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Washburn soccer, volleyball talk expectations TOPEKA, Kan. (WIBW) - Washburn soccer had a highly successful 2025 season, advancing to the NCAA Tournament semifinals. The Ichabods were voted No. 1 in the MIAA preseason poll and No. 4 nationally. But they are not focused on the rankings. “That’s really nice, it’s great to see that our competition views us that way and voted us number one, but that was last year’s team,” sophomore goalkeeper Lili Everley said. The Ichabods open their season Thursday against No. 19 Maryville. “The makeup of our people and our players and then how we prepare and ultimately how we perform is what earns those results, so that’s really what we spend our energy on,” head coach Davy Phillips said. Washburn volleyball, on the other hand, only discusses its ranking once. “We talk about the rankings one time during the year, and that’s the very first day that it comes out. And from that point, you’ll never hear it come out of my mouth again,” head coach Chris Herron said. “It doesn’t matter. What matters is the last one.” Like the soccer team, Washburn volleyball earned the top spot in the MIAA preseason poll and is ranked No. 8 nationally. “The pressure is always there,” senior libero Taylor Rottinghaus said. “But it’s not necessarily [being ranked] number one is the pressure; it’s the pressure that we have on ourselves for our expectations of the team.” The Ichabods start their season with four matches at the Washburn Invitational, beginning Thursday. Copyright 2026 WIBW. All rights reserved.