The University of Akron Athletics

Action Photo - Akron Lacrosse - 4-24-26
Akron Closes League Play at Central Michigan
April 24 | Women's Lacrosse
AKRON, Ohio – Akron closes out the regular season campaign traveling to Mount Pleasant, Mich., to battle Central Michigan in a 12 p.m. Mid-American Conference showdown on Saturday (April 25).
FIVE ZIPS HONORED ON SENIOR DAY:
Akron recognized five Zips on Senior Day prior to the squad's match with Youngstown State on April 18. The group of Katie Baumer (Rochester, N.Y.), Sarah Baumer (Rochester, N.Y.), Heather Carey (Williamsville, N.Y.), Dani Dahl (Fairfax, Va.) and Kellen Fletcher (Valencia, Pa.) donned the Blue and White one final time at home when Akron hosted the Penguins.
ZIPS NAME TEAM CAPTAINS FOR 2026:
The Akron senior duo of Katie Baumer and Sarah Baumer will serve as the Zips' captains for the 2026 campaign.
SCOUTING AKRON:
Junior Sienna Hinchcliffe (Rochester, N.Y.) leads the Zips in goals (63), points (88), shots (133), shots on goal (92), while ranking second in ground balls (25) and third in draw controls (43) and caused turnovers (15). Katie Baumer is second on the team in goals (36). Kellen Fletcher paces the squad in assists (27), while junior Kaitlyn Sikorski (Plymouth, Minn.) ranks fourth with 18. Heather Carey, ranks third on the squad in goals netting 30. Redshirt freshman goalkeeper Adrianna Califano (Bellmore, N.Y.) has registered 80 saves, 23 ground balls and owns an 9.21 goals against average.
SCOUTING CENTRAL MICHIGAN:
Akron is meeting Central Michigan for the eighth time in program history. The Chippewas are 4-11 on the campaign, including 3-3 in the Mid-American Conference, following an 15-9 victory at Kent State on April 18. Junior Anna Farrar owns team-high totals in goals (25), shots (64) and shots on goal (46), while ranking second in points (28). Senior goalkeeper Leila Kahler has collected 134 saves and 41 ground balls, respectively, en route to posting 14.82 goals against average. Youngstown State is led by first-year interim head coach Katie Vahle, who owns an 4-6 ledger as a head coach for the Chippewas.
IN OUR LAST MEETING (MARCH 23, 2025 – AKRON, OHIO):
Spearheaded by a four-goal and two-assist performance from Noelle Boyd, Akron registered a 9-7 triumph past Central Michigan on March 23, 2025, at InfoCision Stadium-Summa Health Field.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
• With her first goal of the afternoon at the 11:03 mark of the opening quarter Boyd became the all-time leading goal scorer in program history with her 116th tally of her decorated career.
• Adding two goals apiece for Akron was Katie Baumer and Sienna Hinchcliffe, while Jaelyn Clinkscales rounded out the scoring efforts for the Zips with a goal of her own.
• Boyd posted a game-high two assists to go along with an assist each from Clinkscales, Kellen Fletcher and Kaitlyn Sikorski.
• Boyd and Hinchcliffe each tallied a game-high six shots, including six on goal, while Baumer added five shots.
• Boyd led the Zips with a game-high six ground balls, while Baumer garnered a game-high five draw controls.
• Boyd posted a game-high three caused turnovers to go along with a nine-save performance from goalkeeper Hannah Sanders.
AKRON PICKED TO FINISH SECOND IN MAC PRESEASON POLL:
The Mid-American Conference announced the 2026 Preseason Coaches' Poll on Feb. 4 as Akron was selected by the league's women's lacrosse coaches to finish second this season.
Conference newcomer Massachusetts (48 points, 6 first-place votes) was tabbed to capture the regular and postseason championships followed by Akron (37 points), Eastern Michigan (37), Robert Morris (34, 1 first-place vote), Central Michigan (28), Kent State (19), Youngstown State (12) and Detroit Mercy (9).
