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New Era of Excellence

In July 2025, Seattle University will join the West Coast Conference.

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The WCC Competitive Excellence fund benefits all SU student athletes. Your support provides essential resources designed to create a championship culture and ensure Redhawk student athletes thrive in this highly competitive environment.

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The Redhawks Are Soaring!

Seattle University Athletics is embarking on an exciting new chapter as we join the West Coast Conference (WCC) beginning in the 2025-26 season. This historic move marks a return to our roots as a long-time member of the WCC. It signifies a bold step forward in our commitment to excellence in academics, athletics, and community engagement. With the WCC’s shared focus on faith-based education and a strong national profile, this transition elevates Seattle University’s visibility and impact while highlighting the achievements of our students, student-athletes, alumni, faculty, and staff. Together, we are poised to soar to new heights as we bring the Redhawk spirit to the elite level of intercollegiate competition.

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Rekindling the Legacy

We bring back our university tradition of excellence to the West Coast Conference, bridging a storied past with a resolute and confident future. 

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Right At Home

Our faith-based mission, commitment to athletic and academic achievement, competitive Seattle Spirit, and geographic footprint are all logical fits—we complete the West Coast for the WCC.

SU men's basketball team shot — champions of the 2024 Ro College Basketball Invitational

Big Wins

Our positioning in the WCC is mutually beneficial. Our competitive excellence is met with fierce competition. Seattle's high profile as an acclaimed sports city and the WCC as a renowned Division I conference elevate both parties.

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Model Approach

Our holistic approach to the collegiate model of athletics is integrated with our educational mission and aligns with the WCC. We are exemplars of the modern way to activate Division I athletics.

Who’s In Our Conference

Gonzaga

Gonzaga team logoLocation: Spokane
Founded: 1887
Nickname: Bulldogs
Mascot: Spike the Bulldog
Basketball arena: McCarthey Athletic Center (6,000 seats)
Notable landmark: Spires of St. Aloysius Church
Notable alumni: Christine Gregoire, John Stockton, Bing Crosby
Of note: Men’s basketball team has reached the NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 in 9 of last 10 seasons.

Loyola Marymount

LMU athletics markLocation: Los Angeles
Founded: 1865
Nickname: Lions
Mascot: Iggy the Lion
Basketball arena: Gersten Pavilion (3,900 seats)
Notable landmark: Sacred Heart Chapel
Notable alumni: Bob Denver (Gilligan), Mila Kunis, Johnnie Cochran
Of note: Loyola College and Marymount University merged in 1973, assuming the name Loyola Marymount University.

Pacific

Pacific logoLocation: Stockton, CA
Founded: 1851
Nickname: Tigers
Mascot: Powercat
Basketball arena: Alex G. Spanos Center (6,150 seats)
Notable landmark: William Knox Holt Memorial Library
Notable alumni: Pete Carroll, Jamie Lee Curtis, Chris Isaak
Of note: First university in California, it houses the papers of John Muir and scenes of Raiders of the Lost Ark was filmed there.

Pepperdine

Pepperdine logoLocation: Malibu, CA
Founded: 1937
Nickname: Waves
Mascot: Willie the Wave Basketball arena: Firestone Fieldhouse (3,104 seats)
Notable landmark: Phillips Theme Tower
Notable alumni: Nicole Kidman, John Lesseter, Dennis Johnson (NBA HOF, Seattle Sonics)
Of note: Has satellite campuses in Argentina, England, Germany, Italy and Switzerland

Portland

Portland logoLocation: Portland
Founded: 1901
Nickname: Pilots Mascot: Wally Pilot
Basketball arena: Chiles Center (4,852 seats)
Notable landmark: Clive Charles Soccer Complex
Notable alumni: Ed Murray (Seattle Mayor), Kasey Keller, Megan Rapinoe
Of note: Between 1979 and 2010, the men’s cross country team won every WCC championship, 31 straight.

San Diego

San Diego logoLocation: San Diego
Founded: 1949
Nickname: Toreros
Mascot: Diego Torero
Basketball arena: Jenny Craig Pavilion (5,100 seats)
Notable landmark: Donald P. Shiley Center for Science and Technology
Notable alumni: Jim Parsons, Robert Kardashian, Paul Sewald
Of note: The university’s buildings are designed in a 16th-century Plateresque architecture style from the Spanish Renaissance to reflect the city’s Catholic heritage.

San Francisco

San Francisco logoLocation: San Francisco
Founded: 1855
Nickname: Dons
Mascot: The Don
Basketball arena: Sobrato Center (3,005 seats)
Notable landmark: Saint Ignatius Church
Notable alumni: Suzanne Somers, Bill Russell, Joy Hollingsworth, Pete Rozelle
Of note: The main campus is nicknamed “The Hilltop” as it is partly located on Lone Mountain.

Santa Clara

Santa Clara logoLocation: Santa Clara, CA
Founded: 1851
Nickname: Broncos
Mascot: Bucky Bronco Basketball arena: Leavey Center (4,500 seats)
Notable landmark: Mission Santa Clara de Asis
Notable alumni: Gavin Newsom, Steve Nash, Leon Panetta, Jerry Brown
Of note: Thomas I. Bergin earned his bachelor’s degree in 1857, the first bachelor’s degree awarded in California.

Saint Mary’s

Saint Marys logoLocation: Moraga, CA
Founded: 1863
Nickname: Gaels
Mascot: Gael Basketball arena: University Credit Union Pavilion (3,500 seats)
Notable landmark: Chapel of Saint Mary
Notable alumni: Mahershala Ali, Robert Haas (former US Poet Laureate), Brian Doyle-Murray
Of note: During WWII, the US Navy used the college to train pilots and built several buildings, including the world’s largest indoor pool (which no longer exists).

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