NORTHWESTERN ATHLETICS
Moments by MADE POSSIBLE YOU Northwestern Women’s Golf Wins 2025 National Championship Northwestern Field Hockey Wins 2025 National Championship Northwestern Lacrosse Reaches 2025 Final Four Brooks Barnhizer is Selected by the Defending Champion Oklahoma City Thunder in 2025 NBA Draft Northwestern Football Wins 2025 GameAbove Sports Bowl in Detroit
3 2025 Impact Report letter A FROM JACKSON Mark AT NORTHWESTERN, WE GRADUATE COMPLETE STUDENT-ATHLETES. From the moment I arrived in Evanston as the Combe Family Vice President for Athletics and Recreation, this principle has guided our work in Northwestern Athletics. In 2025, with your support of the Wildcat Fund, we continued to deliver on that commitment for student-athletes across our 21 varsity teams. This report reflects what we have accomplished together and the impact your generosity continues to have on our student-athletes and our department. In the pages ahead, you will read about national championships and memorable victories. Those moments matter, and at Northwestern, how we achieve them matters just as much. To accomplish success in alignment with the mission and values of our world-class University is what makes Northwestern Athletics—and our more than 500 student-athletes— truly distinctive. The student-athlete experience remains at the center of everything we do. With success in both competition and in the classroom, our student-athletes continue to choose Northwestern, and to stay, because they believe in the value of a Northwestern degree. The Wildcat experience prepares them for life beyond sport. So much of today’s conversation around college athletics continues to focus on change. As the landscape evolves - and as we ensure we remain fiscally sound and positioned for long-term success- we will never compromise what makes us authentically Northwestern. Thank you for making this work possible. I hope the next time you find yourself cheering on the Wildcats, you remember that every moment, every victory, and every fight song we sing is possible because of you. GO CATS! Mark Jackson COMBE FAMILY VICE PRESIDENT FOR ATHLETICS AND RECREATION
4 WILDCAT FUND STATS by theNUMBERS Sports Psychology x Volleyball Tim Nollan is only in his second year as our head coach, but he’s already embedded a member of our staff within his team. She’s traveled and done workshops with Volleyball - that’s a program that has really invested in our work. DIRECTOR OF SPORT PSYCHOLOGY SERVICES DR. COURTNEY ALBINSON Academics x Baseball We have to be strategic with class planning around midweek baseball games. Since we have a home or away game every Tuesday throughout spring quarter, managing that schedule is an important layer of our work. I’m proud to say that in spite of those challenges, Northwestern Baseball led the conference in Big Ten Distinguished Scholars in 2025. ASSOCIATE ATHLETIC DIRECTOR OF ACADEMIC SERVICES EILEEN O’ROURKE Sports Performance x Field Hockey We have two high-level student-athletes on our Field Hockey team in Maddie Zimmer and Ashley Sessa. They’re both leaders within the program, but personality-wise, Maddie and Ashley are completely different. That’s the fun part about this job – since no two student-athletes are the same, you have to figure out the best way to communicate with each one and help them maximize their performance. ASSISTANT ATHLETIC DIRECTOR FOR OLYMPIC SPORTS PERFORMANCE ADAM HERMANN Nutrition x Cross Country I’ve watched this team over the last decade go from fueling adequacy to now we get to play in the margins and look for every performance edge we can get. I’m proud of how Cross Country utilized nutrition throughout their training this year. It really showed up in a sport where seconds can be the difference between making it on the podium or not. PROGRAM DIRECTOR, PERFORMANCE NUTRITION KATIE KNAPPENBERGER 1,300 DONORS Increased their giving to Northwestern Athletics in 2025 MORE THAN MORE THAN 1,500 DONORS Made their first gift to Northwestern Athletics in 2025 NORTHWESTERN 2025 Impact Report HERE’S HOW YOUR SUPPORT IMPACTS ATHLETICS
During my first year in Evanston, I did not get the opportunity to play a single match for Northwestern. It was a tough year, but it was also the year I learned what it means to be a Wildcat. I continued to buy into the lift program, the conditioning, the coaching, and most importantly, the culture. Every day, I had access to the resources and people who believed in me even before I fully believed in myself. Those tools helped me grow, stay motivated, and keep pushing. Now, as a junior, I get to step on court and compete in every match. AUTUMN RABJOHNS WOMEN’S TENNIS 5 2025 Impact Report
