Washington and Lee Generals

Last updated
Washington and Lee Generals
Wash-lee logo from NCAA.svg
University Washington and Lee University
Conference Old Dominion Athletic Conference
NCAA Division III
Athletic directorJan Hathorn
Location Lexington, Virginia
Varsity teams25
Football stadiumWilson Field
Basketball arenaWarner Center
Baseball stadiumCap'n Dick Smith Field
Soccer stadiumAlston Parker Watt Field
NicknameGenerals
ColorsBlue and white [1]
   
Website www.generalssports.com

The Washington and Lee Generals are the athletic teams that represent Washington and Lee University, located in Lexington, Virginia, in NCAA Division III intercollegiate sports. The Generals compete as members of the Old Dominion Athletic Conference for all sports except wrestling, which competes in the Centennial Conference. All together, Washington and Lee sponsors 25 sports: 13 for men and 12 for women.

Contents

Washington and Lee was one of the founding members of the Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Association in 1900, as well as the Division I Southern Conference in 1921. The Generals remained members of the SoCon until 1958. During this time, they played alongside other Virginia universities like Virginia, Virginia Tech, VMI (also located in Lexington), and William & Mary. Generals basketball won the Southern Conference twice: 1934 and 1937. The football team even made an appearance in the 1951 Gator Bowl against Wyoming.

After leaving the Southern Conference, the Generals moved into Division III and joined the College Athletic Conference in 1962. This was followed by a move to the Old Dominion Athletic Conference in 1976, also as a founding member. Washington & Lee's men's lacrosse remained the school's only Division I program until 1987. [2]

Varsity teams

List of teams

Individual teams

National championships

Washington and Lee holds two NCAA National Championship titles. In 1988, the men's tennis team won the NCAA Division III National Championship title. In 2007, the women's tennis team claimed the NCAA Division III National Championship title. In 2006, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2017, and 2021 the Generals football team won the Old Dominion Athletic Conference championship. In 2009, the Generals baseball team won the ODAC championship. [3]

Men's lacrosse

Washington and Lee's first lacrosse team was fielded in 1938 and started the Dixie Lacrosse League along with Virginia, Duke, and North Carolina. The Generals soon were successful winning the Dixie League Championship in 1939 and 1940. No team was fielded from 1943 through 1946. The team resumed play in 1947.

After the school downgraded to Division III in 1958, the men's lacrosse team remained at the Division I level until 1987. Washington and Lee participated in seven NCAA Division I Men's Lacrosse Championship tournaments: 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1980. The Generals reached the tournament's semifinals three times: 1973, 1974, and 1975.

Since 1987, Washington and Lee have won twelve Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) Lacrosse Championships: 1991, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2009, 2016, 2019, and 2023. Washington and Lee have participated in fifteen NCAA Division III Men's Lacrosse Championship tournaments: 1987, 1991, 1993, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2009, 2013, 2016, 2018, 2019, 2022, and 2023. The Generals reached the quarterfinals four times: 1998, 1999, 2004, and 2023. The Generals reached the semifinals three times: 1987, 2000, and 2002.

Washington and Lee Hall of Fame Coach Jack Emmer is known for creating The Armadillo play where five players would surround a player with the ball, facing him and locking arms showing the defense only their backs. Any attempt by the defense to retrieve the ball would result in a penalty. Washington and Lee would then be able to run a man-up offense as a result of the penalty. Washington and Lee successfully used this play during the 1982 game against UNC. Following the game, The Armadillo was outlawed by the NCAA rules committee.

Washington and Lee lacrosse is also known for being on the losing side of one of the greatest upsets in lacrosse history when unranked Morgan State defeated the number 1 ranked Generals in the first game of the season in 1975. W&L had a 28 game regular season winning streak and had not lost at home in three years at the time.

