The regular season is over, and teams will compete for spots at Nationals starting this upcoming weekend.
April 6, 2026 by Theo Wan in Preview, Recap
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Throughout the spring season, we’ll publishing a bite-sized weekly recap of the action across the college division. This will serve as a supplement to our standard tournament reporting and offer a high-level look at the latest happenings and the biggest stories of the week.
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D-I Women’s
West is Best
With the regular season coming to an end last week, all eyes are now on the USA Ultimate Series, featuring Conference Championships which lead to Regional Championships and ultimately the D-I College Championships (Nationals). Final bid allocations were released by USA Ultimate on Friday, with the Northwest (5 teams) and Southwest (5 teams) comprising half the field.
Final bid allocation:
- Atlantic Coast – 1
- Great Lakes – 1
- Metro East – 1
- New England – 3
- North Central – 1
- Northwest – 5
- Ohio Valley – 1
- South Central – 1
- Southeast – 1
- Southwest – 5
Each of the ten regions is guaranteed a spot at Nationals via autobid, with the remaining ten strength bids awarded to the next highest-ranked teams based on the USA Ultimate algorithm. At each regional tournament, teams compete for the number of Nationals bids allocated to their region based on those final rankings. New this year, USA Ultimate capped the number of bids a single region can earn at five.
It may be a new season, but much has stayed the same, as only one bid changed due to that new rule. After earning six bids last season, the Southwest will have to settle for five, while New England picks up a third. #16 Northeastern Valkyries and #18 Vermont Ruckus are the lone bid earners from regions outside of the Northwest and Southwest. Of note, under last year’s system, #15 Cal Poly-SLO SLOmotion would have claimed the final bid instead of Vermont.
Keep an eye on the Cascadia Conference, which features five top-15 teams in #3 Washington Element, #4 UBC Thunderbirds, #11 Western Washington Chaos, #12 Oregon Fugue, and #13 Victoria Vikes, as well as the SoCal Conference with #10 UC San Diego Dragon Coalition, #15 Cal Poly-SLO SLOmotion, and #17 UCLA BLU.
Looking Ahead
The postseason starts this weekend. It all begins with the Conference Championships, where teams battle for bids to their respective regional tournaments and a chance to qualify for Nationals.
In alphabetical order, the Big Sky, Carolina, Cascadia, Desert, Eastern Great Lakes, Eastern Metro East, Florida, Greater New England, Gulf Coast, Illinois, Lake Superior, NorCal, Ohio, Ozarks, Pennsylvania, Rocky Mountain, SoCal, Southern Appalachian, Texas, Virginia, Western North Central, and Western NY conference championships are set for this weekend while both the Colonial and Metro Boston are scheduled for the following weekend.
D-I Men’s
Bids Spread Out This Year
The final college rankings saw six regions earn multiple bids, up from four a year ago. The USA Ultimate Series begins with Conference Championships, leading to Regional Championships and ultimately the D-I College Championships (Nationals).
Final bid allocation:
- Atlantic Coast – 2
- Great Lakes – 1
- Metro East – 1
- New England – 3
- North Central – 1
- Northwest – 5
- Ohio Valley – 2
- South Central – 2
- Southeast – 1
- Southwest – 2
Each of the ten regions is guaranteed a spot at Nationals via autobid, with the remaining ten strength bids awarded to the next highest-ranked teams based on the USA Ultimate algorithm. At each regional tournament, teams compete for the number of Nationals bids allocated to their region based on those final rankings. New this year, USA Ultimate capped the number of bids a single region can earn at five.
The final week of the season saw heartbreak for the North Central region as #21 Wisconsin Hodags held the final strength bid before #12 UNC Wilmington Seamen’s results at Easterns help earn a second bid for the Atlantic Coast. A mere 20 points separated the two teams. Competing in D-I this year, Davenport Panthers finished just two spots away from earning a second bid for the Great Lakes.
After receiving just one bid a year ago, the Ohio Valley is back to two as both #9 Penn State Spank and #14 Pittsburgh En Sabah Nur delivered strong seasons. The two could meet this weekend at the West Penn conference championship in a matchup that may also preview the regional final.
Looking Ahead
The postseason starts this weekend. It all begins with the Conference Championships, where teams battle for bids to their respective regional tournaments and a chance to qualify for Nationals.
In alphabetical order, the Big Sky, Carolina, Cascadia, Desert, East Penn, East Plains, Florida, Greater New England, Gulf Coast, Hudson Valley, Illinois, Lake Superior, Metro Boston, Metro NY, Michigan, NorCal, North Texas, Northwest, Ohio, Ozarks, Rocky Mountain, SoCal, South Texas, Southern Appalachian, Virginia, West Penn, Western North Central, and Western NY conference championships are set for this weekend while the Colonial conference championship is the lone D-I men’s conference championship taking place the following weekend.
D-III Women’s
Final Week Chaos
The final bid allocations released by USA Ultimate on Friday saw multiple bids change hands. The USA Ultimate Series consists of Conference Championships, which in D-III women’s can double as Regional Championships, and ultimately lead to the D-III College Championships (Nationals).
