Women's Lacrosse Axed From Harford Community College's Sports Lineup

HARFORD COUNTY, MD — The women's lacrosse program has been cut from Harford Community College. The decision was made after the NJCAA announced this summer that it would discontinue women's lacrosse as a sponsored start starting with the 2024-2025 school year.

Last year, the NJCAA decided it would replace the national championship with a women's invitational, which came after low participation in the event from NJCAA schools for several years.

The last time a team was discontinued at Harford was in 2015 with the suspension of golf, school officials stated.

“Women’s lacrosse has had a long history in Harford County, the state of Maryland and the
NJCAA,” said Harford Community College Athletic Director Ed Liesch. “It saddens us to see women’s lacrosse no longer being offered. However, we will cherish the memories of the hundreds of women who came through the program, the great coaches that led our teams and our two national championships.”

Harford’s women’s lacrosse team received the news shortly after their appearance in the 2024
Women’s Invitational hosted by Harford Community College in May. Harford was awarded the
bid to host both the Men’s National Championship Tournament and the Women’s Invitational
through 2028, and will now focus solely on the men’s event.

“While I’m disappointed with the NJCAA’s decision, I can understand how it wasn’t feasible to continue sponsoring the sport with a limited number of programs participating,” Fighting Owls Women’s Lacrosse Head Coach Addie Kalama commented. “During my short time here, I have grown to love this community and was amazed every day by the accomplishments of my players on and off the field.”

The NJCAA went on to say that there is a potential for the sport to return once interest grows and more programs are willing to commit to fielding teams. Other sports have resurfaced in the past and it is not impossible to imagine women’s lacrosse might do the same, the NJCAA stated.

“Collegiate athletics is dynamic and ever-changing. If you look at what college sports looked like 10 or even 20 years ago, it is much different than today,” Liesch said . “Trends in sports come and go with the changes in popularity, funding and influences on college athletics.”

Harford Community College will be offering women’s flag football in 2026 and is exploring opportunities to add Esports to stay current with NJCAA trends, as well as the potential for two-year college level programs to add opportunities for teams that are already thriving.