AKRON TRIUMPHS PAST YOUNGSTOWN STATE:
Sienna Hinchcliffe and Katie Baumer combined to register 10 goals, while adding seven assists to spark the Zips to a dominant 16-7 Senior Day victory past Youngstown State on a rainy Saturday (April 18) at InfoCision Stadium-Summa Health Field.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
• Hinchcliffe continued her campaign towards garnering MAC Player of the Year accolades recording a game-high six goals and five assists on the strength of a career-high 15 shots, including 11 on goal.
• Baumer was equally impressive tallying four goals and adding a pair of assists, while posting a game-high five caused turnovers and five ground balls to go along with a team-best six draw controls.
• Kellen Fletcher, Heather Carey, Kaitlyn Sikorski, sophomore Julia Mattingly (Leonardtown, Md.) and freshman Faith Sellet (Cincinnati, Ohio) contributed two, one, one, one and one goals, respectively.
• Adding three, two and one assists, respectively, was Fletcher, Sellet and Carey.
• Redshirt freshman goalkeeper Adrianna Califano (Bellmore, N.Y.) recorded two saves in the match for Akron.
• Sarah Baumer, Baumer, Carey, Dani Dahl and Fletcher were honored in pregame Senior Day ceremonies.
ZIPS CAPTURE MAC TOURNAMENT TITLE:
A golden goal from Jaelyn Clinkscales with 14 seconds remaining in overtime propelled the Akron lacrosse team to its first ever Mid-American Conference Tournament title and NCAA Tournament berth with a come-from-behind 11-10 victory over Robert Morris in the league's title match on May 3, 2025, in Moon Township, Pa.
Picked to finish last in the MAC Preseason Coaches' Poll, the Zips overcame a five-goal second-half deficit to force and overtime and set the stage for Clinkscales' game-winning goal in overtime.
AKRON EARNS FIRST EVER MAC REGULAR SEASON TITLE:
With its 14-12 come-from-behind victory over Robert Morris on April 27, 2025, the Zips earned a share of their first-ever Mid-American Conference regular season title.
FOUR ZIPS AND HEAD COACH ELAINE JONES GARNER ALL-MAC ACCOLADES:
Akron garnered a program-record four All-Mid-American Conference selections when the league unveiled its 2025 award winners in a vote of the league coaches.
Akron head coach Elaine Jones was recognized as the league's Coach of the Year as she led the Zips to their first ever MAC Regular Season title after the squad was picked to finish last in the preseason coaches' poll.
Noelle Boyd and Sienna Hinchcliffe headlined the Zips' award winners as the duo was selected as First-Team All-MAC honorees.
Pulling in Second-Team All-MAC laurels was Katie Baumer. Additionally, Julia Mattingly was tabbed to the MAC All-Freshman team.
AKRON NOTES:
• Sienna Hinchcliffe has scored three or more goals in 13 of 14 games this season, including seven straight games. Additionally, she has posted three or more points in all 14 contests and registered double-figure shots in five straight games and seven tilts overall.
• Katie Baumer has netted a goal in all 14 games this season, including two or more 11 times. She has recorded four or more shots in 12 matches.
• Hinchcliffe is atop the career list at Akron in total goals (157), in total points (209), goals per game (3.20), shots (365), shots on goal (268), points per contest (4.27), assists per outing (1.06), shots per match (7.45), shots on goal per game (5.47) and woman-up goals, while rating second in total assists (52) and fourth in draw controls (139) and draw controls per tilt (2.84).
• Baumer is now atop Akron's career list in caused turnovers (75). Additionally, she is rated second at Akron in draw controls (199), third in draw controls per contest (3.11), fourth in goals (1.30) and points per game (1.92), total goals (83), total points (123), career assists (40), total shots (193), shots on goal (143), shots on goal per tilt (2.23) and in ground balls (103), fifth shots per match (3.02), assists per game (0.63) and caused turnovers per match (1.17) and ninth in ground balls per contest (1.61).
• Kellen Fletcher is third in total assists (47) and assists per game (0.75), fifth in total goals (66), total points (113), total shots (169), shots on goal (130) and in points per game (1.79) and seventh in goals per tilt (1.05), shots per match (2.68) and shots on goal (2.06).
• Heather Carey is fifth in total goals (66), sixth in total shots (159), seventh in total points (78), eighth in draw controls (43) and 10th in draw controls (0.65).
