Levick Arena, inside of The Ohle Wartburg-Waverly Sports & Wellness Center, awaits competition from the Wartburg Women's and Men's Basketball teams. Photo courtesy of Wartburg Athletics.
Levick Arena, inside of The Ohle Wartburg-Waverly Sports & Wellness Center, awaits competition from the Wartburg Women’s and Men’s Basketball teams. Photo courtesy of Wartburg Athletics.
The Wartburg Women’s Basketball team will begin their season in less than a month and are ready to build on their previous successes going into this season.
The women’s basketball team ended their 2024-25 season with a conference record of 16-0 and an overall record of 26-3 with notable wins in the American Rivers Conference Tournament over Luther and Coe College and in the NCAA Tournament over University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point.
The women’s basketball Head Coach Bob Amsberry mentions that the team is ready to get right back on the court and prove themselves again this season.
“I’m really excited about this group, and I think there’s a new energy in the gym this year, and a really competitive energy,” Amsberry says. “These guys are grabbing hold of the expectations we have, the tradition that we built and they want to continue to move the program forward.”
The women’s team starts their season on Nov. 7 in Levick Arena in the Wartburg Tipoff Tournament.
“We try to challenge ourselves with really good non-conference teams, and that tournament is going to be a really good start,” Amsberry says.
Coming into the season, the women’s team has gained 15 new freshmen, making this an almost completely new team. Amsberry shares his goals for the new crew.
“We are really focused on becoming a really good team…that means how we treat each other, how we practice, how we work out, how we take care of our bodies,” Amsberry says. “We want to do everything at a championship level.”
The Wartburg Men’s Basketball team will also be starting their season in less than a month.
The men’s team came out of the previous season with an 8-8 conference record and a 16-11 overall record. They ended their season with notable wins over Buena Vista University, Coe College and a win against Loras College in the American Rivers Conference Tournament.
Men’s basketball Head Coach Sam Leal mentions his hope for the upcoming season.
“We have really good players and good leaders in this group too. We’re optimistic that we can compete with anyone in the American Rivers Conference for a conference championship,” Leal says.
When asked about how the team plans on keeping up with the other teams in the American Rivers Conference, Leal explains that it’s all about attitude.
“We talk a lot about our attitude and how we can approach each environment, we practice with an attitude that is very prepared, an attitude that’s very team focused, and an attitude that’s very determined to do better,” Leal says.
The men’s basketball team will play their first game on Nov. 8 against St. Olaf University and Leal will be hoping to see his team implement the competitive mindset they’ve been focusing on.
“We look to impose our will on our opponents, and we need to impose our will on everything we do,” Leal says.
To support the Wartburg Men’s and Women’s Basketball teams, attend some of their upcoming home events in Levick Arena. The men will play Sunday, Nov. 9 against Macalester College and the women will play Friday, Nov. 7 and Saturday, Nov. 8 in the Wartburg Tipoff Tournament.
To follow the women’s and men’s 2025-26 season schedule, check out their schedules on the Wartburg Athletics page.