On the third day of Christmas Ultiworld gave to me...staff D-III champion picks!
December 14, 2024 by Ultiworld in Preview with 0 comments
Ultiworld’s coverage of the 2025 college season is presented by Spin Ultimate; all opinions are those of the author(s). Find out how Spin can get you, and your team, looking your best this season.
It’s time to unwrap some presents as we introduce the 12 Days of College Ultimate. For the next 12 days, we will be releasing one gift per day, though don’t count on getting any holiday fowl: it’s all college ultimate. From highlight videos to player chatter to a season predictions, we’ve got a little something for everyone. On the third day of the 12 Days of College Ultimate, we present our way-too-early semifinal and championship picks for D-III!
Women’s Division
Picks submitted by Theresa Diffendal, Anna Browne, Laura Osterlund, Zack Davis, Raquel Alegria, Keith Raynor1, Graham Gordon, and Calvin Ciorba
Carleton Eclipse
2024 Nationals Finish: 2nd
Overall 2024 Record: 24-5
Even with a scholarship school in the division, and even with Middlebury’s three consecutive titles, Carleton Eclipse is The Program of D-III. There’s a reason they’re the only unanimous semifinal pick. POTY runner-up Rowan Dong might be gone, but Frankie Saraniti is that tough and ready to be the star. Eclipse return almost their whole deep roster, notably stat-stuffers Maddy Brown, Molly Horstman Olson, and Kyla Christie. Carleton hasn’t missed semis since the pandemic, and after back-to-back finals losses, third time’s the charm.
Davenport Panthers
2024 Nationals Finish: T-11th
Overall 2024 Record: 13-11
Finishing 11th to making semis is a big jump in just a year, but Davenport set these standards when they made the bracket (and nearly quarters!) as a first-year term. Facing down heavy hitters in a pool of death, the Panthers leaned on a gritty, grinding playstyle to keep themselves in games against the toughest opponents, playing Middlebury and Macalester within two and upsetting Colorado College on universe point. That style nearly saw them pull off another universe point upset against overall no.2 seed Union in prequarters. All the leaders from that team are back, headlined by their do-it-all star and All-American second teamer Lanie O’Neill. With another year under their belt and plenty of institutional support, don’t be surprised if 2025 is the year of the Panther.
Haverford/Bryn Mawr Sneetches
2024 Nationals Finish: T-5th
Overall 2024 Record: 25-4
This is really, finally, the Sneetches’ time to star. After being thwarted in the bracket by some of the division’s most storied programs the past three Nationals trips (Middlebury twice, St. Olaf once), the Bi-Co consortium is primed to break into the top four for the first time since 2014. Zoe Costanza is fresh off an OPOTY runner-up nod and ready to lay down a third-consecutive triple double, aided by fellow every-other Clara Morton. Few can counter the twin defensive towers of Phoebe Hulbert and Sonia Nicholson, and to top it all off St Olaf’s goal scoring menace Erica Collin is taking a fifth year with Haverford/Bryn Mawr. Add in some coaching brilliance courtesy of Philadelphia Surge’s own Linda Morse and Liz Hart, and everything’s coming up Sneetches.
Lewis & Clark Artemis
2024 Nationals Finish: T-11
Overall 2024 Record: 11-13
Looking back on their 2024 season, it may be hard to imagine Artemis getting past pool play in 2025, let alone reaching semis. A short run left Artemis yearning for more and with Mikah Keetch and Katelyn Osborne returning for their final seasons, Artemis can still reap the benefits of their young talent. Artemis remained unscathed from the hit of graduating classes and can spend this next season building upon their solid foundation. I have high hopes that lesser known players like Greta Wilbur and Kaia O’Neill will have their time to shine and that this team can reach even greater potential in 2025.
Macalester Pursesnatchers
2024 Nationals Finish: T-5th
Overall 2024 Record: 17-5
It would be unfair to say Macalester’s argument for semis ends with Claire Lee – especially with Dorthea Trelstad Pi-Sunyer, Sophie Diliberti, and Else Gerber on the roster – but if the Pursesnatchers make the final four, you can bet Lee’s fingerprints will be all over that disc. The Jolie Krebs of D-III utterly owned any field she stepped on at Nationals in 2024 to the tune of an absolutely absurd 43 blocks, and was only a sophomore. Did it get a little ugly at times, even with the wind? Sure, but that’s precisely the reason for Macalester’s ascension in 2025. Another year of chemistry smooths the edges of a team adjusting to a huck- and poach-heavy playstyle, one that’s already shown it’s capable of absorbing over 150 turns and still sniffing semis.
