Daily Journal Girls’ Lacrosse Player of the Year: Sacred Heart Prep’s Kat Dykes

But the season was a success to head coach Stephanie Sanders for different reasons.

“[The season] was easy,” Sanders said. “We had good, really strong leadership. … The girls got along, they had good relationships. They were having fun playing lacrosse.

“When they’re happy, it makes it easy for as (on the coaching staff). They just had a lot of respect for each other. There is so much talent and potential.”

And that starts with rising senior Kat Dykes, who is the 2026 San Mateo Daily Journal’s Girls’ Lacrosse Player of the Year. Already committed to University of Virginia, Dykes not only provided the offensive spark for the Gators, she gave the team a certain swagger, while at the same time being mindful of the things going on around her.

“Being good comes with a lot of things. She just has this way about her. She is just unfazed. Confident, in a humble way,” Sanders said. “She’s not afraid to take risks. She is unstoppable 1-on-1, but this year, she really learned how to use other [teammates] and other people use her.”

And while Dykes was more than willing to share the offensive load, who along with Maggie Goldstein form a potent 1-2 punch, she certainly got hers. She finished the season with 60 goals and added 23 assists.

“Kat, she has no fear,” Sanders said. “This year, she took it up notch.”

Dykes ended up with a preposterous 87% shooting percentage in a sport in which 50% is considered really good.

But she also proved to be a proficient face off player as well, winning 20 draws. She also caused 10 turnovers — all while battling through a broken toe.

SHP was already 3-0 with wins over Southern California teams Cathedral Catholic-San Diego (16-4) and Coronado (16-10), and holding off North Coast Section power Redwood-Larkspur, 12-11 before the injury diagnosis.

She was willing to play through the injury, but was forced to the sideline for her own good for two weeks. When she returned after missing four games, she picked up where she left off.

“She came back for the Valor Christian game in Colorado (during Spring Break),” Sanders said. “She probably shouldn’t have, but she scored the first four goals.

“And then I took her off.”

Of an eventual 7-6 SHP win.

The Gators added a 15-8 win over Colorado Academy before returning to the Bay Area and hitting their stride. Starting with a 17-7 win over Marin Academy, SHP dominated their opponents. They outscored their final eight opponents 139-25, by an average score of 17-3.

And the thing was, they beat some solid teams, with Dykes leading the way.

“What impresses me is, she had a minimum of four goals against the best teams we played,” Sanders said. “I’ve never coached someone who was so unfazed by her competition.”

That included when the Gators took on their main rival, St. Ignatius. They beat the Wildcats 12-6 during the regular season and it was basically a forgone conclusion the two would meet for the CCS Division I championship for the sixth straight season.

And at halftime of the Division I championship game, the Wildcats — three-time CCS champion themselves — had the Gators on the ropes, leading 4-2.

But Sanders said there no was no panic. She and the Gators knew what needed to be done.

“We just weren’t getting enough touches on the ball. [SI was] taking long possessions and we were playing nervous,” Sanders said.

SHP started to better control the ball and then that sparked the offense — with Dykes leading the way, scoring four straight goals as she finished with five overall to help the Gators rally for a 10-7 win.

But it wasn’t a case of hero ball from Dykes.

“It’s not like they would just dump the ball to Kat and say, ‘Go!,’ which is what a lot of teams do,” Sanders said. “But we would run different sets and if Kat ended up with the ball, she would score.

“I’ve coached five state championships in Colorado. I had some kids there who really good, but Kat is different. She is just a different type of athlete.”