Defiance Athletics 2025-26 Year in Review
DEFIANCE, Ohio – As Defiance College concludes another year of intercollegiate competition, the 2025-26 academic year proved to be another stride towards the Athletic Department's goal of sustainable and competitive athletic programs. Throughout the year, Yellow Jacket supporters received a glimpse of this desired future with several big moments worth celebrating. Let's take a look back on some of the year's milestone moments and accomplishments.
National Stage
Defiance College got its first taste of national-level competition since joining the NAIA nearly two years ago. Xavier Wilson's stellar year as a sprinter culminated in a trip to the NAIA Indoor National Championships in Gainesville, Fla. while high jumper Jesse Brown gained a berth to the Outdoor National Championships in Asheville, N.C. The duo became the first men's track athletes to compete in a national meet since 2013. In men's golf, Jordan Walford caught fire at the WHAC Championships to earn a spot at the NAIA National Championship held at TPC Deere Run. Additionally, the first year of powerlifting at DC garnered a pair of two-time national qualifiers in DC Female Athlete of the Year Mikayla Twum (2nd-place finish) and Dominic Bingham. That tandem along with Braylin Shaner and Zachariah Burroughs head to USAPL Raw Nationals next week.
Women's Volleyball Returns to WHAC Tournament
Yellow Jacket women's volleyball was the first DC team to reach the WHAC Tournament last year and earned the distinction as the first to stack consecutive berths. This year's team finished 16-17 and finished seventh in the conference, marking the program's best finish since 2019.
Women's Soccer Feasts on the Turf
Multiple single-game records fell or were matched during women's soccer's dominant 12-0 win over Andrews. The team's 12 goals broke the previous record of 11 with the help of Tatum Oberhauser's record-matching 4 goals. DC dished out 8 total assists in the victory as Destiny Pier and Audree Johnson each tied single-game records with 2 assists apiece.
Men's Soccer Awards Coach Zar First Win
After enduring a winless 2025 campaign, the men's soccer team broke their drought in style by blanking Calumet 7-0. The win came two matches after a 1-1 tie with Manchester and was the first head-coaching win for Htut Zar. The men's soccer team went on to also score its first two conference victories since joining the WHAC during the final month of the season.
Football's Fast Start
Defiance College football started the season with the program's 400th all-time win and went on to its first 2-0 start since 2001. Defiance also closed the year on a 2-game winning streak and defensive end Dominic Harris, 2025-26 DC Male Athlete of the Year, was named an AFCA/NAIA All-American, the first under Coach Nickell.
The 50th Purple & Gold Tournament – One To Remember
Held on Nov. 21-22, the men's and women's basketball teams co-hosted the 50th Purple and Gold Tournament for the first time. Both Yellow Jacket squads came through the weekend with 2-0 records in memorable fashion. The women's team put on a defensive clinic against Grace Christian on Friday, forcing a program record 54 turnovers while Lorena Capparos set the single-game steals record with 14. On Saturday, DC erased a 15-point deficit to beat Great Lakes Christian. For the men, DC rolled to a 20-point win on Friday before an electric overtime victory against Washington Adventist on Saturday. Sophomore wing Evan Angstmann buried a program-record 11 3-pointers and scored 39 points to help rally the Jackets from down 11 points with less than 5 minutes left in regulation.
Wilson Rewrites Record Books
Sprinter Xavier Wilson set three individual DC track records and three others as a member of new relay team records across the indoor and outdoor seasons. He now owns the 60 and 200 meter records for indoor competition along with the outdoor 200 meter record. In addition to those new marks, he also has multiple entries in the program's top-10 leaderboard for each event.
Men's Volleyball Makes History With Opening-Match Win
Among three sports to begin competition in 2025-26 along with women's bowling and powerlifting, DC men's volleyball made an immediate impression with a victory in its first-ever match. Facing Olivet at the Karl H. Weaner Center on Jan. 22, the Yellow Jackets captured a 3-0 victory over the Comets by sweeping the three thrilling sets by a difference of 7 combined points.
Wrestling Makes Strides at WHAC Meet
Defiance College wrestling saw vast improvements on and off the mats this winter. Going from a 3-man team to start the NAIA era last year, the Yellow Jackets consistently filled 8 of 10 weight classes and saw four grapplers finish 6th or better at the WHAC Championships. Connor Sintobin was the best finisher at the conference championships with a 4th-place finish at 197.
Softball Rolls To Start Conference
After a 5-11 start through trips to West Virginia and Florida, DC softball played its best softball in the heart of the season at the beginning of the WHAC schedule. Defiance spent the first two weeks of the conference slate in the top 3 spots in the league and were 8-4 through with key wins over Indiana Tech and UNOH.
Baseball season highlighted by Gardner's 300th win and wild comeback at Lourdes
DC head baseball coach Shane Gardner surpassed 300 wins as a college head coach. Occurring in the midst of a 5-game winning streak, the Yellow Jackets pushed their skipper to the milestone win after a doubleheader sweep at Bob Jones to finish their spring break trip. Ending the season with 308 wins overall and 39 at DC, few victories in Gardner's career have been wilder than DC's 10-inning 27-23 comeback victory at Lourdes. Trailing 11-0 through two innings and 14-4 through three, DC chipped away with a few crooked innings before taking the lead in the seventh. A Lourdes rally in the eighth eventually led to extra innings, where DC prevailed after scoring four times in the 10th. The team's 27 runs and the 50 total runs in the game set a DC baseball record for runs in a game.
Walford Wins WHAC Golf Championship
Defiance College's first-ever championship crown as a member of the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference was secured by the men's golf program in the spring. Jordan Walford finished all three rounds at the top of the leaderboard en route to the individual conference crown. His medalist finish at the conference championship was the first for the program in a decade and awarded him an automatic bid to the national championship.
The Yellow Jackets return to action in August for the 2026-27 campaign. Team schedules will be announced throughout the summer months at DefianceAthletics.com and the athletic department's social media platforms.
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