Dear Triton Nation,

What a time to be a Triton!

Our women's basketball team won a share of the Big West regular season title, then went to Henderson and won the tournament. They're now in the NCAA Tournament, and they play TCU today! I couldn't be prouder of this team and what they've accomplished. Go support them — they've earned it.

Our men's program has been right there with them all season. Over the past two years, our men's and women's basketball teams have combined for 97 wins. Think about that for a second. Last spring, we became the first school in NCAA history to send both its men's and women's basketball programs to March Madness in its first season of eligibility. Now the women are back. That doesn't happen by accident — it's the result of great coaching, great scholar-athletes, and a culture that's been built the right way.

But basketball isn't the only thing worth talking about right now.

Broad-Based Success
Our swimming program sent three women to the NCAA Championships in Atlanta this month. Eva Boehlke won the Big West title in the 200 IM, set a new Big West Championship record, and was named Big West Swimmer of the Year. She'll compete on Saturday in the NCAA Championships. Chloe Braun posted one of the fastest 100 breaststroke times in the country this season and earned a 16th place finish at the NCAAs. Asia Kozan won the 200 freestyle at conference and finished 41st today in Atlanta. She will also compete in the 200 IM on Saturday. Three Tritons competing on the national stage — that's a program that's for real.

In fencing, four Tritons are competing at the National Collegiate Fencing Championships at Notre Dame this week. Sunny Sharma won the NCAA West Regional title for the second year in a row. Freshman Nurzhan Abzhanov won the MPSF Men's Epee Championship. Katherine Kim won the MPSF Women's Foil title and is a returning All-American and freshman Piper Randolph rounds out the group. UC San Diego has sent at least one fencer to nationals every single year since 2001. That's a tradition worth celebrating.

And our baseball team beat number one ranked UCLA this season. Across all 24 sports, our student-athletes keep showing up and competing the right way — in their sport and in the classroom. We graduate over 90% of our scholar-athletes one of the highest among public institutions in Division I. That matters to me as much as anything else we do here at UC San Diego.

The Tide is Rising, We Need Your Support!
Our success does not happen without resources, and I want to speak directly about that for a second. We're making real progress on the revenue and fundraising side, and that momentum is directly connected to what you're seeing on the field of competition. We are growing — and we need to keep growing.

That's why our "Tritons Rise" campaign matters so much right now. This $2M matching initiative for scholar-athlete financial assistance, including NIL, is one of the most important tools we have to recruit and retain the kind of scholar-athletes who come here and do special things. Every dollar donated is matched, which means your contribution goes twice as far in supporting the young men and women who represent this university. The landscape of college athletics has changed dramatically, and the programs that win — on the field and in life — are the ones that have communities behind them. We want to be one of those programs across all 24 sports. Our vision is to be great in all we do.

Our goal is simple: give every Triton the opportunity to compete for championships — in their sport and in the classroom. That takes investment, and I'm asking you personally to make a gift and make a difference. Every contribution matters. Every dollar moves us forward. If you've ever watched one of our teams and felt proud to be a Triton, this is your chance to be part of what comes next. Go to Tritons Rise and join us!

The Future of Triton Athletics
I want to be transparent with you about where we're headed. Our move to the West Coast Conference on July 1, 2027 is a big deal. The WCC is a step up — Saint Mary's, Santa Clara, LMU, and USF among others have set a high standard for success. We're not moving there to just show up — but to compete for championships. We're building right now to compete for championships, and that work is happening every day in how we recruit, how we staff, and how we invest in our programs. The foundation we're laying today is what's going to define UC San Diego athletics over the next decades.

Thanks to Chancellor Khosla and Vice Chancellor Satterlund for their continued support. And thank you to our donors and season ticket holders — your generosity is what makes all of this possible. You're helping us cultivate leaders and champions, and that impact goes far beyond wins and losses. Thank you to our coaches, staff, and most importantly our scholar-athletes — you're the reason all of this is worth doing.

Our goal is to build the best Division I-AAA athletics department in the country. UC San Diego is the third ranked public university in the nation, and our athletics program should reflect that same standard of excellence. We're not chasing that — we're building toward it every single day, and the results you're seeing right now tell me we're on the right track.

97 combined wins in women's and men's basketball, a women's basketball conference championship, a women's basketball tournament title, three women's swimmers at NCAA's, four fencers at nationals, and a baseball team that knocked off the number one ranked team in the country. And that's just scratching the surface of what our Tritons have accomplished this season. Our best is still ahead.

Sincerely, Andy Fee
Director of Athletics