SPORTS EXCELLENCE IN Women’s CROSS COUNTRY NCAA CHAMPIONSHIP APPEARANCE • Highest National Ranking (8) in Program History • Highest NCAA Championship Finish in Modern Era FENCING NCAA CHAMPIONSHIP APPEARANCE • Top-Five Finish Among Women’s Programs at NCAA Championship • Second-Place Finish in Central Collegiate Fencing Conference FIELD HOCKEY 2025 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS • Big Ten Regular Season and Tournament Champions • Back-to-Back National Titles 6 2025 Impact Report
7 2025 Impact Report WOMEN’S GOLF 2025 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS • No. 10 Ranked Program in the Country • Defeated No. 6 Arkansas, No. 2 Oregon and No. 1 Stanford to Win First NCAA Title in Program History WOMEN’S SOCCER • First NCAA Tournament Appearance Since 2022 • Eighth NCAA Tournament Bid in Program History SOFTBALL • Seventh-Straight NCAA Tournament Appearance • Top-Four Finish in the Big Ten WOMEN’S SWIMMING & DIVING • Qualified Seven Student-Athletes for the NCAA Championships • Top-Ten Finish at Big Ten Championships LACROSSE • Big Ten Regular Season and Tournament Champions • Sixth-Straight NCAA Final Four Appearance
8 WI LDCAT 2025 All-Americans FENCING: Amanda Pirkowski Daphne Chan Nok Sze Natalie Shearer FIELD HOCKEY: Ashley Sessa Ilse Tromp Maddie Zimmer Juliana Boon Olivia Bent-Cole LACROSSE: Madison Taylor Sammy White Jane Hansen Sam Smith Delaney Sweitzer WOMEN’S GOLF: Lauren Nguyen Ashley Yun WOMEN’S SOCCER: Kennedy Roesch WRESTLING: Trevor Chumbley 2025 Impact Report
I was able to take an entire year away from Northwestern to pursue my dream of representing Team USA in the Paris Olympics because of the support I received from the athletic department. Specifically, I was able to continue pursuing my bachelor’s degree at Northwestern despite not being on campus, thanks to the incredible effort and expertise of our academic advising department. Maddie Zimmer NORTHWESTERN FIELD HOCKEY 9 2025 Impact Report
DISCOVER 10 Impact ACADEMICS • Achieved 99% Graduation Success Rate in 2025 and a school record 147 Big Ten Distinguished Scholars • Supported access to over 65 tutors each quarter, specializing in 135 classes across 61 subjects SPORTS PSYCHOLOGY • Ensured all 21 varsity teams have access to a sport psychology provider to work with individuals and teams on mental skills to optimize their performance on the field and in the classroom • Educated student-athletes, coaches, and staff on wide ranging mental health and performance topics, such as mental health literacy, suicide prevention, stress management, mindfulness meditation and Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport (REDs) NUTRITION • Conducted over 800 individual meetings and assessments • Provided over 230 dietary supplement reviews and recommendations SPORTS PERFORMANCE • Partnered with coaches on practice planning and periodization, load monitoring, return to play protocols and monitoring player readiness • Utilized technology to enhance and monitor the training and recovery for each Northwestern student-athlete
11 2025 Impact Report Coaches WORLD CLASS MEN’S GOLF HEAD COACH David Inglis 2024 Big Ten Coach of the Year WOMEN’S GOLF HEAD COACH Emily Fletcher 2025 National Coach of the Year (WGCA) COMBE FAMILY HEAD LACROSSE COACH Kelly Amonte Hiller Five-Time National Coach of the Year (IWLCA) SOFTBALL HEAD COACH Kate Drohan Six-Time Big Ten Coach of the Year WOMEN’S TENNIS HEAD COACH Claire Pollard Five-Time Big Ten Coach of the Year SULLIVAN-UBBEN HEAD MEN’S BASKETBALL COACH Chris Collins 2023 Big Ten Coach of the Year WOMEN’S BASKETBALL HEAD COACH Joe McKeown 2020 Big Ten Coach of the Year FENCING HEAD COACH Zach Moss Five-Time CCFC Women’s Team Coach of the Year FIELD HOCKEY HEAD COACH Tracey Fuchs 2025 National Coaching Staff of the Year (NFHCA) DAN AND SUSAN JONES FAMILY HEAD FOOTBALL COACH David Braun 2023 Big Ten Coach of the Year
Thank YOU For your continued support of Northwestern Athletics and the Wildcat Fund. We have much to celebrate and look forward to growing the impact of the Wildcat Fund to strengthen the resources that ensure every student-athlete has a uniquely Northwestern experience. +33% +15% +34% INCREASE IN NATIONAL STUDENT-ATHLETE DAY DONORS INCREASE IN WILDCAT FUND DONORS INCREASE IN GIFTS OVER $25,000
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