• Kaitlyn Sikorski is third in assists per contest (0.75) and fifth in total assists (35).
• Sienna Hinchcliffe supplanted Alexis Kiefer as the single season record holder for goals in program history with a career-best six-goal effort last season against Robert Morris. She finished the campaign with 59 goals a year ago.
• Sienna Hinchcliffe set the single-season record for points (73), shots (142) and shots on goal (106), while Noelle Boyd owns the top single-season mark for assists (26) and Hannah Sanders for saves (144) and wins (11).
• Noelle Boyd surpassed Alexis Kiefer atop the career list for shots versus Robert Morris (April 27) having amassed 331 shots, while moving atop the list for shots on goal with 254 shots on goal against Eastern Michigan (April 20). Additionally, she started a program record 69 games.
IN THE LATEST MAC RANKINGS:
• Akron rates second in the Mid-American Conference in goals against average (9.21), in goals (12.86), assists (7.36), points (20.21), shots (29.29), shots on goal (20.64) per game and in draw controls (11.21).
• In league-only matches, Akron is ranked second in the league in goals (14.33), assists (9.00), points (23.33), shots on goal (23.00) and draw controls (12.83) and third in shots (31.33), caused turnovers (10.67) and goals against average (8.00).
• Sienna Hinchcliffe is first in the conference in goals per game (4.50), in shots (9.50) and in points per outing (6.29), fifth in assists per tilt (1.79) and ninth in draw controls (3.14).
• Katie Baumer is second in draw controls (3.93), fifth in points (3.93) and in goals per game (2.57), seventh in shots (5.57) and in assists (1.36), ninth in ground balls (2.14) and 10th in caused turnovers (1.21), while Kellen Fletcher is third in assists (1.93) and ninth in points (3.21).
• Adrianna Califano is second in goals against average (9.21), seventh in save percentage (.383) and eighth in saves (5.71).
• Additionally, Kaitlyn Sikorski is eighth in assists per match (1.29), Sarah Baumer is fourth in caused turnovers (1.79), Julia Mattingly is ninth in draw controls (3.14) and Heather Carey is eighth in goals per contest (2.14).
• In league-only action, Hinchcliffe is first in points per contest (8.17), goals per game (5.33) and shots per match (11.00), second in assists per tilt (2.83) and fifth in draw controls (4.17). Califano is third in the MAC in league-only goals against average (8.00) and ninth in saves percentage (.368) and in saves per game (4.67). Additionally, Baumer is fourth in draw controls (4.83), fifth in goals per game (2.67), points per contest (4.33) and in assists per match (1.67), sixth in shots per match (6.17) and caused turnovers (2.00) and eighth in ground balls (2.67), Carey is sixth in goals per game (2.50), Fletcher is fourth in assists per tilt (2.17) and seventh in points per contest (3.83) and Sarah Baumer is seventh in caused turnovers (1.83).
ZIPS IN THE NATIONAL RANKINGS:
• Katie Baumer is second in the NCAA in free position percentage (.733) and 18th in free position goals (0.79).
• Sienna Hinchcliffe rated second in the NCAA in in shots (9.50) per contest, third in goals per game (4.50), in shots on goal (6.57), fourth in total goals (63) and points per match (6.29), eighth in total points (88) and 49th in assists per game (1.79). Additionally, Kellen Fletcher is 43rd in assists per game (1.93) and Adrianna Califano is 23rd in goals against average (9.21).
• Akron ranks second in the NCAA in free position percentage (.605), 22nd in assists per game (7.36), 24th in scoring defense (9.21) and in winning percentage (.714), 25th in scoring margin (3.64), 26th in ground balls (17.14), 27th in points per match (20.21), 34th in shots per contest (29.29) and clearing percentage (.900), 35th in scoring offense (12.86), 37th in shot percentage (.439), 47th in shots on goal (20.57) and 50th in caused turnovers (9.00).
• Hinchcliffe ranks eighth among active NCAA D1 leaders in goals per outing (3.20), 11th in points per game (4.27), 18th in total goals (157) and 23rd in total points (209), while Baumer is rated 41st in caused turnovers (1.17), 46th in ground balls (1.61), 49th in draw controls (3.11) and 50th in ground balls (103) and Califano is ranked 22nd in goals against average (9.21).