Washington and Lee plays VMI in the Lee-Jackson Lacrosse Classic every year. VMI is W&L's next door neighbor in Lexington, VA. The Classic is named after Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson. Lee served as W&L's president from 1865-1870 and Jackson was a professor at VMI from 1851-1861. The Classic was held every spring as part of the main lacrosse season until 2007 when it moved to the fall as an exhibition game. In 2022 & 2023, the game was held as a scrimmage without the official "Lee-Jackson Lacrosse Classic" name. W&L holds a 31-4-1 lead in the all time series against VMI. The trophy is a plaque featuring crossed swords.

Washington and Lee competes against Christopher Newport every year for the Virginia LtN Cup and generates support for LtN. LtN or "Lacrosse the Nations" is an organization that uses lacrosse and other physical activities to teach important life skills and help improve education and health while creating opportunity and hope for children in need. W&L holds a 6-5 lead in the all time series against Christopher Newport.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Southern Conference</span> American collegiate athletic conference

The Southern Conference (SoCon) is a collegiate athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I. Southern Conference football teams compete in the Football Championship Subdivision. Member institutions are located in the states of Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">USA South Athletic Conference</span> Intercollegiate athletic conference in the southeastern US

The USA South Athletic Conference is an athletic conference which competes in the NCAA's Division III. Member schools are located in North Carolina and Virginia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Old Dominion Athletic Conference</span>

The Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) is an NCAA Division III athletic conference. Of its 15 member schools, all but one are located in Virginia; the other full member is in North Carolina. The conference also has an associate member in North Carolina.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Washington and Lee University</span> Private liberal arts university in Lexington, Virginia

Washington and Lee University is a private liberal arts college in Lexington, Virginia. Established in 1749 as the Augusta Academy, it is among the oldest institutions of higher learning in the United States. Washington and Lee's 325-acre campus sits at the edge of Lexington and abuts the campus of the Virginia Military Institute in the Shenandoah Valley region between the Blue Ridge Mountains and the Allegheny Mountains. The campus is approximately 50 miles (80 km) northeast from Roanoke, 140 miles (230 km) west from the state capital of Richmond, and 180 miles (290 km) inland southwest from the national capital at Washington, D.C.

Ferrum College is a private college in Ferrum, Virginia. The college was established in 1913 as the Ferrum Training School for primary and secondary education to serve the mountain communities of rural southwest Virginia before becoming Ferrum Junior College between 1940 and 1976. The school was founded by the United Methodist Church and gradually developed from primary to post-secondary education. Today, Ferrum enrolls around 800 undergraduate and graduate students and offers over 54 undergraduate majors and four graduate programs. Ferrum College's 700-acre (280 ha) campus is in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains in southwestern Virginia, near Rocky Mount, Virginia, in Franklin County.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tony Shaver</span> American basketball player and coach

Tony Shaver is an American college basketball coach. From the 2003–04 through 2018–19 seasons, he was the head men's basketball coach at the College of William & Mary. He arrived at William & Mary after a 17-year tenure as the head coach at Hampden-Sydney College. He leaves as the winningest coach in William & Mary history and finished with an overall record of 226 wins and 268 losses.

Tom Clark is an American football coach. He is the assistant head coach at Hampden–Sydney College in Hampden Sydney, Virginia, a position he has held since 2022. Clark served for nine non-consecutive seasons as the head football coach at Catholic University of America, where he compiled a 58–32–1 record and a .643 winning percentage. Clark was the defensive coordinator at the Virginia Military Institute (VMI) from 2015 to 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Catholic University Cardinals football</span> Football team

The Catholic University Cardinals football team represents the Catholic University of America in National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division III college football competition as a member of the New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC). The team played its first game in 1895 and was a major college team in the first half of the 20th century, into the 1940s. The football program was put on hiatus during World War II, and then discontinued shortly afterwards. In 1965, football returned to the university at the club level, and, in 1977, re-entered NCAA competition as part of Division III. The Cardinals have participated in the Division III playoffs three times in the late 1990s and have secured two Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) championships. The head coach is Mike Gutelius.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Washington and Lee Generals football</span> American college football program