Middlebury Pranksters
2024 Nationals Finish: T-3rd
Overall 2024 Record: 20-9
When you think of Middlebury, you think big-name stars like Claire Babbott-Bryan and Keziah Wilde. They’re both gone now, and for half our staff that’s enough to count the Pranksters out of a semis berth. But Middlebury only lost a handful to graduation, and it takes much more than one or two players, no matter how good, to establish the dynasty Middlebury has in the 2020s. Returning players such as Liz Crawford got reps with club teams over the summer, and hopefully former ROTY Lucy VanNewkirk will return to the field in 2025. But perhaps most notably the Pranksters pick up U24 selection Ella Widmyer, who was instrumental in Lincoln’s semifinal run at HSNI in June and a stat leader for Team USA Mixed at WJUC 2024. Middlebury’s ability to develop young players is exceptional, especially without a coach, and they have all the pieces to make their fifth-straight semifinal.
St. Olaf Vortex
2024 Nationals Finish: T-3rd
Overall 2024 Record: 27-5
Leina Goto is one of the best (if not the best) returning players in the division, a division that historically has allowed teams with one or two standout players to find a lot of success on the Nationals stage. What’s more is Vortex have been improving steadily, which culminated in a semifinal appearance last year. Don’t be fooled by the massive pull of Goto though, St. Olaf is more than a one woman band. Captain Grace Milhaupt had 10 assists at Nationals and will be instrumental in St. Olaf’s game this year. In addition, Vortex have a veritable stable of juniors to support their senior stars with Juliana Eno, Char Batchelor, and Maggie Walsh among those looking to step up for the team. If that’s not enough to convince you then look no further than senior Emma Jansen who will be taking on the role of “Captain of Fun,” a title that we in the 7500 club are always excited by and look forward to seeing come to fruition.
Wesleyan Vicious Circles
2024 Nationals Finish: 9th
Overall 2024 Record: 19-8
With some big recent graduation classes, many of the division’s stars can be found among underclassmen. Wesleyan perhaps best embodies this phenomenon, helmed by sophomores Sofia Canoutas-Nadel and reigning ROTY Scout Noble. The Vicious Circles also snag one of two Lincoln high school graduates, 2024 U20 Mixed team players, and U24 national team selectees joining the People’s Division in Milo Brown, joining their sister Maggie Brown, which alone could catapult them to semis. A new coach – Ultiworld’s very own Keith Raynor – can take this prime raw talent and returner-heavy roster and shape it into something special. This year’s iteration of the Vicious Circles has all the makings of a program we could be talking about for years to come.
Portland UPRoar
2024 Nationals Finish: 1st
Overall 2024 Record: 23-5
I get it, it’s easy to predict that all teams not named Middlebury will fall off when their POTY winner graduates. But with a phenomenal coaching staff, a deep roster, and a team that showed dominance whether or not POTY Julianna Galian was on the field, counting UPRoar out doesn’t seem wise. Remember that this team made it to the semifinals in three of the last four years, and that was before Galian had the type of outspoken impact she did in 2024. They graduate some other main set pieces, but Hayden Ashley and company still have the tools to make a deep bracket push.
Men’s Division
Picks submitted by Bix Weissberg, Josh Katz, Jacob Cowan, Keith Raynor, Theresa Diffendal, Theo Wan, Graham Gordon
Bates Orange Whip
2024 Nationals Finish: 11th
Overall 2024 Record: 26-9
Will Bates, last season’s dark horse, be a semifinal contender this May? Will they even make it out of the perilous Northeast region? A repeat of 2024’s brilliance seems like a longshot. But no one saw Bates coming last year, and let’s not make the same mistake twice. This is DIII, an underdog’s paradise, a place where the odds exist only to be defied. Maybe Bates is a one-season wonder, but if they should falter, there will be an even less likely team ready to replace them as 2025’s most notable underdog.