UP NEXT:
Akron travels to Moon Township, Pa., for the semifinals of the MAC Tournament on Thursday (April 30).
FIVE ZIPS HONORED ON SENIOR DAY:
Akron recognized five Zips on Senior Day prior to the squad's match with Youngstown State on April 18. The group of Katie Baumer (Rochester, N.Y.), Sarah Baumer (Rochester, N.Y.), Heather Carey (Williamsville, N.Y.), Dani Dahl (Fairfax, Va.) and Kellen Fletcher (Valencia, Pa.) donned the Blue and White one final time at home when Akron hosted the Penguins.
ZIPS NAME TEAM CAPTAINS FOR 2026:
The Akron senior duo of Katie Baumer and Sarah Baumer will serve as the Zips' captains for the 2026 campaign.
SCOUTING AKRON:
Junior Sienna Hinchcliffe (Rochester, N.Y.) leads the Zips in goals (63), points (88), shots (133), shots on goal (92), while ranking second in ground balls (25) and third in draw controls (43) and caused turnovers (15). Katie Baumer is second on the team in goals (36). Kellen Fletcher paces the squad in assists (27), while junior Kaitlyn Sikorski (Plymouth, Minn.) ranks fourth with 18. Heather Carey, ranks third on the squad in goals netting 30. Redshirt freshman goalkeeper Adrianna Califano (Bellmore, N.Y.) has registered 80 saves, 23 ground balls and owns an 9.21 goals against average.
SCOUTING CENTRAL MICHIGAN:
Akron is meeting Central Michigan for the eighth time in program history. The Chippewas are 4-11 on the campaign, including 3-3 in the Mid-American Conference, following an 15-9 victory at Kent State on April 18. Junior Anna Farrar owns team-high totals in goals (25), shots (64) and shots on goal (46), while ranking second in points (28). Senior goalkeeper Leila Kahler has collected 134 saves and 41 ground balls, respectively, en route to posting 14.82 goals against average. Youngstown State is led by first-year interim head coach Katie Vahle, who owns an 4-6 ledger as a head coach for the Chippewas.
IN OUR LAST MEETING (MARCH 23, 2025 – AKRON, OHIO):
Spearheaded by a four-goal and two-assist performance from Noelle Boyd, Akron registered a 9-7 triumph past Central Michigan on March 23, 2025, at InfoCision Stadium-Summa Health Field.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
• With her first goal of the afternoon at the 11:03 mark of the opening quarter Boyd became the all-time leading goal scorer in program history with her 116th tally of her decorated career.
• Adding two goals apiece for Akron was Katie Baumer and Sienna Hinchcliffe, while Jaelyn Clinkscales rounded out the scoring efforts for the Zips with a goal of her own.
• Boyd posted a game-high two assists to go along with an assist each from Clinkscales, Kellen Fletcher and Kaitlyn Sikorski.
• Boyd and Hinchcliffe each tallied a game-high six shots, including six on goal, while Baumer added five shots.
• Boyd led the Zips with a game-high six ground balls, while Baumer garnered a game-high five draw controls.
• Boyd posted a game-high three caused turnovers to go along with a nine-save performance from goalkeeper Hannah Sanders.
AKRON PICKED TO FINISH SECOND IN MAC PRESEASON POLL:
The Mid-American Conference announced the 2026 Preseason Coaches' Poll on Feb. 4 as Akron was selected by the league's women's lacrosse coaches to finish second this season.
Conference newcomer Massachusetts (48 points, 6 first-place votes) was tabbed to capture the regular and postseason championships followed by Akron (37 points), Eastern Michigan (37), Robert Morris (34, 1 first-place vote), Central Michigan (28), Kent State (19), Youngstown State (12) and Detroit Mercy (9).
AKRON TRIUMPHS PAST YOUNGSTOWN STATE:
Sienna Hinchcliffe and Katie Baumer combined to register 10 goals, while adding seven assists to spark the Zips to a dominant 16-7 Senior Day victory past Youngstown State on a rainy Saturday (April 18) at InfoCision Stadium-Summa Health Field.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
• Hinchcliffe continued her campaign towards garnering MAC Player of the Year accolades recording a game-high six goals and five assists on the strength of a career-high 15 shots, including 11 on goal.
