University of Richmond Athletics
AD Update from John P. Hardt
Greetings Spiders,
It is hard to believe we are nearing the end of March and approaching the conclusion of the 2025-2026 academic year. Spider Athletics and our student-athletes have been busy collecting national recognition, conference titles, and more along the way. In just the past month, I've been fortunate enough to witness our amazing student-athletes enjoy historic success in competition and the classroom!
With each passing day, the Spider men's lacrosse program moves closer to completing its transition from plucky mid-major to national powerhouse. This year's team has started its season with eight straight wins for the first time in program history and climbed to No. 2 in national polls, also a program first. It's been inspiring to see how the team's coaches, players, and support staff have worked to elevate a program that was already the class of the Atlantic 10 to even greater heights. There's every indication that this year's team is special, and I hope you'll join me and a thousand or so of your closest Spider friends at the team's two remaining home games and the 2026 A-10 Championship, which will be held at Robins Stadium.
Earlier this month, I was courtside at Cameron Indoor Stadium at Duke University to see Spider women's basketball face Nebraska in the First Four of the 2026 NCAA Tournament. While the Spiders ended up on the wrong end of a 75-56 decision, they battled for all 40 minutes, proudly representing Richmond until the final whistle. Our tremendous group of seniors, the winningest class in program history, will leave Richmond knowing they helped build the foundation for one of the nation's best mid-major programs. The Spiders have reached the NCAA Tournament in each of the last three seasons, a program record, and are one of just five teams outside the four power conferences to appear in the 2024, 2025, and 2026 tournaments.
Some of those very same women's basketball seniors were among the 107 student-athletes honored at our annual Scholar-Athlete Breakfast earlier this month. The honorees, all of whom have recorded a cumulative GPA of 3.5 or greater after two or more college semesters, are testaments to the ability of Richmond student-athletes to succeed in Division I athletics without sacrificing their scholarly pursuits.
Building an infrastructure that supports this type of academic and athletic excellence requires a level of resources that provide Richmond with a competitive advantage in the constant battle to recruit and retain the next generation of Spiders. I hope you'll continue to assist in this effort during our annual UR Here Giving Day, which will be on April 8-9 this year.
Take care, be well, and … Go Spiders!
John P. Hardt
Vice President & Director of Athletics
athleticdirector@richmond.edu
Catch up on the latest highlights from Spider Athletics below.
SENIOR SEND-OFF
Last week's NCAA Tournament game vs Nebraska marked the final Spiders game for Maggie Doogan and Rachel Ullstrom, who will leave Richmond as the No. 2 and No. 9 scorers in program history and with degrees from the Robins School of Business. After the conclusion of her Hall-of-Fame career, Maggie was asked about her decision to return to Richmond for her senior season, despite being heavily recruited by larger schools. She spoke about her comfort at Richmond, her trust in her coaches, and having the chance to play with her best friends before noting that “it was 100 percent the right decision.”
LACROSSE ROLLS ON
The Spider men's and women's lacrosse programs are both unbeaten in Atlantic 10 play and both ranked in national polls as we approach the end of March. The women's team, currently ranked No. 25 in the nation, is 4-0 against conference opponents and is outscoring its A-10 rivals by more than 10 goals per game. The men's team is 8-0 and has reached No. 2 in national polls, just a single point behind No. 1 Notre Dame in this week's rankings. The two teams will have a chance to settle it on the field when they meet in Chicago on April 4.
While the women's Atlantic 10 Championship will be held at Davidson in North Carolina, the 2026 A-10 Men's Lacrosse Championship will be at Robins Stadium and tickets are now on sale.
EVERYBODY IN THE POOL!
The most dominant Spider sports program of the 21st century added another championship late last month, as Richmond swimming & diving captured the Atlantic 10 title! It's the program’s 17th A-10 title, with all coming in the last 25 seasons. UR captured four gold medals, five silvers, and four bronzes at the meet and defeated four-time defending champion George Washington by 27.5 points (600-572.5). Following the championship meet, Matt Barany was named Atlantic 10 Coach of the Year for the 11th time in his Spiders tenure.
FRESHMAN PHENOM IS BACK
Aiden Argabright, who became the first Spider men's basketball player to be named to the Atlantic 10 All-Rookie Team in eight years earlier this month, has announced that he is returning to Richmond next season. Argabright led all Atlantic 10 freshmen in scoring, at more than 10 points per game, and assist-to-turnover ratio, at 2.4. In announcing his decision, he said that playing in the Robins Center is “a dream come true” and that the team “has a lot of work to do leading into next year, and I'm excited to lead the team on that journey.”
Run it back Spider Nation!! #AGTG?? pic.twitter.com/lZR2WZ5qPF
— Aiden Argabright (@AidenArgabright) March 24, 2026
B1G TIME
Baseball's non-conference schedule has already included a series victory over Penn State and a mid-week win vs Maryland, both of the Big Ten Conference. The Spiders will resume Atlantic 10 play with a three-game series vs Rhode Island at Pitt Field today (12 PM), Saturday (1 PM), and Sunday (12 PM) before paying a return visit to Maryland on Tuesday in College Park.
SPIDERS SCORE!
— Richmond Baseball (@SpiderBaseball) March 17, 2026
UR 7, UMD 5
UR picks up four runs, all with two outs! Winebrenner picked up two runs with a double, then Elko brought in the other two with a hit to center! pic.twitter.com/1pHFs572If
PATRIOT LEAGUE PREPARATIONS
The final chance to see Spider football prior to summer camp will be April 11 at Robins Stadium for the annual Spring Game, beginning at 4 PM. Richmond's roster features several high-profile returning players plus some promising newcomers as coach Russ Huesman preps the Spiders for a remade Patriot League. The conference has expanded to 10 teams with the additions of longtime Richmond rivals Villanova and William & Mary. The Tribe will visit Robins Stadium on November 21 for the finale of UR's six-game home schedule with The Capital Cup presented by C&F Bank on the line.
WIN AFTER WIN
Men's golf is coming off consecutive victories at the Loyola Intercollegiate in Arizona last month and the Donald Ross Collegiate Classic in North Carolina earlier this month. It is the first time the team has won back-to-back events in 21 seasons under coach Adam Decker, and Richmond's three tournament wins this season are its most since the 2000-01 school year. At the Loyola Intercollegiate, the team fired a program-record 34-under par and sophomore Carson Baez set a school record at 17-under par while winning individual medalist honors.
PICKED TO REPEAT
The women's golf team, which won the inaugural Atlantic 10 Championship last season, has been picked to repeat as conference champs. The Spiders are No. 1 in the league's official preseason poll, which was released last week. The 2026 A-10 Championship will be held at Evermore Resort in Florida from April 20-22, and a win would give the team its third conference crown in the last four seasons!
MATCH, SPIDERS
Men's tennis is peaking at the right time, with seven wins in its last nine matches entering its most crucial stretch of the season. The Spiders have been led by senior Davis Wiley and freshman Nathan Germino, who were named the Atlantic 10's Player of the Week and Rookie of the Week, respectively, in consecutive weeks earlier this month. Wiley added a third straight Player of the Week honor this week.