The spring season is the start of a brand-new campaign for some sports at Seattle University, like softball and baseball. For others, like track & field and tennis, it’s a new chapter in their year-round play. For basketball, March means do or die.

Let’s examine how Seattle U athletics fared in March. 

Softball

Seattle U softball opened their 2023 season at 12-3 (win-loss) in February. That success continued into March. The Redhawks won seven of their first 10 games of the month, including a stretch of six straight wins.

The team began Western Athletic Conference (WAC) play March 17, which proved more difficult than the non-conference slate. The Redhawks started WAC play at just 3-4 and sat at a respectable 22-11 at the end of March.

While there are plenty of games left to be played, scoring has been the identity of the team. The Redhawks led the WAC in hits by the end of March and are one of the premier offenses in the conference along with Grand Canyon University (GCU) and Utah Tech University (UTU).

In fact, Seattle U had three top 10 WAC hitters in terms of batting average by the end of March with Graduate Student Jocelynn De La Cruz, Junior Sydney Frankenberger and Sophomore Tai Wilson. Ace pitcher and Senior Stephanie Madrigal is having her best season as a Redhawk as well, posting a career-high in batting average against in 2023 thus far.

Sitting in the center of the WAC standings, Seattle U softball will need to continue to lean on their consistent hitting as they try for their second NCAA tournament appearance in school history.

Baseball

After a 1-5 start to their season in February, Redhawks baseball looked to be on track for a fifth-consecutive losing season.

It didn’t get much better in March, as Seattle U sat at just 2-11 entering their series with WAC foe Utah Valley University March 17. The Redhawks lost the first matchup but took the final two games of that homestand with the Wolverines to secure their first consecutive wins of the year.

The wins also sparked an offensive turning point, as Seattle U averaged just over three runs per game going into the series. From then to the end of March, the Redhawks averaged seven runs per game, finishing March at 6-16 with a 4-6 conference record.

On the hill, Junior Nestor German won the TicketSmarter WAC Pitcher of the Week March 20.

While there is work to do, Seattle U baseball is squarely in the race to make their second WAC Tournament in a row.

Track and Field

Seattle U track and field competed in three meets in March to begin their outdoor season.

The team competed March 18 at the Oregon Preview, where stars from the indoor season like Junior Gus Harquail and Sophomore Azalea Groleau highlighted the Redhawks’ showing. Harquail won the men’s 2000 meter steeplechase, and Groleau placed third in the women’s 3000-meter run. The Redhawks were also propelled by second place finishes from Senior Isaiah Payne in the men’s 200-meter dash and Junior Bryana Rogers in the women’s triple jump. All in all, Seattle U established a solid podium presence at the event, which featured over 25 schools and affiliations.

Freshmen shined for the Redhawks as they continued their season March 30 through April 1 at the Mike Fanelli Track Classic and the Stanford Invitational. Freshman Miguel Rosario III impressed in the 100-meter dash. He won the event at the Fanelli Classic and tied Payne for the second-best time in school history at 10.68 seconds. While the Redhawks did not have any other podium appearances at the meets, Freshman Jamaari Jefferson’s long jump of 6.90 meters at Stanford set a Seattle U record in the event.

Men’s Tennis

Seattle U men’s tennis had three matches in March. They also picked up three team wins.

A 5-2 win over Portland State, a 6-1 victory against Colorado College and a close 4-3 win vs. New Mexico State outlined the team’s perfect month. A big point of success came from their duos, as the Redhawks did not concede a doubles point in March. Sophomore Veselin Kiselkov and Graduate Student Clement Hamel’s performances earned the duo WAC Men’s Tennis Double Players of the Week honors March 10.

The doubles dominance set the team up for success in their singles play, where they went 13-5 on the month. Kiselkov also highlighted the Redhawks’ solo efforts, defeating all three of his March opponents in singles play.

Women’s Tennis

March was rough on Seattle U women’s tennis, as the team went 1-4 during the month.

After a tough 7-0 loss to the University of Washington March 1, the Redhawks began WAC play March 17. They would drop two more team games to GCU and New Mexico State University, having won just two singles games in the month to that point.

The team bounced back March 26 against Utah Tech, however, winning 4-3 thanks to the heroics of Sophomore doubles pair Elena Kravleva and Liliya Dimova. The duo secured the doubles point for the Redhawks in a tight 7-6 win, and both notched individual victories on the day to help Seattle U secure the team win. The effort would earn Kravleva the WAC Women’s Tennis Singles Player of the Week March 29.

The Redhawks dropped their next team match March 31 against the University of Texas, Rio Grande Valley, 4-3.

Men’s Basketball

Seattle U men’s basketball fell to GCU in the WAC Tournament March 9, 84-79. The loss marked the end of a promising season for the Redhawks, who compiled their second consecutive 20-win season in 2022-23. The loss also marked another first round exit for Seattle U in the WAC Tournament, made more sour by major talent leaving this offseason. Junior Guard Cameron Tyson declared for the NBA Draft while Forwards Emeka Udenyi and Riley Grigsby will graduate.

Although the future is uncertain for Seattle U, the team will remain under the purview of Head Coach Chris Victor, who led the team to its first WAC regular season championship in the 2021-22 season.

Women’s Basketball

While Seattle U women’s basketball pulled off a first round upset in the WAC Tournament, defeating University of Texas, Arlington 80-78 March 6, the Redhawks’ run would end March 8 against GCU, as they lost 85-80.

Despite the competitive spirit they displayed in the WAC Tournament, the Redhawks had a tumultuous season. They posted a 6-24 overall record and finished 11th in the WAC. The 2022-23 season was also the team’s fifth consecutive losing season, prompting the school to make a change.

After seven seasons with Seattle U, the university announced March 20 that Head Coach Suzy Barcomb will not return to the team next season. While the team has commenced a search for a new coach, no timetable on that decision has been disclosed.