburg State rounding out the region.

The Bulldogs will be making the second NCAA Tournament appearance in program history. The first appearance came in the 2022 season, when Wingate earned the number three seed in the South Regional.

Wingate is one of the most balanced teams in the country, leading the nation in caused turnovers while ranking fourth in assists, fifth in scoring margin, sixth in points per game, seventh in scoring defense, eighth in scoring offense and ninth in draw control percentage.  

The Bulldogs have nine All-SAC honorees, led by SAC Midfielder of the Year Megan Millard and Defensive Player of the Year Katherine McCabe. Millard has 56 goals, 13 assists, 61 draw controls, 27 caused turnovers and 36 ground balls. McCabe has a SAC-best 125 draw controls and 51 CTs, adding 65 ground balls. Kaleigh Wilgeroth has 43 goals and 30 assists for a team-best 73 points, while Nelida Watson has 38 goals and 15 assists. Danielle Scarfogliero has contributed 22 goals and 28 assists, with Avery Scherer notching 27 goals and 19 assists.

Krysta Churns is another key contributor on defense, with 24 CTs and 42 ground balls. Bree Solero and Haley McCourt have added 23 and 22 caused turnovers, respectively. Sophie Pavlick has piled up 70 draw controls on the season. Riley Boone ranks seventh in the nation with her 8.40 goals-against average, while ranking third in the SAC in save percentage.

Wingate and Limestone have met twice in the past month, with the Bulldogs prevailing at Limestone to claim the regular season SAC title and the Saints knocking off Wingate in Saturday's SAC title game. The winner of the Wingate-Limestone contest will face West Chester Saturday, May 10 at 3 p.m. The winner of that contest is on to the regional finals May 17, with that winner advancing to the national semifinals May 22. The nation title game is slated for May 24 in Salem, Va.

NCAA D2 Atlantic Region

Thursday, May 8
3 p.m. - #4 Wingate vs. #5 Limestone
3 p.m. - #3 East Stroudsburg vs. #6 Frostburg State

Saturday May 10
3 p.m. - WU-LU winner at West Chester
3 p.m. - ES-FS winner at Slippery Rock

Saturday, May 17
3 p.m. – Atlantic Region Championship Game