Davenport Panthers
2024 Nationals Finish: T-5th
Overall 2024 Record: 28-8
Davenport’s debut campaign was one to remember, with the newly formed team surprising many on their way to a universe point loss in quarters. For an encore, they’ve only gone and added one of the best players in the division, as Collin Hill2 is moving north and joining what was already an impressive cadre of talent. In Hill and last year’s ROTY Jacob Felton, the Panthers have a legitimate claim to featuring the two best players in the division. With those two leading the way, and a strong supporting cast that features Rowan Jamieson,3 Darren Dyer, and others, Davenport has what it takes to find themselves atop the D-III pyramid in May.
Elon Big Fat Bomb
2024 Nationals Finish: N/A
Overall 2024 Record: 15-4
Over the past two seasons, Elon has been a consistently good D-III team, with multiple wins over Nationals-qualifying teams amidst plenty of close losses at Regionals. Much of this success has been on the back of rising junior and U24 tryoutee Reed Burkert, who is a consummate do-everything handler for Big Fat Bomb, with all the throws in the book and plenty of moxie. This season, he’ll be joined by a strong first-year class, including Brayden Morrison, who was a starting O-line handler for the U20 Open team this past summer. Expect BFB to have a BF level up in 2025.
Franciscan Fatal
2024 Nationals Finish: T-7th
Overall 2024 Record: 26-5
In 2024, Fatal had their best season by far since before the pandemic, when they qualified for four out of five National Championships between 2015-’19 on the backs of great performances from the mercurial power throwers that were Dom and Mark Schuster. This version of Franciscan, however, features a much more balanced attack led by smooth handler Jude Schmiesing, BPOTY second runner-up last year, as well as a strong supporting group of handlers and hybrids who excel in a weave-style offense.
Middlebury Pranksters
2024 Nationals Finish: T-5th
Overall 2024 Record: 21-3
Middlebury has been a model program in D-III for years, showcasing great energy, skilled and spirited play, and most importantly, a very deep roster. That won’t change this year. Louis Deauvile Beaudoin just made a U24 team and could be in contention for best player in the division. He’ll be flanked by high-level contributors like Jorre Dahl, Geir Hartl, and Peter Mans. Ultimately, we should expect the Pranksters to continue the semifinals streak that was only interrupted last year after five straight appearances prior.
Oklahoma Christian Eagles
2024 Nationals Finish: T-3rd
Overall 2024 Record: 25-7
Oklahoma Christian came back with a vengeance after missing Nationals in 2023, reaching the semifinals before losing to the eventual champions. What makes this 2025 roster so enticing is the Eagles graduated practically no one while recruiting the best youth in the country. The scholarship school picked up U20 star Luke Norby and his Mixed YCC champion teammate Isaiah Platt. Second Team All-Americans Couper Kerns and Sammy Roberts will try to lead this team back to its 3rd championship since the team first played in 2021.
Richmond Spidermonkeys
2024 Nationals Finish: T-3rd
Overall 2024 Record: 24-14
Frankly, I’m surprised only one of us picked Richmond to make semis. They’ve made semis at each of the last four D-III Championships they qualified for!4 While they may not have the elite talent we’ve come to expect of future champions, this is still a well-built program, led by arguably the best coaching staff in the division. Come May, we’ll be talking about another group of Richmond All-Americans and another semifinal appearance for the Spidermonkeys.
Whitman Sweets
2024 Nationals Finish: T-7th
Overall 2024 Record: 20-4
Whitman have somewhat quietly been one of the better programs in D-III over the last two seasons, entering Nationals seeded fourth in each of the last two years, though they haven’t yet been able to hold seed. Last year, their only losses in competitive games at Nationals were to the finalists: Williams in pool play and St. Olaf in quarters. With the talent they’ve accumulated in the Northwest, headlined by Kai Kirsch and Elan Gorhman Siegler, don’t be surprised if they’re able to get that signature win next May and make semis for the first time in program history.
Williams WUFO 
2024 Nationals Finish: 2nd
Overall 2024 Record: 33-3
Williams has steadily risen through the D-III ranks since the pandemic, improving their placement each year. WUFO broke through last year with a finals appearance and looked fantastic the entire season. 2024 COTY Will Savage has developed a program intended to maintain its Nationals relevance, so don’t expect Williams to fall off just with the loss of Danny Klein. The team still retained an insane amount of talent with 2024 DPOTY Charles Tantum, Wade Buchheit and Kiva Zimmerman. If Williams continues on their path of improvement, they could even take down a championship this year.