• Baumer was equally impressive tallying four goals and adding a pair of assists, while posting a game-high five caused turnovers and five ground balls to go along with a team-best six draw controls.
• Kellen Fletcher, Heather Carey, Kaitlyn Sikorski, sophomore Julia Mattingly (Leonardtown, Md.) and freshman Faith Sellet (Cincinnati, Ohio) contributed two, one, one, one and one goals, respectively.
• Adding three, two and one assists, respectively, was Fletcher, Sellet and Carey.
• Redshirt freshman goalkeeper Adrianna Califano (Bellmore, N.Y.) recorded two saves in the match for Akron.
• Sarah Baumer, Baumer, Carey, Dani Dahl and Fletcher were honored in pregame Senior Day ceremonies.
ZIPS CAPTURE MAC TOURNAMENT TITLE:
A golden goal from Jaelyn Clinkscales with 14 seconds remaining in overtime propelled the Akron lacrosse team to its first ever Mid-American Conference Tournament title and NCAA Tournament berth with a come-from-behind 11-10 victory over Robert Morris in the league's title match on May 3, 2025, in Moon Township, Pa.
Picked to finish last in the MAC Preseason Coaches' Poll, the Zips overcame a five-goal second-half deficit to force and overtime and set the stage for Clinkscales' game-winning goal in overtime.
AKRON EARNS FIRST EVER MAC REGULAR SEASON TITLE:
With its 14-12 come-from-behind victory over Robert Morris on April 27, 2025, the Zips earned a share of their first-ever Mid-American Conference regular season title.
FOUR ZIPS AND HEAD COACH ELAINE JONES GARNER ALL-MAC ACCOLADES:
Akron garnered a program-record four All-Mid-American Conference selections when the league unveiled its 2025 award winners in a vote of the league coaches.
Akron head coach Elaine Jones was recognized as the league's Coach of the Year as she led the Zips to their first ever MAC Regular Season title after the squad was picked to finish last in the preseason coaches' poll.
Noelle Boyd and Sienna Hinchcliffe headlined the Zips' award winners as the duo was selected as First-Team All-MAC honorees.
Pulling in Second-Team All-MAC laurels was Katie Baumer. Additionally, Julia Mattingly was tabbed to the MAC All-Freshman team.
AKRON NOTES:
• Sienna Hinchcliffe has scored three or more goals in 13 of 14 games this season, including seven straight games. Additionally, she has posted three or more points in all 14 contests and registered double-figure shots in five straight games and seven tilts overall.
• Katie Baumer has netted a goal in all 14 games this season, including two or more 11 times. She has recorded four or more shots in 12 matches.
• Hinchcliffe is atop the career list at Akron in total goals (157), in total points (209), goals per game (3.20), shots (365), shots on goal (268), points per contest (4.27), assists per outing (1.06), shots per match (7.45), shots on goal per game (5.47) and woman-up goals, while rating second in total assists (52) and fourth in draw controls (139) and draw controls per tilt (2.84).
• Baumer is now atop Akron's career list in caused turnovers (75). Additionally, she is rated second at Akron in draw controls (199), third in draw controls per contest (3.11), fourth in goals (1.30) and points per game (1.92), total goals (83), total points (123), career assists (40), total shots (193), shots on goal (143), shots on goal per tilt (2.23) and in ground balls (103), fifth shots per match (3.02), assists per game (0.63) and caused turnovers per match (1.17) and ninth in ground balls per contest (1.61).
• Kellen Fletcher is third in total assists (47) and assists per game (0.75), fifth in total goals (66), total points (113), total shots (169), shots on goal (130) and in points per game (1.79) and seventh in goals per tilt (1.05), shots per match (2.68) and shots on goal (2.06).
• Heather Carey is fifth in total goals (66), sixth in total shots (159), seventh in total points (78), eighth in draw controls (43) and 10th in draw controls (0.65).
• Kaitlyn Sikorski is third in assists per contest (0.75) and fifth in total assists (35).
• Sienna Hinchcliffe supplanted Alexis Kiefer as the single season record holder for goals in program history with a career-best six-goal effort last season against Robert Morris. She finished the campaign with 59 goals a year ago.
