Improvement does not always show up in the rankings. Sometimes it shows up in a team going from two wins to double digits. Sometimes it is a program going from winless to competitive. And sometimes it is an already-solid team taking another step toward becoming a legitimate national factor. When comparing winning percentage from the 2025 season to 2026, a number of DeeThreeLax women’s lacrosse programs made significant jumps. For this list, DTL Women compared each team’s winning percentage from 2025 to 2026 and ranked the 35 programs with the largest percentage-point improvement. And at the top, there were some massive turnarounds.

Pfeiffer Makes the Biggest Jump in DeeThreeLax

No team improved its winning percentage more than Pfeiffer. The Falcons went just 2-11 in 2025, finishing the year with a 15.4% winning percentage. One season later, Pfeiffer completely changed the trajectory of its program. The Falcons finished 11-6 in 2026, pushing their winning percentage all the way to 64.7%. That represents an improvement of 49.3 percentage points, the biggest year-over-year jump in DeeThreeLax.

Wilkes Goes From Winless to Competitive

Wilkes may have produced the most dramatic turnaround on the entire list. The Colonels finished 0-15 in 2025 and In 2026, they went 8-9. That moved Wilkes from a 0.0% winning percentage to 47.1%, an improvement of 47.1 percentage points. Wilkes went from a team searching for its first win to a team hovering around .500.

Otterbein Turns Two Wins Into Ten

Otterbein was not far behind. The Cardinals finished 2-14 in 2025 before breaking through with a 10-7 campaign in 2026. Their winning percentage jumped from 12.5% to 58.8%, an improvement of 46.3 percentage points. That makes Otterbein one of only three programs nationally to improve its winning percentage by more than 45 points. Pfeiffer, Wilkes and Otterbein sit in a tier of their own at the top of this list.

Alfred State Takes a Major Step

Alfred State did more than improve and The Pioneers became a winning team. After going 4-9 in 2025, Alfred State finished 12-5 in 2026. Their winning percentage climbed from 30.8% to 70.6%, a 39.8-point improvement. Twelve wins and a winning percentage above 70% is not simply progress. It is the foundation of a program that could continue climbing.

SUNY Morrisville Breaks Through

SUNY Morrisville rounds out the Top 5 after one of the more noticeable turnarounds in the country. Morrisville went 0-11 in 2025 before finishing 5-8 in 2026. That improved its winning percentage from 0.0% to 38.5%. Like Wilkes, Morrisville’s story is bigger than the raw percentage. Getting a program off zero wins and immediately making it competitive changes the direction of a team. The next challenge will be turning that progress into a winning season.

Rochester Makes the Leap

One of the biggest breakout seasons on this list belongs to Rochester. The Yellowjackets went 5-12 in 2025 before exploding to a 12-6 record in 2026. Their winning percentage rose from 29.4% to 66.7%, giving Rochester a 37.3-point improvement. Unlike several programs near the top that were rebuilding from the bottom, Rochester’s improvement immediately pushed the Yellowjackets into double-digit wins.

The Top 10

Saint Vincent checked in at No. 7 after improving from 3-12 to 8-7, a 33.3-point jump. Fitchburg State followed at No. 8, moving from 2-15 to 8-10 and improving its winning percentage by 32.6 points. Wisconsin-Stevens Point improved from 3-14 to 8-8, a 32.4-point increase that brought the Pointers all the way back to .500. Saint Joseph (CT) rounded out the Top 10 after going from 4-13 in 2025 to 10-8 in 2026, improving its winning percentage by 32.1 points. Every team in the Top 10 improved by more than 30 percentage points.

Christopher Newport Makes One of the Most Important Jumps

Not every team on this list started near the bottom and Christopher Newport is a perfect example. CNU finished 8-11 in 2025, good for a 42.1% winning percentage and In 2026, the Captains jumped all the way to 16-7 and 69.6%. That is a 27.5-point improvement and arguably one of the most meaningful jumps on this entire list. Going from eight wins to sixteen means CNU did not merely become better but The Captains became a significantly more dangerous team.

And Then There Is Salisbury

Salisbury is perhaps the most unique team in the Top 35, The Sea Gulls went 16-5 in 2025. That already represented a 76.2% winning percentage, There was not much room to improve. Salisbury finished 20-1 in 2026, raising its winning percentage to 95.2%. That is a 19-point improvement despite entering the season as an already-established winner. For Salisbury to rank No. 32 on a most-improved list after winning 16 games the year before tells you just how dominant the 2026 season was.

Full List of Womens DeeThreeLaxMost Improved Teams

• Pfeiffer –
  • 2025 – 2-11
    • 2026- 11-6 
• Wilkes –
  • 2025 – 0-15
    • 2026 – 8-9 
• Otterbein –
  • 2025 – 2-14
    • 2026 – 10-7 
• Alfred State –
  • 2025 – 4-9
    • 2026 – 12-5 
• SUNY Morrisville –
  • 2025 – 0-11
    • 2026 – 5-8 
• Rochester (NY) –
  • 2025 – 5-12
    • 2026 – 12-6 
• Saint Vincent –
  • 2025 – 3-12
    • 2026 – 8-7 
• Fitchburg State –
  • 2025 – 2-15
    • 2026 – 8-10
• Wis.-Stevens Point –
  • 2025 – 3-14
    • 2026 – 8-8 
• Saint Joseph (CT) –
  • 2025 – 4-13
    • 2026 – 10-8 
• Bethany (WV) –
  • 2025 – 3-14
    • 2026 – 8-9 
• Kalamazoo –
  • 2025 – 4-13
    • 2026 – 10-9 
• Mount Holyoke –
  • 2025 – 4-12
    • 2026 – 8-7 
• Christopher Newport –
  • 2025 8-11
    • 2026 – 16-7
• Drew –
  • 2025 – 5-11
    • 2026 – 10-7 
• New England College –
  • 2025 – 6-11-
    • 2026 – 11-7
• St. Mary’s (IN) –
  • 2025 – 5-10
    • 2026 – 10-7
• Albertus Magnus –
  • 2025 – 0-15
    • 2026 – 4-12 
• Pacific (OR) –
  • 2025 – 4-12
    • 2026 – 8-8 
• Thomas (ME) –
  • 2025 – 1-11
    • 2026 – 4-8 
• Arcadia –
  • 2025 – 9-8
    • 2026 – 13-4
• Western New England –
  • 2025 – 5-12
    • 2026 – 9-8
• Hamline –
  • 2025 – 6-9
    • 2026 – 10-6 
• Baldwin Wallace –
  • 2025 – 10-9
    • 2026 – 12-4
• Husson –
  • 2025 – 7-8
    • 2026 – 11-5 
• SUNY Oneonta –
  • 2025 – 7-10
    • 2026 – 10-6 
• Chapman –
  • 2025 – 6-11
    • 2026 – 9-7
• Wellesley –
  • 2025 – 1-14
    • 2026 – 4-11
• Trinity (CT) –
  • 2025 – 9-9
    • 2026 – 14-6
• Coast Guard –
  • 2025 – 10-6
    • 2026 – 14-3
• Augustana (IL) –
  • 2025 – 5-10
    • 2026 – 9-8
• Salisbury –
  • 2025 – 16-5
    • 2026 – 20-1
• Spalding –
  • 2025 – 4-12
    • 2026 – 7-9 
• N.C. Wesleyan –
  • 2025 – 0-11
    • 2026 – 2-9 
• MIT –
  • 2025 – 13-8
    • 2026 – 16-4