Seven Former Terps Help Maryland Charm Capture Inaugural WLL Championship
Maryland women’s lacrosse has spent decades building one of the deepest alumni networks in the sport. On Saturday, seven former Terrapins added another championship to that legacy — this time at the professional level.
The Maryland Charm defeated the California Palms, 16-13, on Aug. 15 in Philadelphia to capture the inaugural full-season Women’s Lacrosse League championship, with former Terps Alex Aust Holman, Megan Douty-Marino, Grace Griffin, Maddy Sterling, Erica Evans, Abby Bosco and Aurora Cordingley all on the championship roster.
It completed a major turnaround for the Charm. Maryland had finished last in both the 2025 and 2026 WLL Championship Series competitions before emerging as the league’s best team during its first traditional touring season.
Aust Holman delivers in championship game
One of the biggest performances came from a familiar name to Maryland fans.
Current Maryland assistant coach Alex Aust Holman scored three goals, including what ultimately became the game-winning goal with approximately five minutes remaining in the fourth quarter. Her championship performance came less than 10 months after the birth of her son, Tiger.
Aust Holman has been part of Maryland lacrosse in several different capacities, first as an All-American player and national champion and now as a member of Cathy Reese’s coaching staff. Saturday added professional champion to that résumé.
Former Maryland midfielder Erica Evans also made an impact throughout the field. Evans scored once while collecting a ground ball and forcing two turnovers.
Evans and Cordingley entered the WLL championship fresh off impressive performances on the international stage. Both represented Canada at the 2026 World Lacrosse Women’s Championship and were named to the tournament’s All-World Team.
Terps anchor Maryland Charm defense
Maryland’s influence was particularly noticeable defensively.
Former Terps Abby Bosco, Megan Douty-Marino, Maddy Sterling and Grace Griffin were part of a Charm unit that kept California from taking control during several important stretches of the championship game.
Bosco was especially active around loose balls, finishing with five ground balls and one caused turnover. Sterling added two ground balls and another caused turnover.
Douty-Marino produced one of Maryland’s biggest hustle sequences. After initially forcing a turnover and then seeing possession change again, she recovered and checked the ball away from a California attacker, allowing the Charm another possession.
Those types of plays mattered in a championship game that remained competitive into the fourth quarter.
Cordingley and Griffin did not need big offensive numbers to impact the game. Both had been important pieces of the Charm’s run throughout the season and provided Maryland with another pair of experienced championship-level players.
What is the Women’s Lacrosse League?
The championship represents another significant step for a professional women’s game that is rapidly evolving.
The Women’s Lacrosse League was launched by the Premier Lacrosse League in November 2024. The league introduced four franchises — the Maryland Charm, Boston Guard, New York Charging and California Palms — before beginning competition during the 2025 PLL Championship Series.
That initial competition used the fast-paced Olympic Sixes format, the version of lacrosse that will be played when the sport returns to the Olympic Games at Los Angeles 2028.
The WLL expanded considerably for 2026.
Rather than limiting competition to a short Championship Series, the league introduced its first full touring season alongside the Premier Lacrosse League. Teams competed in markets around the country from May through August before the championship game in Philadelphia.
The WLL’s model closely resembles the PLL’s touring structure, allowing teams to play games in multiple lacrosse markets rather than operating exclusively from individual home stadiums.
That schedule included WLL games in Rhode Island, Baltimore, Charlotte, Long Island, San Diego and several other PLL tour stops.
Maryland emerges as the league’s top team
The Charm steadily separated themselves during the regular season.
Maryland finished the full-season schedule 3-1 with 65 goals scored and 61 allowed, earning the top position in the WLL standings. California entered championship weekend at 2-1, while New York finished 2-2 and Boston went 0-3.
The Charm’s season included several dramatic victories.
Maryland defeated California, 18-17 in overtime, during the PLL’s Baltimore weekend on May 29. The Charm later edged New York, 16-15, on July 11 before defeating Boston, 21-17, on July 17.
The Charm had already secured a place in the championship before finishing their regular-season schedule, setting up another meeting with California for the league’s first full-season title.
This time Maryland finished the job.
WLL gaining momentum
The WLL is still very young, but there are already encouraging signs surrounding the professional women’s game.
The 2025 Championship Series final between Boston and New York became the most-streamed women’s professional lacrosse game at the time, helping provide momentum for the league’s move into a longer season.
The league also benefits from the infrastructure of the PLL, including its national touring schedule and ESPN media relationship.
In July, the Premier Lacrosse League announced a $100 million financing round involving Ares Management funds and several prominent investors. ESPN also took a minority equity stake as the organization continues preparing for increased interest surrounding lacrosse ahead of the 2028 Olympics.
That growth could be particularly significant for the women’s game.
For years, elite women’s lacrosse players had considerably fewer opportunities to build sustained professional careers after college. The WLL gives many of the best players in the world another high-level platform while connecting professional teams with established lacrosse markets such as Maryland.
Maryland lacrosse pipeline remains everywhere
Perhaps the most striking part of the Charm championship was how much of the roster traced back to College Park.
Seven members of one professional championship team came through Maryland.
Aust Holman represented an older championship generation of Terps. Douty-Marino became one of the sport’s premier defenders during Maryland’s dominant mid-2010s teams. Bosco helped Maryland reach the highest levels of college lacrosse more recently. Sterling was still playing for Maryland during the 2026 college season.
Evans, Cordingley and Griffin give the group even more international and professional experience.
Maryland’s influence extends beyond the WLL as well. Former Terps continue appearing on national-team rosters, professional teams and coaching staffs throughout the sport.
Earlier this month, Cordingley and Evans earned All-World recognition after starring for Canada at the World Lacrosse Women’s Championship. Former Maryland star Jordyn Lipkin also earned All-World honors while helping Israel capture bronze, while former Terp Kori Edmondson played for the champion United States team.
That makes Saturday’s championship another example of something Maryland lacrosse fans have seen for years: Terps leave College Park, but they rarely stop competing for championships.
MSB Take
The WLL championship is a good story for Maryland for two different reasons.
First, the Maryland Charm are champions, giving the state another professional lacrosse title and another team for local fans to follow alongside the PLL’s Maryland Whipsnakes.
More importantly for the University of Maryland, seven former Terps appearing on the same championship roster shows just how enormous the program’s footprint remains across women’s lacrosse.
Maryland does not simply produce college players.
It produces national-team players, professional players, coaches and champions.
Now the first full-season WLL championship trophy belongs to Maryland, too.
Final: Maryland Charm 16, California Palms 13
2026 WLL Champions: Maryland Charm
