While there are only five area high school girls’ lacrosse teams and just four boys’ squads, area lacrosse continues to perform at a strong level.

Leading up to the regular season openers on Feb 25, here is a look at local boys and girls players to watch out for in the 2026 season: 

BOYS

Beau Boyd, Croatan: The senior defenseman looks to play a bigger part after he had 20 groundballs, nine takeaways for the defending state champions.

Kaden Bradley, Croatan: The sophomore attacker had 21 goals, nine assists, 26 groundballs and 24 faceoffs won for the Cougars, who were 21-2 overall.

Jake Brubaker, Croatan: The sophomore attacker had 12 goals, eight assists and seven groundballs.

Brian Griffing, Croatan: The senior defenseman is a two-time first-team all-area player who had 49 groundballs, 11 takeaways and two assists. He was third-team all-state.

Dain Sparks, Croatan: The senior attacker was first-team all-area and third-team all-state after he recorded 72 goals, 18 assists, 30 groundballs and 10 takeaways.

Xavier Borja, Jacksonville: The junior midfielder hopes to play a larger role after he had four goals, eight assists, 66 groundballs and 25 faceoffs won for the Cardinals, who were 6-12.

Aidan Hart, Jacksonville: The junior attacker was second-team all-area after he collected 40 goals, 25 assists, 76 groundballs and 18 takeaways.

Zach Patterson, Jacksonville: The junior defender looks to step up after he had 18 groundballs and five takeaways.

Alex Perry, Jacksonville: The senior midfielder had 25 goals, five assists, 94 groundballs.

Logan Skipper, Jacksonville: The senior attack had 44 goals, 10 assists, 58 groundballs and nine takeaways.

Eliaz Garcia, Northside: The junior attacker was second-team all-area with 39 assists, 14 goals, 37 groundballs and six assists.

Drake Hopkins, Northside: The junior defender was second-team all-area with 60 groundballs, 50 takeaways and four goals.

Jackson Miracle, Northside: The senior attack was second-team all-area after he recorded 54 goals, 23 assists, 33 groundballs and 17 takeaways.

Cameron Napier, Northside: The senior longstick midfielder was second-team all-area after he had 55 groundballs, 37 takeaways, 11 goals and six assists.

Vincent Petitto, Northside: The senior midfielder was second-team all-area with 47 groundballs, 18 takeaways, 19 goals and seven assists.

Jack Skordoulis, Northside: The junior attack was second-team all-area after he had 13 goals, 10 assists, 35 groundballs and six takeaways.

Anthony Anderson, Swansboro: The sophomore defender had 45 groundballs, three goals and three assists for the Pirates, who went 7-14.

Carter Geddes, Swansboro: The junior attack is a two-time first-team all-area player who had 51 goals, 11 assists, 88 groundballs and 134 faceoffs won.

Connor Mead, Swansboro: The junior defender hopes to play bigger role after he had 26 groundballs.

Wyatt Peterson, Swansboro: The junior midfielder had 47 groundballs and 29 faceoffs won.

GIRLS

Caroline Boyd, Croatan: The sophomore attack looks to step up after she had 13 goals, two assists and 22 groundballs for the Cougars, who advanced to the East Regional semifinal.

Georgianna Byrns, Croatan: The senior attacker is in her first season with the Cougars. She has played at a high level for the Bogue Elite club team.

Sunny Johnson, Croatan: The junior defender was second-team all-area with four caused turnovers while providing a strong presence in the back for the Cougars, who ended 13-9.

Malaya Kilgore, Croatan: The junior midfielder is a two-time first-team all-area player who had 32 goals, one assist, 32 groundballs, 17 caused turnovers and 44 draws controlled.

Evelyn Parker, Croatan: The sophomore defender was first-team all-area with 26 groundballs, 10 caused turnovers, 14 draws controlled and five goals.

Maddie Sutton, Croatan: The senior midfielder is the reigning area player of the year and a three-time first-team all-area player. As a junior, she had 88 goals, eight assists, 57 groundballs, 40 caused turnovers and 115 draws controlled.

Berkley Weihrauch, Croatan: The sophomore midfielder was first-team all-area with 88 goals, 20 assists, 41 groundballs, 11 caused turnovers and 118 draws controlled.

Izzy Alvarez, Jacksonville: The junior goalkeeper was first-team all-area with 216 saves with a .567 save percentage for the Cardinals, who look to improve on last season’s 2-12 record.

Eva Brusaw, Jacksonville: The junior midfielder was second-team all-area after she had 17 goals, 28 groundballs and three draws controlled.

Sara Joiner, Jacksonville: The senior midfielder looks to have a large role after she had one goal, 11 groundballs and 19 draws controlled.

Ashlynn Nealey, Jacksonville: The sophomore defender hopes to play a larger role.

Riley Reynolds, Jacksonville: The junior attacker also looks to step up.

Roula Al-Azzawi, Northside: The senior defender looks to play well after she had 33 groundballs and 19 caused turnovers for the Monarchs, who went 6-12.

Promise Curry-Morris, Northside: The senior attack/midfielder also looks to play a bigger role.

Isabelle Le, Northside: The junior defensive midfielder is another player who looks to have a larger role.

Mariana Palacios, Northside: The junior attacker had two goals and five groundballs.

Ayanna Wisniewski, Northside: The senior attack/midfielder also looks to step up.

Kirra DiFabrizio, Swansboro: The junior goalkeeper was second-team all-area with 112 saves and had a 7.6 goals against average with a .544 save percentage for the Pirates, who advanced to the East Regional semifinal.

Mattie Floyd, Swansboro: The junior midfielder was second-team all-area after she scored 11 goals to go along with having three assists, 16 groundballs, two caused turnovers and 16 draws controlled for the Pirates, who ended 12-6.

Payton Hislop, Swansboro: The junior defender looks to play a bigger part after she had five goals and one assist, 22 draws controlled and 12 groundballs.

Addison King, Swansboro: The junior midfielder is a two-time first-team player who had 63 goals, 18 assists, 31 groundballs and 66 draws controlled.

Claire Patterson, Swansboro: The sophomore attacker hopes to contribute more after she had six goals, 13 groundballs and eight draws controlled.

Lily Whited, Swansboro: The junior defender was first-team all-area with 16 groundballs, nine caused turnovers, eight draws controlled, five goals and one assist.

Caroline Hodgins, White Oak: The junior midfielder had 18 goals, 26 draws controlled and 12 groundballs for the Vikings, who were 1-12.

Kylie Stephens, White Oak: The senior defender/midfielder was a second-team all-area defender with 31 groundballs, seven takeaways and seven draws controlled.