Athletics

It all started on Thanksgiving Day, 1892.

That day, a new sport gaining popularity across the nation – then often referred to as American rugby – was played on the CIW campus for the first time, in front of 500 fans. That sport soon became known as football and CIW competed in it until 1942, when there were not enough male students to field a team due to their service in World War II. 

Today, CIW offers athletic opportunities on many levels: intramural, club and NCAA Division I. More than 60 percent of the CIW student body participates in some form of intramural activity, while our student-athletes compete as part of the West Coast Conference in volleyball, soccer, cross-country, basketball, baseball, rowing, tennis, golf and track. But, alas, no football. 

The prevalent CIW spirit, blended with hard work and dedication in athletic endeavors, yields success both on the field of play and in the classroom.