SCHENECTADY, N.Y. – Four members of the Union College women's lacrosse team were recognized by the Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Coaches Association for their work in helping the Garnet Chargers to one of the best seasons in program history, earning IWLCA All-Empire Region honors for the 2026 season, the association announced on Friday.
Juniors
Hannah Compa,
Anna Dembowski and
Gillian Joseph all earned spots on the All-Region first team, while classmate
Maddy Schiller earned All-Region second-team honors as well. The three first-team selections are the most for the program since 2015, while the four honorees overall are Union's most in a season since 2010.
Joseph leads the way for Union with her third straight All-Region recognition and her second first-team selection in as many years, making her just the third player in program history to be named All-Region in each of their first three seasons. The junior was named to the All-Liberty League first team after scoring a conference-best 69 goals with 17 assists for 86 points on the year, ranking second on Union's single-season list in both goals and points and ranking 22nd nationally in goals this year. In the NCAA Tournament against Mount Union, she set a new school NCAA record with seven tallies and added an assist for eight points, which tied the school NCAA points standard. With a season still to go, Joseph already ranks fourth in school history with 161 goals, sixth with 212 points and 10th with 51 assists.
Compa earns the first IWLCA nod of her career as one of only four draw specialists named to any of the eight All-Region teams this season. She led the Liberty League and currently ranks 12th nationally with 149 draw controls, breaking the school single-season record in her first season at the position. The All-Conference first-teamer had a career-high 14 DCs on three occasions this season, including in the NCAA Tournament opener against Mount Union. Not just a draw taker, Compa also scored 18 goals with three assists for 21 points, including six goals in five postseason contests. In 55 career games, the junior has scored 53 goals with nine assists for 62 points to go with 180 draw controls.
Dembowski had a solid season at the forefront of an excellent defensive unit for Union this year, earning her first All-Region honor and All-Liberty League first-team laurels. Despite missing three games due to injury and playing hurt in the postseason, the junior still led the Liberty League with 58 ground balls and 3.22 ground balls per game, while also ranking fifth in the conference with a team-best 31 caused turnovers. She recorded at least one grounder in every game this season, led by a season-high seven against Rensselaer. Dembowski will enter her senior year already sixth in program history with 68 caused turnovers to go with 143 career ground balls.
Schiller picks up her first All-Region honor as well, moving up from the All-Liberty League third team to the All-Region second team. The junior had a breakout third season, more than doubling her career scoring output by netting 60 goals with 21 assists for 81 points to rank third in the Liberty League in goals and fourth in points on the year. She had at least one point in a team-best 20-of-21 games this season, including a season-high six goals and seven points at RIT. Her point total tied her for fifth on the school's single-season list, while her 60 goals are eighth all-time for a season. Schiller will return next spring with 113 goals and 43 assists for 156 points already to her credit.
With all four All-Region selections slated to return next season, the Garnet Chargers will have their sights set on a Liberty League title and another NCAA Tournament berth in 2027.
