On Saturday, February 28, 2026, two of Georgia’s DeeThreeLax programs will take the field in a classic early season rivalry matchup when Berry hosts Piedmont in the annual Peach Cup. I heard the winner of the 2026 Peach Cup gets a lifetime supply of Del Monte Peach Cups. All Jokes a side DeeThreeLax loves to cover this game year over year because it is great to see the sport continue to grow down south and the Peach Cup Is Staple in that regard. 

The Peach Cup rivalry between Berry and Piedmont has long been a staple of early spring lacrosse in Georgia. Although Berry holds the historical advantage including nine all-time wins to Piedmont’s two against the Vikings recent meetings have been highly competitive. Piedmont’s dramatic 14-13 victory over Berry on February 8, 2025 a one-goal thriller is still fresh in both teams’ minds going into this year’s edition. Over the last few season this instate rivalry has proven that it is now Joke. With the last 2 games being 1 goal wins. Both teams come prepared to dig it out for the Peach Trophy and Peach Cup Championship. 

Piedmont Lions: The Lions enter the 2026 Peach Cup off a challenging 0-3 start but have shown flashes of life on both ends of the field. So far this season, Piedmont has generated 99 total shots with a 28.3% shot accuracy, and their man-up unit has been a bright spot, capitalizing on 14 of 24 opportunities. Players to keep an eye on for Piedmont include Josh Tamarkin (11 Points), Zach Avilla (8 Points), Grady Eyler (6 Points), Will Isley (6 Points), and Nick Winter (6 Points). This group is going to be the core group finding seams and pushing offense to claim the Peach Cup. On defense Ian Kuysten (5 CTs, 9 GBs), Max Peek (3 CTs, 10 GBs), and Eric McCuistion (2 CTs, 1 GB) will need to play physical defense to slow down the Berry Offense. 

Berry Vikings: Berry’s 2026 campaign has been more productive, as evidenced by their 2-1 record coming into the Peach Cup. The Vikings have outshot opponents 139 to 96 this season and are averaging nearly 47 shots per game a sign of their willingness to push the pace offensively. The offense will be led by Owen Morini (9 Points), Michael Beirne (9 Points), William Lee (6 Points), Finn McClendon (5 Points), and Tyler Gabrielse (5 Points). This Group is going to look to get this going early and often against Piedmont and if they continue playing like they have been so far in 2026 they are going to find a lot of opportunities to find the back of the net. Defensively for Berry they will need to slow down a hungry piedmont offense. If they are going to slow them down it will be behind the play of Griffin Smiles (10 CTs, 19 GBs) and Clayton Karol (3 CTs, 2 GBs).  

Expect the 2026 Peach Cup to be nothing short of another awesome game. Berry’s ability to create looks and generate shots has been a big part of their early success. Keep an eye on their offense as Berry aims to keep its offense clicking. Piedmont is going to be hungry to get their first win of the season. And I expect they will do everything they need to do to keep this game within striking distance once again. With this game being one of the biggest rivalry’s in the South, I think it is anyone’s game on Saturday. Tune in to see who claims the 2026 Peach Cup Title. 

Link to Watch: https://berryvikings.com/watch/?Live=809&type=Live