Five Named 2026 All-Big Ten for Women’s Lacrosse
Apr 21 | Women's Lacrosse
PISCATAWAY, N.J. – Five standouts from Rutgers women's lacrosse earned all-conference honors from the Big Ten, announced Tuesday afternoon. Senior Katie Buck was named first team all-conference on defense, while sophomore Caroline Ling collected second team honors at attack.
Rookies Gabby Mariani, Annalise Messina and Kate Theofield were all named to the all-freshman team, with Theofield one of five student-athletes from across the conference to do so unanimously. The three freshmen selections tied with Johns Hopkins for the most in the Big Ten.
The five honorees mark the most All-Big Ten selections since the 2022 season, while Buck became the most recent Scarlet Knight to earn first team laurels since Cassidy Spilis in 2024. RU has now had 21 All-Big Ten picks under head coach Melissa Lehman.
Junior goalkeeper Sophia Rowell was the program's Big Ten Sportsmanship honoree. An Information Technology and Informatics major, Rowell earned Academic All-Big Ten and Big Ten Distinguished Scholar accolades, helping the program to the 2025 IWLCA Academic Honor Roll.
Buck has established herself as one of the top draw takers in the country this season, producing a Big Ten-best 154 draw controls. Her 9.06 draw controls-per-game average also leads the conference and is 11th nationally, while her 1.41 caused turnovers per game ranks seventh in the Big Ten. Buck set the single-season program record for draw controls and also established the single-game record with her career-high 16 on April 12 against Army.
A Nike Lacrosse Midseason All-American, Ling has been one of the top offensive players in the NCAA this spring. The Springboro, Ohio, native is second in the Big Ten and sixth nationally with 84 points this season on a team-high 54 goals and 30 assists. Ling has netted three or more goals 11 times this spring, with her 3.18 goals per game ranking fourth in the Big Ten. Her 84 points are the second most in a single season in school history.
Theofield burst onto the scene in her first collegiate season, owning 56 points on 42 goals and 14 assists. A two-time Big Ten Freshman of the Week, Theofield's 42 goals are third nationally among freshmen and first in the conference. The Smithtown, New York, native has produced 11 multi-goal games this spring, including a career-high six on March 15 against No. 8 Johns Hopkins.
Mariani has started 16 games as a defensive midfielder in her first season "On the Banks." producing 19 ground balls, 14 caused turnovers and a draw control along with seven points on four assists and three goals. The Madison, New Jersey, native secured a career-high four caused turnovers and three ground balls in the 9-8 win on March 19 at No. 25 Ohio State, and followed with her first multi-point game on March 28 at USC.
Messina has started all 17 games in the midfield during her first collegiate season, contributing 17 points on 14 goals and three assists, 20 draw controls, 10 ground balls and four caused turnovers. The Hatboro, Pennsylvania, native earned Big Ten Freshman of the Week honors after she contributed two goals, including the game-winning score with seconds remaining, to help the Scarlet Knights to a 9-8 win at No. 25 Ohio State.
Rutgers opens the postseason as the No. 6 seed in this week's Big Ten Tournament, facing No. 3 seed Johns Hopkins in the quarterfinals on Wednesday night in Ann Arbor. The Scarlet Knights have already produced their most regular-season (10) and conference (4) victories since 2022, when they advanced to the NCAA Tournament for just the third time in program history.
Rookies Gabby Mariani, Annalise Messina and Kate Theofield were all named to the all-freshman team, with Theofield one of five student-athletes from across the conference to do so unanimously. The three freshmen selections tied with Johns Hopkins for the most in the Big Ten.
The five honorees mark the most All-Big Ten selections since the 2022 season, while Buck became the most recent Scarlet Knight to earn first team laurels since Cassidy Spilis in 2024. RU has now had 21 All-Big Ten picks under head coach Melissa Lehman.
Junior goalkeeper Sophia Rowell was the program's Big Ten Sportsmanship honoree. An Information Technology and Informatics major, Rowell earned Academic All-Big Ten and Big Ten Distinguished Scholar accolades, helping the program to the 2025 IWLCA Academic Honor Roll.
Buck has established herself as one of the top draw takers in the country this season, producing a Big Ten-best 154 draw controls. Her 9.06 draw controls-per-game average also leads the conference and is 11th nationally, while her 1.41 caused turnovers per game ranks seventh in the Big Ten. Buck set the single-season program record for draw controls and also established the single-game record with her career-high 16 on April 12 against Army.
A Nike Lacrosse Midseason All-American, Ling has been one of the top offensive players in the NCAA this spring. The Springboro, Ohio, native is second in the Big Ten and sixth nationally with 84 points this season on a team-high 54 goals and 30 assists. Ling has netted three or more goals 11 times this spring, with her 3.18 goals per game ranking fourth in the Big Ten. Her 84 points are the second most in a single season in school history.
Theofield burst onto the scene in her first collegiate season, owning 56 points on 42 goals and 14 assists. A two-time Big Ten Freshman of the Week, Theofield's 42 goals are third nationally among freshmen and first in the conference. The Smithtown, New York, native has produced 11 multi-goal games this spring, including a career-high six on March 15 against No. 8 Johns Hopkins.
Mariani has started 16 games as a defensive midfielder in her first season "On the Banks." producing 19 ground balls, 14 caused turnovers and a draw control along with seven points on four assists and three goals. The Madison, New Jersey, native secured a career-high four caused turnovers and three ground balls in the 9-8 win on March 19 at No. 25 Ohio State, and followed with her first multi-point game on March 28 at USC.
Messina has started all 17 games in the midfield during her first collegiate season, contributing 17 points on 14 goals and three assists, 20 draw controls, 10 ground balls and four caused turnovers. The Hatboro, Pennsylvania, native earned Big Ten Freshman of the Week honors after she contributed two goals, including the game-winning score with seconds remaining, to help the Scarlet Knights to a 9-8 win at No. 25 Ohio State.
Rutgers opens the postseason as the No. 6 seed in this week's Big Ten Tournament, facing No. 3 seed Johns Hopkins in the quarterfinals on Wednesday night in Ann Arbor. The Scarlet Knights have already produced their most regular-season (10) and conference (4) victories since 2022, when they advanced to the NCAA Tournament for just the third time in program history.
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