St. Edward’s University is known for a lot of great things, and student athletics is certainly one of them.

There are now 13 National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) team sports at St. Edward’s: baseball, men’s and women’s basketball, men’s and women’s golf, men’s and women’s soccer, men’s and women’s tennis, softball and volleyball, which all compete at the Division II level within the Heartland Conference.

“Eight of 11 teams were nationally ranked (last) year. Six were ranked in the top 25,” Athletic Director Debbie Taylor said. “We expect the same success (this) year.”

With such high athletic achievement on the courts and fields, St. Edward’s does a lot to raise school spirit by having free admission for all students to every home sporting event and also hosting Blue & Gold Series Games.

The University Programming Board (UPB) organizes these Blue & Gold Series Games, where there is always free food from various Austin restaurants (Cabo Bob’s Burritos, Chick-Fil-A and Amy’s Ice Creams to name some from last school year), along with the chance to meet new people and get free shirts and other St. Edward’s gear.

For each Blue & Gold Series game you attend, you receive a punch to your punch card. At three, five and 10 punches, you receive a different prize. If you attend all the Blue & Gold Series games for the semester, your name is also added into a raffle for a gift card to the university bookstore.

“Rhea”

This fall, the reigning conference champion men’s and women’s soccer teams will seek to defend their titles. The volleyball team has a new head coach, and the newly formed men’s and women’s cross country teams will make their official debut. Also, the men’s and women’s basketball teams will start their seasons towards the end of the semester with several returning upperclassmen and new additions that will make for an exciting first semester.

“Steve”

Not only do our coaches and student-athletes shine athletically, they are well-regarded in the classroom as well. Year after year, there are several St. Edward’s sports programs and individual athletes who earn various titles of Heartland Conference academic success, are named to the Dean’s List and/or receive other academic excellence awards.

In the spring, the basketball teams will continue their season. Also, the softball team and nationally-ranked baseball team will have several veteran sluggers in their lineups. The conference champion men’s tennis team and the second place women’s tennis team hope to continue their victorious matches, along with the second place men’s and women’s golf teams.

“I went to about 20 different games last year,” student Dayanira Velasco says. “I love seeing everyone cheering at the games. You hear some pretty hilarious comments from Topper fans, but in the end it’s all about supporting our teams,”Dayanira Velasco says.

If you can’t make it to particular sporting event, you can always visit: athletics.stedwards.edu for live stats, game recaps, and other information regarding St. Edward’s NCAA athletes.