The No. 8 WashU softball team left no room for debate this weekend, dominating the New York University (NYU) Violets in a three-game sweep on April 3 and 4. The Bears only gave up two runs across the entire weekend while scoring 22 of their own.

The Bears enjoyed some particularly strong individual performances across the meet, setting five program records and earning 15 All-American finishes.

This past weekend, they faced the same team in the semifinals of the same competition with a chance to get revenge. The Bears could not rewrite history, as they narrowly lost to the No. 5 Athenas, going on to finish third in the competition. 

The Bears, who beat Emory 63-56 and Rochester 66-53 over the weekend, improved to 16-4 on the season and 7-2 in conference play as they enter the tail end of the season.

Both squads had a victorious weekend, winning both of their meets, which served as valuable minutes in preparation for the University Athletic Association (UAA) Championships in February. 

The Bears will play their University Athletic Association (UAA) rivals from Atlanta, No. 2 Emory University, in the national championship on Saturday, Dec. 6.

Foremost, the Bears secured a spot in the Culver’s Isthmus Bowl on Nov. 22, where the Bears will face the University of Wisconsin–Stout. WashU also played its final conference game as a member of the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW) before it will join the North Coast Athletic Conference for the 2026 season.

First-year swimmer Parker Chan has already made a big impact in the team’s first two meets of the season, being named the University Athletic Association (UAA) Men’s Swimming Athlete of the Week after both competitions.

Both Bears teams ended up losing in a tough matchup against the Maroons, the men falling 131-161 and the women 133-167. The men’s competition featured five first-place finishes across the swimming events.

This year, heartbreak struck again. Even though it had the ball with seconds left in prime field position, WashU lost to Wheaton for the sixth consecutive time, falling 28-24.