Sophomore Olivia Clemons and the No. 1 WashU women’s soccer team will compete in the sectional round of the NCAA Tournament this weekend. (Bri Nitsberg | Managing Photo Editor)

This weekend, five WashU teams will compete in postseason action. Here’s a look ahead to an exciting weekend in the world of WashU sports:

MEN’S SOCCER

The last time that the WashU men’s soccer team made it to the Sweet 16 was in 2007, when the Bears fell 2-1 to Trinity University. This year, the No. 12 Bears and No. 5 Tigers will play a rematch 18 years in the making, at 1:30 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 21 on Francis Field. 

Trinity, hailing from the Southern Athletic Association (SAA), defeated Hardin–Simmons University and Texas Lutheran University in the first two NCAA tournament rounds with relatively commanding victories. The Tigers are led by senior forward Adam Knutson, the 2025 SAA Offensive Player of the Year. Besides Knutson, the Tigers are led by junior Samuel Theiss, who led the SAA with 14 goals this year, and first-year Max Salinas, the SAA Rookie of the Year. While WashU has excelled against high-caliber opponents this season, Trinity has not been tested in the same way. Trinity played just four regular season games against teams that made the NCAA tournament and went 2-2. 

The winner of the WashU-Trinity match will face either No. 2 Augsburg University or the No. 9 State University of New York at Cortland on Nov. 23 at 1pm at Francis Field. Either team would be a tough opponent that excels defensively. 

Augsburg, the top team in the region, dominated play in the regular season, but the Eagles have lost or drawn two of their last five games. Augsburg is led by seniors Carver Tierney and Mitchel Munzing, both of whom had more than 10 goals in 2025. Cortland eked out wins over SUNY Delhi and Catholic University in the first two rounds. The Red Devils’ goalkeeper, senior Jordan Ott, is one of the best in Division III, and recorded 13 shutouts this season. 

The four squads will compete for a berth to the Final Four, which WashU has not made since 1987. 

WOMEN’S SOCCER

WashU will travel to Grantham, Pennsylvania to face the No. 8 Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) on Friday, Nov. 21 at 10 a.m. CT. The game, hosted at Messiah University, marks the first matchup ever between WashU and MIT. 

MIT defeated Emmanuel College and No. 24 Colby College to advance to the Sweet 16. The Engineers are led by graduate student midfielder Natalie Barnouw, who is second in D-III with 23 goals this season; behind Barnouw, sophomore forward Maeve Sullivan and junior defender Madeline Seebeck are players to watch on both sides of the ball. The Bears and Engineers only had one common opponent this season – Brandeis University. While WashU handily defeated Brandeis 4-0, MIT lost 2-1 to the Judges. 

The winner of WashU’s match with MIT will face either No. 4 Messiah or Calvin University for a berth to the Final Four. WashU is very familiar with both of these teams. 

Messiah is arguably WashU women’s soccer’s biggest rival in tournament play. WashU defeated Messiah on penalty kicks in the 2016 national championship game and in the 2023 Final Four; the Falcons won in the shootout in the 2022 Elite Eight. A D-III powerhouse led by senior Hannah Adair and junior Brittany Laird, Messiah defeated No. 25 Amherst College to reach the Elite Eight. 

The Bears played Calvin in the regular season, defeating the Knights 2-0 on Francis Field. Calvin was unranked entering the tournament, but won two closely-fought games to advance. The Knights are led by senior Mia Judd, who was named the Most Valuable Player of the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association. Junior Mikaela Waroway leads Calvin in goals. 

WashU is looking for its third consecutive bid to the D-III women’s soccer Final Four with two wins this upcoming weekend.

VOLLEYBALL

For the fourth consecutive season, the No. 21 WashU volleyball team has made the NCAA Division III tournament. The Bears are headed to Oshkosh, Wisconsin, where they will take on the College of Saint Benedict on Thursday, Nov. 20 at 11:30 a.m.

After a second-place finish in the University Athletic Association (UAA) Championships, the Bears put up another solid year, going 22-8 with a 7-3 conference record. Beyond regular-season success, they are also a team with plenty of postseason experience. However, the Bears have also historically exited the tournament early, falling in the second round in their last three appearances. 

This year, the Bears hope to make a deeper run. With 13 returning players, WashU has plenty of experience, but this is not the same team that fell short last year. Senior Sam Buckley continued to dominate this season and eclipsed 5,000 assists this season en route to being named to the all-UAA first team. Junior Ellie Laird has stepped into her new position as libero, while first-years Nia Jones and Abby Krause have given the Bears new offensive depth.