Final bid allocation:
- Atlantic Coast – 1
- Great Lakes – 1
- Metro East – 1
- New England – 2
- North Central – 3
- Northwest – 2
- Ohio Valley – 2
- South Central – 2
- Southeast – 1
- Southwest – 1
Each of the ten regions is guaranteed a spot at Nationals via autobid, with the six strength bids awarded to the next highest-ranked teams based on the USA Ultimate algorithm. The only restriction is that USA Ultimate caps the number of bids a D-III region can earn at four. At each regional tournament, teams compete for the number of Nationals bids allocated to their region based on those final rankings.
In D-III, some regions are divided into conferences similar to what we see in D-I, but some regions with fewer teams form just one D-III Conference, which will serve as a D-III Regional championship (often affectionately known as ConfRegionals).
It was a chaotic final weekend that saw three bids change hands. The Ohio Valley lost two as neither #25 Cedarville Queen Bee nor Lehigh Gravity were able to hold on to their spots. Originally on the outside looking in, #9 Macalester Pursuesnatchers jumped six spots to earn a third bid for the North Central region.
A 3-3 showing at the East Coast Invite for #11 Mount Holyoke Daisy Chain, including an 11-3 loss to #4 Wesleyan Vicious Circles, cost New England its third bid, while the South Central now features two teams after #13 Colorado College Zenith picked up a late bid. Finally, the 2024 champions #15 Portland UProar are looking to return to Nationals after missing out last year and have an easier path after the Northwest secured a second bid.
Looking Ahead
This weekend, spots at nationals will be handed out to the Atlantic Coast, North Central, Northwest, South Central, and Southwest.
Three Ultiworld power-ranked teams will battle for two bids in the North Central. #4 St. Olaf Vortex, #9 Macalester Pursuesnatchers, and #16 Winona State Bad Monaz, the last team out of earning a strength bid, are all in the mix.
Teams with conferences this weekend (Eastern Metro East, Metro Boston, North New England, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South New England, and Western NY) will play for their place in the Metro East, New England, or Ohio Valley regionals.
The Great Lakes ConfRegional tournament is scheduled for the following weekend while the Southeast will take place on April 25-26.
D-III Men’s
New England and North Central Lead the Way
The New England and North Central regions came out as winners when USA Ultimate announced the final bids on Friday, combining for six total, which doubles how many the two regions earned last year. The USA Ultimate Series consists of Conference Championships, which sometimes double as and sometimes can lead to Regional Championships, and ultimately the D-III College Championships (Nationals).
Final bid allocation:
- Atlantic Coast – 1
- Great Lakes – 1
- Metro East – 1
- New England – 3
- North Central – 3
- Northwest – 2
- Ohio Valley – 1
- South Central – 2
- Southeast – 1
- Southwest – 1
Each of the ten regions is guaranteed a spot at Nationals via autobid, with the six strength bids awarded to the next highest-ranked teams based on the USA Ultimate algorithm. The only restriction is that USA Ultimate caps the number of bids a D-III region can earn at four. At each regional tournament, teams compete for the number of Nationals bids allocated to their region based on those final rankings.
In D-III, some regions are divided into conferences similar to what we see in D-I, but some regions with fewer teams form just one D-III Conference, which will serve as a D-III Regional championship (often affectionately known as ConfRegionals).
In contrast to the women’s division, the men’s side saw only one bid change last weekend. The North Central region earned a third bid as #9 Macalester Flat Earth moved up seven spots, while #16 Santa Clara SCAB fell out of bid-earning range for the Southwest.
Looking Ahead
Three conferences will see teams qualify for Nationals this weekend as the Atlantic Coast, Northwest, and Southwest take center stage. A heavyweight showdown could be on the horizon in the Atlantic Coast final, featuring #7 Elon Big Fat Bomb, coming off a fifth-place finish at last year’s Nationals, and #17 Richmond Spidermonkeys, who have reached the national semifinals three times in the last five years. The Northwest also has intrigue with defending champion #2 Lewis & Clark Bacchus, #12 Whitman Sweets, and #21 Portland UPrise vying for two spots, while #6 Claremont Braineaters sit atop the rankings in the Southwest, but will have to fend off newly D-III Santa Clara.
Conferences taking place this weekend include: East Penn, Eastern Great Lakes, Hudson Valley, Lake Superior, Metro Boston, Metro NY, North New England, Ohio, Ozarks, Rocky Mountain, South New England, Texas, West Penn, Western North Central, and Western NY. They will be playing for spots at regionals in the Metro East, Great Lakes, New England, North Central, Ohio Valley, or South Central regions.
Illinois Conferences will take place the following weekend, while the Southeast is set for April 25-26.
The Western North Central Conference features three Top 10 teams in #4 Carleton CHOP, #5 St. Olaf Bezerkers, and #9 Macalester Flat Earth, all of which have already earned a bid for the region. While this weekend may not determine a Nationals bid, it could go a long way in deciding the regional champion and who might earn a high seed at the big dance. Meanwhile, the Ohio Conference previews an intense Ohio Valley regional tournament with one bid on the line as #10 Franciscan Fatal, #19 Oberlin Flying Horsecows and #20 Kenyon SERF all look like potential Nationals qualifiers.
Of note, Davenport Panthers will be competing at Eastern Great Lakes and will be the lone team going for the D-I Regional pathway. As per USA Ultimate’s guidelines, the team must finish high enough at the D-III Conferences to qualify. If the Panthers earn a bid to D-I Regionals, they will continue on that pathway to participate in the D-I Great Lakes Regionals event.
