TAMPA, Fla. — Keiser opens the 2026 Sun Conference women’s lacrosse season as the preseason favorite, earning 34 points and four first-place votes in the annual poll of league head coaches.
Keiser went undefeated during Sun Conference regular-season play a year ago and concluded the 2025 campaign with a 16–2 overall record. The Seahawks were one of three Sun Conference programs selected to the eight-team field at the NAIA Women’s Lacrosse Championship, earning the No. 1 overall seed before advancing to the National Semifinals.
Life and SCAD also represented the Sun Conference at the national tournament, with SCAD earning the No. 3 seed and joining Keiser in reaching the National Semifinals.
Life, the defending Sun Conference Tournament Champions, is voted second in this year’s preseason poll with 30 points and two first-place votes.
SCAD follows in third with 26 points and one first-place vote, while Ave Maria earned 24 points to place fourth, positioning four teams within 10 points at the top of the preseason poll.
St. Thomas sits fifth with 16 points, followed by Warner with nine points. New College rounds out the preseason rankings with eight points.
Non-conference action begins Saturday, February 7, with Sun Conference play set to open Saturday, March 28. The 2026 Sun Conference Women’s Lacrosse Tournament will determine the league’s automatic qualifier to the NAIA Championship and will take place April 30–May 2.
| 2026 Sun Conference Women's Lacrosse Preseason Poll |
| Rank |
Team |
Points
(first-place votes) |
2025 Conference Record |
2025 Overall Record |
| 1 |
Keiser |
34 (4) |
7-0 |
16-2 |
| 2 |
Life |
30 (2) |
4-3 |
11-8 |
| 3 |
SCAD Savannah |
26 (1) |
6-1 |
15-4 |
| 4 |
Ave Maria |
24 |
5-2 |
8-9 |
| 5 |
St. Thomas |
16 |
3-3 |
7-9 |
| 6 |
Warner |
9 |
2-5 |
5-12 |
| 7 |
New College |
8 |
0-7 |
1-8 |
Key Links
ABOUT THE SUN CONFERENCE
Now in its 35th year, The Sun Conference — a 501(c)(3) organization founded in 1990 — is a leading member of the NAIA. The league’s 10 full-member institutions across Florida and Georgia compete in 24 championship sports. Under Commissioner Dustin Wilke, The Sun continues to raise the standard in collegiate athletics. Learn more at thesunconference.com.
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