2028 Recruiting: Clemson, Maryland Lead 5-Star Haul in First Days

<p>The 2028 recruiting cycle is off and rolling. Through the first six days, 9/1-9/6, 90+ athletes announced their commitment to play Division I lacrosse, with five of those being recently ranked <a href="https://prepgirlslacrosse.com/home/player-rankings/national-high-school-girls-lacrosse-2028-class-player-rankings/">Prep Girls Lacrosse five-stars</a>: Luca Diehl, Maura Beckwith, Sadie Sherman, Carson Bahl, and Maddie Moran. The commitments have been constant, and between late-night announcements from West Coast standouts and early morning bombshells from the East Coast, the first four days have been nothing short of fireworks. Here is a look at some of the early names off the board from the first official week of recruiting.</p>   <p>With the dead period finally over and these athletes now able to formally visit college campuses for the first time, look for this weekend to be just as busy with big-time announcements.</p>   <p><strong>Prep Girls Lacrosse is tracking every commitment as it comes in, Division I, II, and III. The best part? It is completely free. Be sure to check out the </strong><strong><a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1Al_xT1EO-QbknCGGuLLnhJLiLHNuA8r5-65QOm63k5I/edit?gid=0#gid=0">Prep Girls Lacrosse commitment tracker</a></strong><strong> often, as we update information as soon as it becomes available.</strong></p>    <p class="text-gray-700">One of Day One's biggest announcements came while half the country slept. Just after 10:30 p.m. on the East Coast, Colorado's Seven Graves stole the night, announcing her commitment to Stanford. Graves missed the 2026 spring campaign and summer tournament circuit with a torn ACL, but make no mistake, she is one of the nation's most dangerous offensive weapons. One of the class's purest scorers, Graves operates mainly from the low wing and can finish in a variety of crafty ways. She loves to go to the jumping crease roll, painting the corners of the cage mid-air with precision. She plays with a ton of energy and has both the flash and the substance to be an early force at Stanford.</p>     <p class="text-gray-700">Bryce Birkholz got Day Two started with a big-time commitment to the University of North Carolina, one of two major Georgia announcements within the same half hour. A pure scorer who can do so in bunches, Birkholz can shoulder an offense in crunch time and deliver when her team needs it most. She is the kind of world-class athlete UNC actively seeks. A standout flag football player as well, that same grittiness and toughness she brings on the gridiron translates directly into her lacrosse game. UNC made sure to snag Birkholz early, and they are getting one of the class's best athletes in Chapel Hill in a few short years.</p>     <p class="text-gray-700">Less than five minutes after Eagle Stix and West Forsyth High School teammate Bryce Birkholz announced her commitment to UNC, Luca Diehl made it an early morning Georgia sweep on Day Two of recruiting, announcing she would be headed to the University of Maryland just after 7:30 a.m. on the East Coast. <a href="https://prepgirlslacrosse.com/home/player-rankings/national-high-school-girls-lacrosse-2028-class-player-rankings/">Prep Girls Lacrosse's No. 2 player</a> in the class of 2028, Diehl hails from Cumming, Georgia, and is a true matchup nightmare with takeover ability and a two-way game that has drawn comparisons to Ally Mastroianni. The first Prep Girls Lacrosse five-star prospect off the board, there is no question Maryland is landing one of the nation's best. Diehl will likely be earning meaningful playing time early in College Park.</p>    <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-instagram wp-block-embed-instagram"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://www.instagram.com/p/DcyIHReRYS4/ </div></figure>    <p class="text-gray-700">The first Clemson commit from the Class of 2028, Maura Beckwith, shocked the social media world with an announcement to the Tigers in the early afternoon hours of Day Two. Beckwith, who hails from Liverpool, New York, is a crafty lefty attacker who can also take the draw. A true quarterback of the offense with a great feel for the game, she can facilitate and thread the needle after drawing the slide or simply rip it from the eight-meter arc and twelve-meter fan. She has a lot of bounce in her dodges and is a dangerous weapon on the offensive end. A matchup nightmare 1v1. Clemson is getting a gem, one of the nation's best, and she will make an early impact with the Tigers.</p>    <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-instagram wp-block-embed-instagram"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://www.instagram.com/p/DcycUwJxqq4/ </div></figure>    <p class="text-gray-700">Clemson kept the momentum going on Wednesday afternoon, landing their second Prep Girls Lacrosse five-star of the day in Connecticut's Sadie Sherman. An offensive playmaker with a limitless ceiling, Sherman does not have a weak hand, and her dominant hand is nearly impossible to identify. She loves to attack the cage hard and is one of the class's purest scorers, capable of getting it done in a variety of deceptive ways. Another player who missed this past spring and summer due to injury, Clemson did not hesitate. She is a program-changing player, and the Tigers are getting one of the class's best.</p>     <p class="text-gray-700">Just when it seemed like Day Two was settling, Ohio's Carson Bahl dropped a bombshell of an announcement just after 7:30 p.m. on the East Coast, announcing she would attend Clemson. Bahl, who ranked No. 9 in the country in <a href="https://prepgirlslacrosse.com/home/player-rankings/national-high-school-girls-lacrosse-2028-class-player-rankings/" data-type="link" data-id="https://prepgirlslacrosse.com/home/player-rankings/national-high-school-girls-lacrosse-2028-class-player-rankings/">Prep Girls Lacrosse's recent rankings</a>, is set to be a star on a team with championship aspirations. Emerging from a non-traditional hotbed, she has stood out at every event attended and is without a doubt one of the class's best. When she arrives in Death Valley in the fall of 2028, she will be joining one of the nation's most stacked rosters, including then-senior Alexis Spallina and juniors Brinn and Ava Findora. Clemson has now landed all three committed Prep Girls Lacrosse five-stars, tapping into Ohio to do it. Bahl could be the missing piece on a program with serious championship aspirations, and she arrives as one of the nation's most dominant offensive weapons.</p>     <p class="text-gray-700">The Terrapins did not have to look far for Prep Girls Lacrosse's No. 4 player in the class of 2028. Maddie Moran is staying home in Maryland, announcing on Tuesday afternoon that she would attend the University of Maryland following her graduation in 2028. The Maryvale Prep to University of Maryland pipeline rings true once again with Moran, who will join a roster in the fall of 2028 that includes fellow Maryvale alumni Kendall Carfine and Cayden Reese, as well as current teammate Carly Aldridge. There is no doubt the Terrapins are getting a future program leader. She has a high ceiling, and her speed makes her a true problem to defend. Dangerous away from the ball and slippery to defend, she attacks the cage hard and exploits defenders with well-timed slip cuts and explosive backdoors.</p>    <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-instagram wp-block-embed-instagram"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://www.instagram.com/p/Dc1iE7zGJUD/?img_index=1 </div></figure>

The 2028 recruiting cycle is off and rolling. Through the first six days, 9/1-9/6, 90+ athletes announced their commitment to play Division I lacrosse, with five of those being recently ranked Prep Girls Lacrosse five-stars: Luca Diehl, Maura Beckwith, Sadie Sherman, Carson Bahl, and Maddie Moran. The commitments have been constant, and between late-night announcements from West Coast standouts and early morning bombshells from the East Coast, the first four days have been nothing short of fireworks. Here is a look at some of the early names off the board from the first official week of recruiting.