The Washington and Lee Generals football team represents Washington and Lee University in Lexington, Virginia. The Generals compete at NCAA Division III level as members of the Old Dominion Athletic Conference.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hampden–Sydney Tigers</span> Collegiate sports club in the United States

The Hampden–Sydney Tigers are the athletic teams that represent Hampden–Sydney College, located in Hampden Sydney, Virginia, in NCAA Division III intercollegiate sports. The Tigers compete as members of the Old Dominion Athletic Conference for all sports. The Tigers were one of the founding members of the ODAC in 1976. Hampden–Sydney sponsors 9 sporting activities for its male students.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">VMI Keydets</span> Intercollegiate sports teams of Virginia Military Institute

The VMI Keydets are the athletic teams that represent the Virginia Military Institute. All sports participate in the NCAA Division I, and all but three compete in the Southern Conference (the exceptions being men's and women's swimming and diving in the America East Conference, and women's water polo in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference. VMI fields teams in sixteen different sports, ten for men and six for women.

The Roanoke Maroons are the athletic teams that represent Roanoke College, located in Salem, Virginia, a suburban independent city adjacent to Roanoke, Virginia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Randolph–Macon Yellow Jackets</span>

The Randolph–Macon Yellow Jackets are the athletic teams that represent Randolph–Macon College, located in Ashland, Virginia, in NCAA Division III intercollegiate sports. The Yellow Jackets compete as members of the Old Dominion Athletic Conference. Altogether, Randolph–Macon sponsors 18 sports, with 9 teams for each gender. The school's newest sport of men's volleyball, introduced for the 2019 season, is the only team that does not compete in the ODAC, instead competing in the Continental Volleyball Conference.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bridgewater Eagles</span>

The Bridgewater Eagles are the athletic teams that represent Bridgewater College, located in Bridgewater, Virginia, in NCAA Division III intercollegiate sports. The Eagles compete as members of the Old Dominion Athletic Conference. Altogether, Bridgewater sponsors 21 sports: 9 for men and 11 for women plus a co-ed equestrian program.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shenandoah Hornets</span> College athletics teams at Shenandoah University, Virginia, United States

The Shenandoah Hornets are the athletic teams that represent Shenandoah University, located in Winchester, Virginia, in intercollegiate sports as a member of the Division III of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), primarily competing in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) since the 2012–13 academic year. The Hornets previously competed in the USA South Athletic Conference from 1992–93 to 2011–12.

The Eastern Mennonite Royals are the athletic teams that represent Eastern Mennonite University, located in Harrisonburg, Virginia, in NCAA Division III intercollegiate sports. The Royals compete as full, non-football members of the Old Dominion Athletic Conference. In men's volleyball, a sport not sponsored by the ODAC, EMU competes in the Continental Volleyball Conference. Altogether, Eastern Mennonite sponsors 16 sports: 7 for men and 9 for women.

The Virginia Wesleyan Marlins sports teams are known as the Marlins. The university plays in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) and is a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division III.

Louis F. "Weenie" Miller was an American college basketball coach, athletic director, and sportcaster. Born in Richmond, Virginia, Miller endured a nine-year head coaching career with Hampden–Sydney College, Washington & Lee University, and, most notably, the Virginia Military Institute, where he led the Keydets to the school's first NCAA tournament appearance in 1964.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2012 NCAA Division III men's basketball tournament</span>

The 2012 NCAA Division III men's basketball tournament was a single-elimination tournament to determine the men's collegiate basketball national champion of National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division III. It involved 62 teams, beginning on March 1, 2012 and concluded with the championship game on March 17, 2012, at the Salem Civic Center in Salem, Virginia.

References

  1. "Completmentary Typeface and Color : Washington and Lee University" . Retrieved August 31, 2016.
  2. "A History of Washington and Lee Athletics". Washington and Lee University Athletics website. Retrieved January 1, 2015.
  3. "Athletics at W&L :: Washington and Lee University". Wlu.edu. Retrieved 2011-02-28.