MARCH 10, 2025 | composed by STEVE ULRICH

What administrators, coaches, parents and fans are reading. #whyD3
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🤩 Good Monday Morning. What a great #whyD3 weekend

Headlines
🏒 Ice Hockey Crowns Conference Champions
🏀 How Sweet It Is!
🤼‍♀️ Four Golds For DIII At NCWWC
🎽 Who’s Who at the Track Championships

🎶 Your Morning Starter. CBS Basketball Theme

🗓️ What’s Happening Today. The DIII Senior Woman Administrator program begins its two-day run in Indianapolis.

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TOP STORY
1. Going Dancing

Name me a more exciting conference championship weekend in DIII women’s ice hockey than last Saturday? I’ll wait.

Four championship finals went to overtime before Endicott, Augsburg, St. Norbert and Nazareth punched their tickets to the NCAA tournament. Four other league champs are in the field, while four other spots go to at-large teams - Gustavus Adolphus, Elmira, Middlebury and UW-River Falls.

On the men’s side, Gustavus Adolphus won its first MIAC crown in a decade, while Eau Claire captured the WIAC title for the first time since 2013. The 10 winners are in the 14-team field, while the NPI numbers favor Aurora, Geneseo, Trine and UNE at the time of writing. Watch the bracket reveal at 10 a.m. ET.

» NCAA Women’s Bracket

» NCAA Men’s Bracket Reveal

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BASKETBALL
2. Making It To Sectional Weekend

courtesy of D3hoops.com

“Double-digit seeds made a mess of the men’s bracket all weekend, but it wasn't until the second-to-last game of Saturday, after 10 p.m. ET, that a top seed went down, and that happened when Wisconsin Lutheran hit two free throws in the closing seconds of regulation, then hung on in overtime as UW-Platteville game-tying attempt never got off as the Warriors won 75-73. In addition, Catholic knocked out No. 2 seed Randolph-Macon, and Mary Washington and Western New England continued their runs into the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament, as they defeated hosts Ramapo and Montclair State, knocking the NJAC out of the NCAA Tournament.”

Three WIAC women’s teams advanced through the second round of the NCAA Tournament, as UW-Stout ousted Whitman and UW-Oshkosh shut down Bethel. Elsewhere, Smith once again found late game magic and McMurry won the Texas regional.”

» Sectional Hosts (M). Trinity CT, Wesleyan, NYU and UW-La Crosse.

» Sectional Hosts (W). Bowdoin, Gettysburg, Scranton, and Illinois Wesleyan.

» Updated Brackets | Men | Women

WRESTLING (W)
3. Four DIII Gold Medalists at NCWWC

It was a strong showing for Division III women’s wrestling at the National Collegiate Women’s Wrestling Championship in Coralville, Iowa, last weekend with four athletes capturing national crowns.

Otterbein’s Olivia Shore pulled out a 2-1 decision to win the 103-pound weight class, while North Central’s Sydney Petzinger recorded a 10-6 victory to claim the 117-pound class. NCC teammate Amani Jones blanked her opponent, 5-0, to remain undefeated and capture the 124 class and Aurora’s Alexis Janiak squeezed out a 6-4 decision over the Cardinals’ Sara Sterner for the 131 crown. NCC 145-pounder Bella Mir finished second at 145.

North Central (181) finished second behind Iowa (201.5) for the team title with Elmira as the No. 2 school in DIII, taking 10th (42.5).

» Full Results

TRACK AND FIELD
4. Participants Set For Championships

“The NCAA Division III Men’s and Women’s Track and Field and Cross Country Committee announced the participants in the 2025 NCAA Division III Men’s and Women’s Indoor Track and Field Championships.

For each men’s individual event contested, including the heptathlon, the top 20 declared student-athletes were accepted into the championships. For each women’s individual event contested, including the pentathlon, the top 20 declared student-athletes were accepted into the championships. For each relay event contested, the top 12 declared relay teams, one per institution, were accepted into the championships. The championships will be held March 14-15 at the Golisano Training Center in Rochester, New York, with Nazareth University and Rochester NY Sports Commission serving as hosts.”

» Complete List of Participants

NEWS YOU CAN USE
5. Lightning Round ⚡️ 

🗞️ News. Smith has received a $51 million planned gift for endowment support of financial aid and two faculty positions in engineering and statistical and data sciences. The bequest intention is from an anonymous alum from the class of 1979.

⚾️ Baseball. Middlebury IF Will Ashley hit for the cycle and drove in 10 runs as the Panthers defeated Rutgers-Newark, 25-8. Lynchburg’s Tyler Kaltreider tossed a
1-hitter with 10 punchouts as the Hornets downed W&L, 3-1. Oberlin’s Zachary Ritts stole seven bases, tying the DIII single-game record, in 7-6, 10-inning loss to Asbury.

🥍 Lacrosse. Thiel senior M Ashlyn Wightman scored 14 goals in the Tomcats’ 20-9 victory against West Virginia Wesleyan. She reached the 300-goal mark for her career with tally #13.

TRANSACTIONS
6. Comings and Goings

COLBY-SAWYER - Connor MacPhail named head women’s volleyball coach
EASTERN CONNECTICUT - Denise Bierly announced her retirement as head women’s basketball coach

1 THING
7. Buzzer Beaters

• IWU FTW

• Maroons Still Dancing

• Wicklund Wins It For SNC

• A Backflip Celly for Frey

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