2026 Tufts University Field Hockey Season Preview

MEDFORD, MA (September 2, 2026) - A strong group of returnees from the last year's NCAA Championship team leads Tufts University Field Hockey into another promising season which starts on Saturday night against Trinty College.

Tufts won its second NCAA title, the first since 2012, with a 2-1 overtime victory against Johns Hopkins University. Head coach Tina Mattera's team returns more than a dozen players from that squad - seniors Claire Casey (co-captain), Isabel Ginn, Reagan Malo (co-captain), Lilly Ragusa and Katarina Villa, juniors Tanya Dev, Eleanor Luft, Hannah Murray, Riley Schmidt and Ellie Wilkins, and sophomores Scarlett Carpenter, Molly Hall, Eleanor Helm, Ruby Pearson and Kate Wahler. The juniors and seniors were also part of the 2024 Tufts team which won a NESCAC title and advanced to the NCAA Final, giving this year's group a ton of big-game experience.

They are joined by a talented class of eight first-year players as the Jumbos set out seeking continued success im 2026 - Isabella Bogovich, Sarah Dahms, Lily Haig, Sydney Lafferty, Anna Lunn, Sophia Medico, Cara Passios and Izzy San Filippo. 

"We think we have a lot of talent that we can move around," Coach Mattera said. "We're excited about trying people at different spots and seeing who's clicking together. We're really excited about the depth. That might be our secret super power this year."

Tufts is the #1 team in the NFHCA preseason national poll. Though the goal is as always to win NESCAC and NCAA championships, Coach Mattera and the squad are focused more on their day-by-day play.

"Our goal is just to play better hockey," she said. "Can we take it up a notch as a team? Can we dominate? Can we be relentless in our game, with how hard we go, how hard we tackle back, how hard we work together as a unit?"

The Jumbos led the conference in scoring by a wide margin last year with 3.32 goals per game, but NFHCA National Player of the Year Hannah Biccard graduated along with her 17 goals and 40 points from last season. Maintaining that level of offense will be a key this season. The defense, which was top 20 nationally last year allowing less than a goal per game, will have more of a new look following the loss of All-American goalie Lydia Eastburn and four-year starter Gabby Sousa. 

Here's a closer look at the team by position:

FORWARD - Eight of the top 10 scorers from a year ago are back in the fold overall, led by Helm at forward. She had an outstanding freshman season scoring 13 goals with a team-high seven assists for 33 points. An All-NESCAC honoree, she was named to the NCAA Final Four All-Tournament Team after scoring the first goal of the final against JHU. Malo has been a solid contributor over the last two seasons (9 goals, 5 assists combined), and will look to make an even bigger contribution in her senior season. Murray showed great production in her first season as a regular with seven goals and three assists (17 points), and Schmidt (four goals in '25) also showed a nose for the net. The coaching staff thinks the group has potentional to be even deeper, as Carpenter will look to take a step in her second season, Haig has stood out among the newcomers during the preseason and Dahms will also look to contribute.

MIDFIELD - Retrunees Ragusa and Villa are a strong, hard-working and experienced pair at the inner midfield. Ragusa took over as the insterter on corners last year and produced a strong season with eight goals and four assists for 20 points. She scored the lone goal in Tufts' 1-0 win over Christopher Newport in the NCAA Semifinals. Villa, who had eight points last year (2-4-8), is another senior player capable of adding more to the offense. Dev and Lafferty are also part of the inside group. The outside midfied is also very strong and experienced, with Luft, Wilkins, Pearson and Wahler returning. Luft was an NFHCA All-American last year. Pearson started 20 games as a freshman, while Wilkins and Wahler gained valuable experience as regulars last year. Newcomers Passios and Lunn add to the depth. 

BACKFIELD - Casey, a returning NFHCA All-American, should be one of the best players in the NESCAC and the nation this fall. In addition to her work on defense, she became a major weapon offensively on corners last year when she finished with eight goals and five assists (21 points). Wahler could also see time here, whereas the rest of the group is young including newcomes Medico and San Filippo.

GOALKEEPER - In her senior season, Ginns takes over as the starter. While she may lack game experience, she has the coaching staff's confidence after pushing Eastburn for playing time last season. Hall and Bogovich will back Ginns up.

As usual, the NESCAC schedule will prove challenging as eight conference teams are listed in the NFHCA preseason top 20. Along with Tufts at #1, Bates is #5, Middlebury #7, Wesleyan #8, Williams #11, Hamilton #12, Bowdoin #15 and Amherst is #19. Third-ranked Babson is also on the Jumbo schedule early in the season.