The No. 10 men’s and No. 14 women’s WashU swimming and diving teams fell to Division II No. 6 men’s and No. 17 women’s McKendree University, 105 points to 187 points and 120 points to 167 points, respectively, on Jan. 11.

The No. 5 WashU men’s basketball fell to The University of Chicago 66-71 in the Bears’ first  University Athletic Association (UAA) game of the season. With the loss, the Bears are now 10-2 this season.

The No. 16 WashU women’s basketball team opened conference play with a dominant victory 72-45 over No. 19 The University of Chicago. The win marked the start of WashU’s University Athletic Association (UAA) 14 game campaign.

In the world of college basketball, Division III programs are often overlooked. Most D-III athletes don’t play for national glory, future NBA careers, or to profit off of their name, image, and likeness. Yet to all those who have found a special community around Division III athletics, the D-III tier — where student-athletes are able to pursue a more well-rounded college experience than Division I athletes —  stands out.

With the No. 15 women’s team’s 93-35 win, and the No. 2 men’s team’s 107-57 victory later that night, WashU played its final basketball games against its neighbor Fontbonne, which will close after the 2024-25 academic year. Fontbonne’s gym and facilities will soon adorn WashU red and green, when WashU absorbs Fontbonne’s land into its campus over the summer. 

If you haven’t seen a video compilation of the worst technical fouls in the NBA, you’re missing out. You’ll see Jayson Tatum getting a technical for lightly bouncing the ball after giving up a foul; Lance Stephenson for doing the air guitar celebration; and best of all, Tim Duncan getting one for laughing on the bench. The video goes on and on, and you’ll notice that an overwhelming majority of these techs come from the last 10 years. It leaves me with one takeaway: The technical foul is the most comical rule in sports.

They say “What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas,” but the Division III national championship trophy is coming home to St. Louis with the WashU women’s soccer team. For the second time in program history, the Bears are national champions, after defeating No. 11 William Smith College 3-0 on Dec. 8, 2024, in Las Vegas, Nevada. 

Hailing from the shores of Seneca Lake, New York, the No. 11 Herons received an at-large bid to the tournament after losing the Liberty League conference championship. Since the tournament, though, William Smith has caught fire and defied the odds.

Now, after the 3-0 victory, the Bears will make their second straight National Championship appearance on Sunday, Dec. 8. After losing in last season’s title game, the Bears — who now hold a WashU record with 22 wins in a single season — are looking for one final win in the season’s final game.

At the start of each season, the players on the WashU women’s soccer team create a goal pyramid, starting with listing off small goals that set the building blocks for their larger aspirations. So far this season, the No. 1 ranked Bears have been ticking many of their goals off the list: have an undefeated season at home, win the University Athletic Association (UAA) Championship, and make the Final Four. Now, the Bears have their “top goal” left to achieve: to win the national championship.