It was a historic season for the Colorado women’s lacrosse team.
Molly Reed was one of several standout seniors who helped lead the 2026 Colorado women’s lacrosse team to its first appearance in the NCAA Tournament quarterfinals .
The Buffaloes advanced further than any squad in the program’s 13-season history, reaching the NCAA Tournament quarterfinals for the first time before suffering a season-ending 13-12 loss in double-overtime at top-seeded Northwestern on Thursday. Along the way, the Buffs collected the program’s first conference tournament championship, defeating top-seeded Florida on its home turf in the Big 12 title game.
CU put together the best season in team history behind a senior class that led the way on both ends of the field. Certainly the cupboard won’t be completely bare once head coach Ann Elliott Whidden turns her attention to the 2027 season. But the departing senior class leaves a legacy that will be tough to uphold.
“This is huge for us,” Elliott Whidden said. “Obviously it’s nice to play on this stage. It’s nice to have some success this season. But I think it’s more about our program and the belief we need to have to in ourselves to be successful, and the lessons we’ve learned.
Hopefully this senior class has passed on a lot of that to our younger kids. ” CU tied the 2017 Buffs for the most wins in team history, finishing 16-4. And even after Northwestern became the first team to post a double-digit goal total against CU this season, the Buffs still set a team record with a 6.95 goals-against average. That mark edged the former record of 6.99 recorded by the 2016 team.
After forcing 19 turnovers against Northwestern, the Buffs finished with a program record average of 10.4 caused turnovers per game, topping the previous mark of 9.68 in 2019. Offensively, the Buffs recorded 109 assists, narrowly missing the team record of 110 set in 2017. Maddie Shoup finished her senior season tied for eighth in team history in goals while ranking eighth in assists and 10th in points .
Shoup scored the last of those 99 goals with four seconds remaining in regulation against Northwestern, keeping the Buffs alive into overtime, and she recorded a career-high eight points in her final game. Shoup’s 71 points this year rank seventh among CU’s season leaders. With two assists against Northwestern, Lily Assini finished with 53 in her career, which ties Miranda Stinson for fifth all-time.
Central defender Jess Peluso was a two-time winner of the Big 12 Defender of the Year award, and senior classmates Mary Carson and Mack Hanlon also were key figures on the Buffs’ record-setting defense. The Buffs are scheduled to welcome back Teagan Ryan, who ranked second on the team with 41 goals; Rowan Edson, who recorded 28 goals and eight assists as a freshman; and starting goalie Elena Oh.
But the Buffs will be counting on younger players to step in and fill key roles to keep the NCAA Tournament momentum rolling.
“I think being able to play at this stage, it motivates you,” Elliott Whidden said. “It motivates you to work harder. It motivates you to come back next year stronger. It gives you that confidence.
I think that’s the biggest thing for our program. Outside of the outside things, it’s really about what’s inside and the lessons we’ve learned that hopefully we can carry forward in terms of how we approach and attack the season next year. ”
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