What is not new is their first-round opponent, Saint Benedict. The Bears defeated the Bennies in the first round of last year’s NCAA tournament in a dominant, three-set victory. However, this year’s Saint Benedict team should not be underestimated. Finish the season on a six-game winning streak, the Bennies are coming off of their second consecutive Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference championship. 

If WashU advances, they will take either the No. 22 University of Dubuque or Cornell College in the second round on Friday, Nov. 21. Dubuque lost just four times in the regular season, and its junior outside hitter Delainey Winkel was named the Midwest Player of the Year by the American Volleyball Coaches Association. Cornell struggled in the early weeks of the season with losses to both Saint Benedict and Dubuque, but won the Midwest Conference with a seven-game winning streak to end the year. 

FOOTBALL

The WashU football team is gearing up to participate in the fifth annual Culver’s Isthmus Bowl on Saturday, Nov. 22 at 2 p.m. This year, the bowl will feature WashU, which is the third-place finisher in the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW), and the University of Wisconsin–Stout, which is the sixth-place team in the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC). This will be the first matchup ever between the two programs.

WashU’s football season featured many ups and downs. Boasting a dominant 8-2 record, the Bears capped off their regular season on Saturday, Nov. 15, with a resounding victory against Augustana College. Despite their excellent record, the Bears fell short of qualifying for the Division III postseason in their last season as members of the CCIW. 

Junior quarterback Levi Moore led the Bears’ offense this season. Moore took the reins this year as permanent starting quarterback, and he quickly asserted himself as a powerful dual-threat QB. Moore threw for over 1,500 yards and 18 touchdowns, in addition to rushing for 620 yards and a CCIW-best 17 rushing touchdowns. Junior receiver Makael Carter led the team with eight receiving touchdowns and 581 receiving yards. Throughout the season, WashU has proven to be a well-rounded, driven team. Now, the Bears aim to channel that consistency and edge into one final statement performance in the Isthmus Bowl.

Stout’s 2025 season flew under the radar for the most part. The Blue Devils finished with an overall record of 5-5, including a 3-4 record in the WIAC. They closed the regular season on a three-game losing streak. But Stout is better than their record suggests, keeping games close against some of the best teams in D-III.   

For Stout, their offense has largely revolved around senior quarterback Adam Moen. In his second year as Stout’s starting quarterback, Moen threw for over 2,200 yards and 11 passing touchdowns. Similarly to Moore, Moen showed prominence as a rushing-threat quarterback, racking up 651 rushing yards, and a WIAC-leading 14 rushing touchdowns. Senior linebacker Blaine Seidl led the team in solo, assist, and total tackles. With playmakers like Moen and Seidl on both sides of the ball, the Blue Devils enter the Isthmus Bowl poised to challenge WashU with a balanced, hard-nosed approach.

CROSS-COUNTRY

On Saturday, Nov. 22, the women’s and men’s cross-country teams will compete in the NCAA Division III Championship meet at Converse University in Spartanburg, South Carolina. The Bears will compete against runners from the top D-III teams across the country.

Just the weekend before, the women’s cross-country team showed that they are capable of the competition by winning the NCAA Midwest Regionals for the first time since 2022, giving the Bears an automatic bid for nationals. Sophomore Lucinda Laughlin was the Midwest regional champion with a time of 21:29, and senior Jillian Heth snagged second place with her collegiate personal record of 21:30 in the 6,000-meter race. The women’s team features strong depth, including seniors Katie Rector and Riley Clark, and sophomores Sally Carrington, Maddy Lee, and Lauren Raley. All five of WashU’s scored runners placed in the top 20, and every runner competing at regionals received All-Midwest regional honors. 

The men’s team placed fifth at regionals, snagging an at-large bid to nationals. Senior Conor Daly was the first finisher for the Bears, placing 19th with his season-best time of 24:56 for the 8,000-meter race. Four of the Bears were awarded All-Midwest Regional Honors for placing in the top 35. The men’s team will also look to first-years Max Sudrzynski and Rishi Shadaksharappa to lead the team, both of whom placed at regionals. 

Ranked fifth in the Midwest region and 25th overall in the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association NCAA D-III coaches’ poll, the men’s team will be competing against tough competition at nationals and have an uphill battle waiting for them. Although they have come close, most notably coming in second place in 2018, WashU men’s cross-country has never won the national championship. Since 2021, they haven’t broken tenth place.

The women’s cross-country team has won two nationals, in 2011 and 2018. In the past two years, the Bears have come in 13th and 10th place. This season, WashU looks to get back to the top of D-III.