By: Aaron Thompson, Assistant Director of Athletics (Operations)
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. - The Washington & Jefferson College women's basketball team will travel to Hope College on Friday, (March 6) to face off against Illinois Wesleyan in the first round of the 2026 NCAA Division III Women's Basketball Championship Tournament. The Presidents will square off with the Titans at 6:00 p.m. in Holland, Mich.
W&J captured their eighth Presidents' Athletic Conference title this past Saturday with a 64-43 victory over Saint Vincent to earn the conference's automatic bid to the national tournament.
This marks the 10th time in school history that the Presidents will compete in the NCAA tournament in women's basketball, and the third time in the last five years. The Presidents enter play on Friday with a 22-6 overall record. W&J finished 14-2 in conference play.
W&J's 22 wins ranks tied 10th-most in a single season in school history. The Presidents also earned NCAA bids in 1994-95, 1997-98, 2002-03, 2004-05, 2005-06, 2008-09, 2021-22 and 2024-25.
Illinois Wesleyan won the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW) with a 74-70 overtime decision over Carroll (Wisc.) on Saturday. The Titans hold a 22-5 overall record and 15-1 conference mark.
The host institution, Hope College (24-3) and Penn State Behrend (22-5), will meet in the other first round game in Holland, Mich. on Friday at DeVos Fieldhouse.
Hope College earned the automatic bid from the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association to the NCAA Division III tournament after a 76-62 win over Trine University in the conference tournament final on Saturday.
Penn State Behrend won the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference tournament title by defeating Penn State Altoona, 78-61, in the AMCC championship game this past Saturday.
Advancing teams will compete in a second round game Saturday (March 7) at DeVos Fieldhouse.
