📖 In Today’s Playbook. Who Has The Largest Endowment in Your Conference? Swimming, Wrestling Conference Championships. #d3Problems

🎶 Your Morning Pick Me Up. I’m A Believer. Smash Mouth

🗓 What’s Happening Today. The DIII Championships Committee begins a two-day meeting in Indianapolis, while the Committee on Competitive Safeguards and Medical Aspects of Sports also starts a virtual two-day session.

🗞 We’re Asking For Your Support. D3Playbook is your best source for news from around Division III. If you like what you see in our newsletter, please support us with a subscription.

Most of us don’t need a complicated routine. We just want to feel good, stay energized, and not think too hard about it.

AG1 Next Gen is a clinically studied daily health drink that supports gut health, helps fill common nutrient gaps, and supports steady energy. One scoop in cold water replaces a multivitamin, probiotics, and more, so your routine stays simple.

Start your mornings with AG1 and get 3 FREE AG1 Travel Packs, 3 FREE AGZ Travel Packs, and FREE Vitamin D3+K2 in your Welcome Kit with your first subscription.

Get started today

Data from the 2025 NACUBO-Commonfund Study of Endowments® (NCSE), show that the 657 U.S. colleges and universities and affiliated foundations participating in the Study reported a 10-year average annual return of 7.7 percent on their endowment assets in fiscal year 2025, an increase from 6.8 percent last year. The one-year return for FY25 was 10.9 percent, down modestly from last year’s 11.2 percent.

Institutions committed 47.4% of endowment spending to student financial aid, making it the single largest annual distribution of endowment assets. Additional distributions went to academic programs and research (17.7 percent of spending), endowed faculty positions (10.8 percent), operation and maintenance of campus facilities (7.6 percent), and all other purposes (16.6 percent). On average, institutions participating in the FY25 Study used their endowments to fund 15.2 percent of their annual operating expenses, up from 14 percent in FY24.”

Here is a look at endowments by DIII conference. Not every member of DIII conferences participated in the study.

» American Rivers. Dubuque ($370,912), Luther ($220,163), Buena Vista ($166,402), Wartburg ($110,738), Central ($84,209).
» Coast-to-Coast. Salisbury ($95,657), Warren Wilson ($66,387), Christopher Newport ($57,190).
» Centennial. Johns Hopkins ($13,734,946), Swarthmore ($2,842,685), Bryn Mawr ($1,344,138), Haverford ($755,248), Dickinson ($675,209), Gettysburg ($459,198), Washington College ($349,625), McDaniel ($165,901), Ursinus ($164,999).
» CCIW. Wheaton ($672,169), Augustana ($252,561), Elmhurst ($193,601), North Central ($153,158), North Park ($113,599), Carroll ($103,269).
» CNE. Hartford ($202,136), Endicott ($163,509), Roger Williams ($98,737)
» Empire 8. Alfred ($202,973), St. John Fisher ($158,333), Nazareth ($102,466), Houghton ($94,659).

» Coming Tuesday. A look at more endowments conference-by-conference.

It was a memorable weekend for two women’s swimming and diving teams with first-ever conference team titles, while for others, it was the same old story in extending their conference championship dominance.

One DIII record did fall during the weekend, as NYU’s Kaley McIntyre set a new mark in the 200 freestyle in 1:44.74.

» Heartland. Rose-Hulman (M), Franklin (W). It was the sixth straight title for the Fightin’ Engineers and the ninth consecutive championship for the Grizzlies.
» Minnesota. Gustavus Adolphus (M/W). It is the seventh straight title for the men and third in a row for the women.
» North Coast. Denison (M), Kenyon (W). The Big Red men made it three in a row, while the Owls three-peated while capturing their 30th overall NCAC women’s title.
» Old Dominion. Washington and Lee (M/W). The Generals swept the team titles for the fifth consecutive season.
» SAA. Trinity (M/W). The Tiger men easily won the league title, outdistancing Centre by 230 points. The Trinity women also ran away from the field, winning by 373.5 points.
» SCAC. Colorado College (M/W). The Tiger men made it back-to-back titles, while the CC women won their first-ever league championship.
» UAA. Emory (M), NYU (W). The Eagles won their 27th consecutive league championship, while the Violets dethroned 27-time champ Emory for its first UAA title.

It was a weekend for repeats on the mats as eight conferences crowned team and individual champions in men’s wrestling.

In the WIAC, Eau Claire won its second team title in the last three seasons, edging nine-time defending champ La Crosse by 4.5 points. North Central won its fourth consecutive CCIW tournament championship, outdistancing runnerup Millikin by 38.5 points. Roanoke also made it four in a row, winning the ODAC title by 7.5 points over Washington and Lee.

Ursinus won its 14th Centennial championship, edging Gettysburg by six points. Saint Vincent captured its second PAC title in the last three years with a convincing 18.5 point win over Thiel. NYU three-peated as UAA champions, while Ozarks did the same in the SLIAC. And Penn College successfully defended its AMCC crown with a 1.5 point victory over Penn State Behrend.

» Ice Hockey (M). Congrats to St. Norbert head coach Tim Coghlin who won the 700th game of his career as the Green Knights downed Lawrence, 5-2. He becomes the first coach to record 700 all at the DIII level and just the ninth overall in NCAA history.

» Legislation. “Iowa lawmakers are mulling legislation that seeks to curb diversity, equity and inclusion instruction in general education courses at the state’s public universities and bar private colleges from participating in a state student aid program if they have DEI offices.”

To its credit, McDaniel athletic communications was able to pull together a replay of Ashenafi Stewart’s game-winning halfcourt shot soon thereafter.

☕ Thanks for starting your weekend with us.
Enjoy your weekend. See you Monday.

Copyright © 2026, D3Playbook.com All rights reserved