Football
The Knights are undefeated, 5-0, this season. They pulled off blowout victories over Minnesota-Morris and Pomona-Pitzer to open the fall and had two exciting final-play wins over Concordia College and St. Olaf on Homecoming Saturday, October 7. Three separate players have been named to the D3football.com team: Michael Carry ’24 in week two and Nathan Streif ’25 and Ntense Obono ’25 in week five, with Obono repeating in week six. Obono stepped up in the game against St. Olaf, with a career-high 13 catches and 112 yards alongside a touchdown.
Volleyball
The team has a 5-12 record overall, 2-4 in conference play, featuring a 3-1 conference win over St. Scholastica on September 20 and a 3-2 away win over North Central on September 26. The team tallied 101 aces, 545 kills, 787 digs, and 58 blocks total before October. The Knights opened up Homecoming Weekend with a thrilling five-set victory over St. Olaf. Megan Smith ’27 has typically led the team in offense, while Sylvia Dixon ’26 has shined in defense.
Women’s Soccer
The team is ranked 1st in the MIAC, registering a post-Homecoming weekend record of 11-1-1, with a single tie with St. Olaf and loss to Simpson College interrupting their win streak. The team has been led by a variety of standout athletes receiving MIAC Athlete of the Week awards: Piper Dean ’25, Ezra Kucur ’25 and Kathryn Kreese ’26. Their Homecoming 2-1 win over last year’s MIAC champion St. Catherine was a thriller, as well as their 6-1 blowout of Bethel on September 23. The Knights boast impressive statistics, such as 2.38 goals per game, 20.2 shots per game and a total save record of 39.
Men’s Soccer
The men are off to a great start, dropping just one game to St. Olaf and boasting a perfect road record. The team is ranked #7 in the country by virtue of victories over previous #10 Gustavus Adolphus on September 14 and previous #20 North Central College on September 17. Three team members, Trevor Jones ’24, Daniel Linder ’24 and Ben Pennell ’26, have been named MIAC Athlete of the Week. The team has recorded an average of 3.5 goals per game, 19.3 shots per game, 38 assists and 28 saves as well as 79 corner kicks.
Women’s Golf
The #21-ranked Knights won two regular-season team titles and came second in their two other matches before the MIAC Championships, led by two individual titles and a second-place finish from All-American Sophomore Carter Sichol, who led the team on the first day of MIACs in a tie for second, though the middle of the lineup struggled, leaving the team in fifth place. On the second day, all golfers, save for Sichol, improved their placement to jump the team into second behind #8-ranked St. Catherine’s. Carleton stayed in second place on the third day, with every single athlete moving up in the standings. Sichol went +2 for the last 18 holes to claim the individual title with teammates Sarah Zheng (6th) and Mindy Zhai (T9) joining her in the top 10. Sophomore Natalie Tartar finished in 18th and sophomore Cynthia Lu tied for 28th overall.
Men’s Golf
The Knights recently capped off a strong fall season with a 6th place tie finish at the MIAC Championships, led by Sam Hikagi ’27, who finished eighth individually and earned a place on the All-MIAC team with a three-day total of +5, improving each day. Notably, sophomore Gordon Walker led the team with a 3-under par 69 final day, a career best and the second-best single-game total in Carleton history. He moved from 38th to 17th on the final day. Also counting in the Knights’ team score were Albert Jing ’25 (+19, 31st overall) and Bob Zhu ’24 (+24, tied for 36th overall).
Women’s Tennis
Three titles — complete sweeps, no less — in a shortened fall season is a fantastic record for the Knights, who are without a portion of their usual roster due to those studying abroad. The roster changes have given athletes the opportunity to gain experience competing with different partners, to great success. The team has improved to 33-1 in regular season matches. The team dropped few games overall, winning most matches by big margins.
Women’s Cross Country
The USFTCAA-ranked #5 Knights are off to a strong start to their season, claiming victory over all Division III competition in three meets so far, at the Clash of the Inland Northwest in Spokane, Washington on September 1, the Running of the Cows on September 16 on their home course and on the Regionals course at UW-Eau Claire’s Blugold Invitational on September 29. Sophie McManus ’25 and All-American Hannah Preisser ’26 have traded off leading the team while various others have made up the scoring five and top seven, showcasing depth and talent despite a small roster.
Men’s Cross Country
The Knights started off their season with an 11th-place finish at the Augustana Twilight Invitational, the second DIII program to complete a scoring five. They ran excellently against MIAC and North Region opponents at the Running of the Cows on September 16, coming second to #4-ranked UW-La Crosse and first of eight participating MIAC teams. This finish catapulted them to a top-35 national and top-5 regional ranking. The Knights finished 10th at the Blugold Invitational on September 29 against strong conference and regional competition. Mile national qualifier Gabe Nichols ’26 and Chris Melville ’24 have traded off leading the team.
