FARMVILLE, Va. – Longwood field hockey head coach Miranda Rigg announced the addition of eight newcomers for the fall campaign on Wednesday.

The eight-player class leans on Commonwealth talent: Sawyer Anderson (Fairfax, Va. | Fairfax), Ashtyn Blackburn (Yorktown, Va. | Grafton), Skylar Freistat (Greenbackville, Va. | Pocomoke), Caitlin Meeker (Parkton, Md.| Hereford | LIU), Erin Seery (Chesapeake, Va. | Hickory), Ava Vertino (South Riding, Va. | Paul VI Catholic), Haley Walsh (Stafford, Va. | North Stafford) and Addyson Zabicki (Gloucester, Va. | Gloucester).

"We are incredibly excited to welcome our 2026 recruiting class to the Longwood field hockey family," said Rigg. "This group brings a tremendous combination of talent, competitiveness, work ethic and character that aligns perfectly with what we are continuing to build here at Longwood. Each student-athlete has demonstrated a strong commitment to excellence both academically and athletically, and we believe they will make an immediate impact on our program.

"What stands out most about this class is their passion for the game, their drive to improve, and the energy they bring to our team environment. We are excited to help them grow as players, teammates, and leaders over the next four years. We cannot wait to see all they accomplish as Lancers and are thrilled for the future of our program with this talented group joining us."

Sawyer Anderson
5-7 | Midfield/Forward
Fr.
Fairfax, Va. | Fairfax

Anderson comes to Longwood following four successful seasons at Fairfax High School, where she helped lead the team to four region and district championships to go with a state title as well. She was a Max Field Hockey Top 100 selection for the class of 2026, and she broke the school record for goals in a single season with 29 this year as a senior.

In her four-year career, she tallied 57 goals to go with 40 assists. This past year, she had 11 assists to go with her 29 goals, building on a junior campaign that saw her total 12 goals and 17 assists.

She was a 2025 All-MET Honorable Mention this past year, and she garnered three all-state honors while also being a three-time first-team all-district and all-region selection. 

Ashtyn Blackburn
5-4 | Midfield/Defense
Fr.
Yorktown, Va. | Grafton

Blackburn joins the Lancers following four seasons at Grafton High School. She was a four-time all-state selection, earning two first-team all-state selections and two second-team all-state spots while also earning three first-team all-district and four first-team all-region spots.

A team captain as both a junior and senior, she tallied seven goals this past fall while adding eight assists. 

In her junior season, she posted 11 assists while scoring six goals.

Skylar Freistat
5-7 | Forward/Midfield
Fr. 
Greenbackville, Va. | Pocomoke

Freistat joins the Lancers following four seasons at Pocomoke High School, where she won four regional championships to go with two state titles and one state runner-up. She was named a 2025 Delmarva Shore Standout this past year, when she helped lead her team to the regional title. 

She was also a team captain while scoring five goals on nine assists as she garnered First-Team All-Bayside honors. 

She won the state championship in her junior year, when she was selected as her school's co-playmaker of the year and earned second-team all-conference honors. She had seven goals and eight assists.

That came on the heels of a sophomore season, when her team went to the state finals as she earned all-conference honorable mention. As a freshman, she also helped the team win the state title. 

Caitlin Meeker
5-5 | Forward/Midfield
So.
Parkton, Md. | Hereford | LIU

Meeker comes to Longwood from Hereford High School and Parkton, Md., after spending the 2025 season at LIU.

She played four years of hockey and two of lacrossein high school for the Bulls, earning first team all-Baltimore County in 2023 and 2024 in field hockey. Meeker was also named second team all-state in 2024. She  scored 11 goals and 15 assists as a junior and 12 goals and 10 assists as a senior.

Erin Seery
5-4 | Midfield/Forward
Fr.
Chesapeake, Va. | Hickory
 

Seery comes to Longwood following four years of field hockey at Hickory High School. A team captain, she was a first-team all-region honoree as a senior, when she scored 10 goals and added 11 assists.

As a junior, she garnered second-team all-region midfield honors behind a nine-goal, nine-assist campaign. 

Seery was a multi-sport athlete at Hickory, also playing four years of soccer while running one year of cross country and indoor track.

Ava Vertino
5-4 | Midfield/Forward
Fr.
South Riding, Va. | Paul VI Catholic

Vertino comes to Longwood following her time at Paul VI Catholic, where she played hockey for all four seasons.

She totaled 17 points with six goals and five assists in her senior season, in which she also was a team captain while playing 23 matches.

As a junior, she played in 17 matches while scoring three goals with two assists for eight points. 

In her four years, she was named second-team all-conference three times.

Haley Walsh
5-6 | Midfield/Defense
Fr.
Stafford, Va. | North Stafford

Walsh comes to Longwood following four years at North Stafford High School, where she earned four all-district selections over her career.

As a senior, she was named first-team all-district, first-team all-region and the team MVP.

She was second-team all-district in both her sophomore and junior seasons after earning all-district honorable mention as a freshman.

In addition to field hockey, Walsh also ran cross country for two seasons, played lacrosse for two seasons and ran outdoor track for two seasons.

Addy Zabicki
5-5 | Goalkeeper
Fr.
Gloucester, Va. | Gloucester

A two-sport varsity standout at Gloucester High School, Zabicki played four years of field hockey, two years of soccer as well as one year of junior varsity track and two of JV soccer for the Dukes. She captained the team for two seasons 2024 and 2025, while earning first team all-district, all-region and all-state in 2023.

Zabicki claimed first team all-district and all-region in 2024, and was second team all-state. 

She took first team all-region and all-state in 2025, earning second team all-district, as well. A three-year NFHCA Scholar of Distinction (2024-26), Zabicki was named team MVP in 2024 and 2025, also earning the coaches award the same two seasons.

Zabicki holds the Gloucester High School record for career shutouts with 56. She helped Gloucester to three district titles (2022-24) as well as three region championships (2023-25). She led the Dukes to the state championship in 2025 and a runner-up finish in 2023.