Saint Martin’s marks a century of conference play while celebrating the student-athletes, coaches and supporters who built its enduring legacy.
In 2026, Saint Martin’s University celebrates a landmark centennial: 100 years of athletics and conference play. To commemorate this milestone, the University has committed to three enduring goals: honoring those who built Saints Athletics, reconnecting with those shaped by it, and investing in the players of the future.
In the Saints athletics program, legacy doesn’t happen by accident. Coaches and administrators believe it is built – season by season, generation by generation – by student-athletes, staff members and supporters. That spirit is captured in the University’s centenary theme: a Century of Champions.
A century of growth, competition and athletic achievement at Saint Martin’s University
The campus’ “handsome, modern” new gymnasium was built in 1910 for handball, basketball and indoor baseball. In 1926, athletic teams joined a conference (the Washington-Oregon Conference) for the first time. Golf and tennis courts were added in 1930, and the University’s athletic teams joined the Washington Intercollegiate Conference in 1938, when Saint Martin’s became a four-year, accredited baccalaureate-granting institution.
The first men’s college basketball team was formed in 1940, the University’s football team won a conference championship in 1942, and the first Invitational collegiate track and field event was hosted in 1947.
What was then called Capital Pavilion was completed in 1968 and that season the men’s basketball team made it to the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) District-One championship. The first women’s basketball team was founded in 1979 and the first volleyball team in 1987.
In the 1990s, the women’s basketball team qualified for the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I and II tournament, and the Lady Saints won the Pacific Northwest Athletic Conference (PNWAC) League. The University also added women’s fastpitch softball and their volleyball team placed second in the NAIA Conference.
Through the 2000s, Saints Athletics – one of the founding charter members of the newly launched Great Northwest Athletic Conference (GNAC) – made competition appearances in women’s and men’s basketball, women’s and men’s golf, men’s soccer, and track and field, continuing the University’s tradition of competitive excellence.
Supporting student-athletes as they prepare for success beyond graduation
Father Kilian Malvey came to Saint Martin’s as a student in 1952. Over the years he has served as a professor, monk, administrator and spiritual leader, as well as unofficial historian of the school’s growth.
Father Kilian says that even in the early 1950s, nearly 200 students were involved in sports programming. He recalls that previous abbots wanted to do away with athletics but “I think that’s shortsighted.” He says that both then and now student-athletes “tend to be very good students because their discipline to become good athletes drives them to be good at their schoolwork too. It’s a wonderful experience having athletes in the classroom and they’re a really important part of our tradition.”
He appreciates that Saint Martin’s teams “really unite students. I’ve seen it at reunions; they really bond through their particular sport and at homecoming are so happy to see their teammates.” The same is true of the University’s coaching staff. “They’re always very concerned about the players’ academic lives,” he says, “making sure they are also good students and can be successful.”
To support athletes, the Saint Martin’s Athletic Foundation was established in 1985. Joe Alongi is a founding member and former president. He explains that “the college was going to eliminate all sports at one time and the alumni said no. We made a Foundation that was independent from the college but had college permission to raise money through tournaments, fundraising and donations and issue scholarships to Saints athletes.”
When the school reached NCAA status, the Foundation and its endowment were transferred to the University. From 1986 until 2000, the Foundation contributed more than $325,000 to student athletes and programs. In 2026 dollars, that’s more than $550,000. These investments helped recruit and retain athletes while strengthening Saint Martin’s athletic programs for future generations.
Saints athletes learn from the past, build towards the future and win every step of the way
Theresa Hanson, the University’s Director of Athletics, says that in the 2025-2026 season alone, Saints Athletics won five GNAC banners, opened a new million-dollar baseball turf field and launched a replacement project of the original 1967 floor in the Hal and Inge Marcus Pavilion.
Hanson believes that “Athletics serve as a powerful point of pride and engagement for students, alumni, families and the broader community, helping build school spirit, strengthen campus culture and create lifelong relationships and experiences that extend far beyond competition.”
“A strong NCAA Division II athletics program is vital because it helps create a connected, vibrant campus community while reinforcing the values of leadership, accountability, resilience and teamwork,” says Hanson. “At the Division II level, student-athletes are able to pursue excellence both academically and athletically, embodying the true balance of the college experience. I also believe NCAA Division II athletics represents the truest form of the student-athlete experience, where academic achievement, personal growth and athletic excellence are equally valued, and where students are developed not only as competitors, but as leaders prepared for success beyond graduation.”
Looking ahead, Hanson hopes to continue this momentum “through the outstanding recruiting efforts of our coaching staff and the strong foundation established this past year. Our goal is not only to compete at a high level, but to continue developing student-athletes into graduates, leaders and good citizens who will make a positive impact in the world.”
Saints Athletics spotlights men’s basketball coach Aaron Landon as the only coach in GNAC history to win three outright regular season titles, and softball’s Jim Peterson, who led the Saints to the GNAC regular season championship. Peterson is only the second coach in program history to do so.
Saints Athletics: celebrating 100 years, building the next 100
As Saint Martin’s University celebrates this landmark centennial, the legacy of Saints Athletics continues to grow; built on a century of competition, community and championship moments, and carried forward by the next generation of student-athletes.
For up-to-date sports information, game tickets, overall standings and the new centennial history page, check out the Saint Martin’s University Saints website. You can find a directory of individual team social media pages there as well.
Join us in celebrating this Century of Champions by cheering on the Saints at a game next season. Whether you’re a lifelong fan or attending for the first time, you’ll be part of a tradition 100 years in the making.
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