Wilmington Friends and Delaware Military Academy play in the first round of the 2026 DIAA Division Two Field Hockey State Tournament. Photo Credit: Ryan Colasanti
The first round of the 2026 DIAA Division Two Field Hockey State Tournament concluded with all but one of the higher seeds moving on to the quarterfinal round.
WILMINGTON, Del. — Wilmington Friends defeated Delaware Military Academy, 5-2, on November 4, during the first round of the 2026 DIAA Division Two Field Hockey State Tournament.
The Quakers scored three goals in the first half while controlling most of the action on their offensive end of the field.
Sophomore Tillie Hopkins started the scoring with a backhand shot to the back left of the cage with nine minutes left in the first quarter. The Quakers scored twice in the second quarter on goals from freshman Palmer Jenney and sophomore Ava Clothier and entered halftime ahead, 3-1. The Seahawks one goal came from junior Elena Sheets in the first quarter.
Friends scored two more goals in the second half, both in the fourth quarter.
Senior Schuyler Hopkins scored her first goal of the playoffs on a ball that bounced around near the front of the cage. The ball bounced out of the scrum of players fighting for possession and right to Hopkins near the middle of the cage. Hopkins fired and scored giving Friends a 4-1 advantage. Freshman Peyton Galbraith gave the Quakers a 5-1 lead with her score off a penalty corner assisted by her sister, senior Keeley Galbraith. The Quakers finished the game with 18 shots, 17 penalty corner opportunities and five goals scored by five different goal scorers.
“We try to look up before we shoot and find the best option and I think that’s kind of what we’ve been teaching for a few years now,” Wilmington Friends head coach Scott Clothier said postgame. “Rather than just relying on one player that can be easily defended we try to dish the ball around, look up, get our head up and just find that open player.”
Sheets scored DMA’s second goal with a little less than three minutes remaining in the game, scoring both of the Seahawks goals. DMA senior Rebecca Wolhar played a strong game in goal, saving 13 of Friends’ 18 shots.
“The girls executed the gameplan, which has been our gameplan since really August until today, and I thought DMA played really well. Their defensive unit played strong, their goalie had some great saves, but ultimately I think we wore them down a little bit there,” Clothier said.
The Quakers move on to face No. 3 Caravel on Saturday, November 7. The game will begin at 11:30 a.m. and be played at Caravel High School.
More First Round Games:
No. 5 Indian River defeated No. 12 Mount Pleasant, 5-0: The Indians are advancing to the second round of the DIAA Division Two Field Hockey State Tournament for the first time since 2020. Indian River will face No. 4 Archmere in the next round.
No. 7 Concord defeated No. 10 Sussex Academy, 1-0, in shootouts: Concord and Sussex Academy played an extremely close game finishing regulation and double overtime tied, resulting in the first round matchup going to penalty shootouts. Both teams scored twice in the shootout period, before a save by junior Abigayle Lake gave the Raiders an opportunity to win. Freshman Hailey Mullenix scored the winning goal for Concord. Senior Elizabeth Layton and junior Maeve Lawson scored for Sussex Academy. Concord will face No. 2 Newark Charter in the quarterfinals.
No. 9 Ursuline defeated No. 8 Lake Forest, 2-1: Ursuline is the only lower seed to win in the first round advancing to the quarterfinals for the second season in a row. Ursuline juniors Molly Anderson and Kendall Gulli scored for the Raiders. Sophomore Morgan Perna scored for Lake Forest. Ursuline will play No. 1 Tower Hill on Saturday, November 7.
To see the updated bracket click here.
Ryan Colasanti joins Delaware Live following four years at the University of Maryland’s Philip Merrill College of Journalism, earning a bachelor’s degree in journalism. There he covered multiple sports for the school’s radio station as both a reporter and editor. Ryan is excited to return back to the state and cover all things Delaware sports.
