Sarah Rainville of Columbia Named to CDSWOY 2026 Class
ALBANY, NY – Sarah Rainville, a senior at Columbia High School, has been named as one of the 10 scholastic award recipients for 2026 by the Capital District Sports Women of the Year organization.
Sarah, who competes in basketball and lacrosse, will be recognized at the Capital District Sports Women of the Year Awards Gala on Monday, August 3 at 7:00 p.m. at the GE Theatre at Proctors in Schenectady. Tickets will be available online at Proctors.org soon.
The Capital District Sports Women of the Year organization (CDSWOY) honors the best and brightest female student athletes from high schools and colleges in the Capital District of New York State. The student-athletes will be recognized for their achievements in academics, athletics, and community service. More information is provided at the website: cdswoy.com.
Academically, Sarah was a high honor roll student at Columbia and a member of the National Honor Society for all four years. Her final GPA was 97.16. She also was a member of the Science National Honors Society, Rho Kapp and the Math League, as well as Science Research. Sarah was named a U.S. Academic All-American in lacrosse.
Athletically, Sarah was selected as the Suburban Council Girls Basketball Player of the Year. She was named to the All State First Team and the Albany Times Union First Team. She was a two-time WNYT-TV All Star. Sarah finished her four-year career with 1,311 points, ranking third all-time in scoring for Columbia. She also was the team captain for two seasons. In lacrosse, Sarah recorded 107 career points in her four years, with 65 goals and 42 assists. The senior midfielder and captain had 58 points in 2026 (32 goals and 26 assists) with 75 ground balls, 17 caused turnovers and 16 draw controls. In her junior basketball season, she was a second team Suburban selection as well as a second team Times Union selection. Her junior lacrosse season featured a Section 2 title, a regional championship and a state semifinal game. Sarah is committed to playing basketball at the University of Rochester.
Sarah’s community service included volunteering at the Annual East Greenbush Winterfest Community Event and the Columbia High School Multicultural Fair. She volunteered for her school as a tutor and as an Incoming Student Volunteer. Sara assisted the Athletic Trainer Support Staff, East Greenbush Girls Basketball Association and at the Elementary School Field Days as well as with various youth sports camps in the community.
Sarah becomes the second Columbia High School student-athlete selected by CDSWOY, joining Alivia Landy (2025).
A total of 10 high school and three college female student-athletes will be honored at the August 3 event. The next recipient will be announced on July 7.