• Sienna Hinchcliffe set the single-season record for points (73), shots (142) and shots on goal (106), while Noelle Boyd owns the top single-season mark for assists (26) and Hannah Sanders for saves (144) and wins (11).
• Noelle Boyd surpassed Alexis Kiefer atop the career list for shots versus Robert Morris (April 27) having amassed 331 shots, while moving atop the list for shots on goal with 254 shots on goal against Eastern Michigan (April 20). Additionally, she started a program record 69 games.
IN THE LATEST MAC RANKINGS:
• Akron rates second in the Mid-American Conference in goals against average (9.21), in goals (12.86), assists (7.36), points (20.21), shots (29.29), shots on goal (20.64) per game and in draw controls (11.21).
• In league-only matches, Akron is ranked second in the league in goals (14.33), assists (9.00), points (23.33), shots on goal (23.00) and draw controls (12.83) and third in shots (31.33), caused turnovers (10.67) and goals against average (8.00).
• Sienna Hinchcliffe is first in the conference in goals per game (4.50), in shots (9.50) and in points per outing (6.29), fifth in assists per tilt (1.79) and ninth in draw controls (3.14).
• Katie Baumer is second in draw controls (3.93), fifth in points (3.93) and in goals per game (2.57), seventh in shots (5.57) and in assists (1.36), ninth in ground balls (2.14) and 10th in caused turnovers (1.21), while Kellen Fletcher is third in assists (1.93) and ninth in points (3.21).
• Adrianna Califano is second in goals against average (9.21), seventh in save percentage (.383) and eighth in saves (5.71).
• Additionally, Kaitlyn Sikorski is eighth in assists per match (1.29), Sarah Baumer is fourth in caused turnovers (1.79), Julia Mattingly is ninth in draw controls (3.14) and Heather Carey is eighth in goals per contest (2.14).
• In league-only action, Hinchcliffe is first in points per contest (8.17), goals per game (5.33) and shots per match (11.00), second in assists per tilt (2.83) and fifth in draw controls (4.17). Califano is third in the MAC in league-only goals against average (8.00) and ninth in saves percentage (.368) and in saves per game (4.67). Additionally, Baumer is fourth in draw controls (4.83), fifth in goals per game (2.67), points per contest (4.33) and in assists per match (1.67), sixth in shots per match (6.17) and caused turnovers (2.00) and eighth in ground balls (2.67), Carey is sixth in goals per game (2.50), Fletcher is fourth in assists per tilt (2.17) and seventh in points per contest (3.83) and Sarah Baumer is seventh in caused turnovers (1.83).
ZIPS IN THE NATIONAL RANKINGS:
• Katie Baumer is second in the NCAA in free position percentage (.733) and 18th in free position goals (0.79).
• Sienna Hinchcliffe rated second in the NCAA in in shots (9.50) per contest, third in goals per game (4.50), in shots on goal (6.57), fourth in total goals (63) and points per match (6.29), eighth in total points (88) and 49th in assists per game (1.79). Additionally, Kellen Fletcher is 43rd in assists per game (1.93) and Adrianna Califano is 23rd in goals against average (9.21).
• Akron ranks second in the NCAA in free position percentage (.605), 22nd in assists per game (7.36), 24th in scoring defense (9.21) and in winning percentage (.714), 25th in scoring margin (3.64), 26th in ground balls (17.14), 27th in points per match (20.21), 34th in shots per contest (29.29) and clearing percentage (.900), 35th in scoring offense (12.86), 37th in shot percentage (.439), 47th in shots on goal (20.57) and 50th in caused turnovers (9.00).
• Hinchcliffe ranks eighth among active NCAA D1 leaders in goals per outing (3.20), 11th in points per game (4.27), 18th in total goals (157) and 23rd in total points (209), while Baumer is rated 41st in caused turnovers (1.17), 46th in ground balls (1.61), 49th in draw controls (3.11) and 50th in ground balls (103) and Califano is ranked 22nd in goals against average (9.21).
UP NEXT:
Akron travels to Moon Township, Pa., for the semifinals of the MAC Tournament on Thursday (April 30).
Players Mentioned
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