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Each week, the Illinois Tech Athletics Digest will look back at the week that was in Scarlet Hawks athletics and provide a brief glimpse at what is up next.  

As the fall 2026 semester kicks into gear and with the 2026–27 athletic season set to begin, here is a short preview of each Scarlet Hawks team set to kick off their seasons this week.  

Up First

• September 1: Women’s Soccer at North Central College, 7 p.m.  
• September 1: Men’s Soccer versus North Central College, 7 p.m.  
• September 3: Men’s Soccer  versus Carthage College, 7 p.m.  
• September 4: Women’s Cross Country at NCCXC Invitational, 4 p.m.  
• September 4: Women’s Cross Country at NCCXC Invitational, 4:45 p.m.  
• September 4: Women’s Volleyball at Wittenberg University, 6 p.m.  
• September 4: Women’s Soccer at Occidental College, 9 p.m.  
• September 5: Women’s Tennis at North Park University, 10 a.m.
• September 5: Women’s Volleyball versus Ohio Wesleyan (at Wittenberg University), 10 a.m.
• September 5: Women’s Volleyball versus Capital University (at Wittenberg University), 12:30 p.m.
• September 5: Men’s Soccer versus University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, 7 p.m.
• September 6: Women’s Soccer at California Lutheran University, 2 p.m.  

Women’s Soccer Looks to Continue Success

The Scarlet Hawks women’s soccer enters the 2026 season with a . Head coach Roshane Ellison, now  in his 12th season, has built a program that expects to compete deep into November. But as the Scarlet Hawks prepare for another campaign, Ellison isn’t talking about past championships or preseason polls.

“It’s a work in progress,” Ellison said. “But we’re excited about the development thus far. We have a lot of young players who’ve been integrated into the program, and they’ve done extremely well.”

The Scarlet Hawks have been picked as the Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference favorite as they look to return to the NCAA Division III tournament for the third straight season.  

New Coach Takes Over Men’s Soccer

New Illinois Tech men’s soccer head coach Dylan Milkent didn’t walk into his first season expecting everything to click overnight. What he found, though, was a team with two great strengths: unity and work ethic. “We have a group that’s dedicated to really being together as one unit,” Milkent said. “They're really supportive of each other—on and off the field.”

Players moved in pairs and groups around campus, showing the kind of chemistry coaches hope to build over years, not weeks. That camaraderie has translated into intense practices. For a new coach, that has been a gift. Milkent knew he could teach tactics and refine systems, but culture is tougher to manufacture. At Illinois Tech, it already existed.  

His job, then, , one that could compete in a stacked conference.

Experienced Women’s Volleyball Ready to Take Next Step

The Scarlett Hawks women’s volleyball isn’t entering the 2026 season with flashy numbers or bold declarations..  

After a 2025 campaign that ended with a deep conference tournament run and a Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference Tournament Final Four appearance, head coach Mark Johnston believes that his team’s experience—and the lessons that it learned under pressure—will define the months ahead.

“We’re not as big as we have been in terms of roster size in the past, but who we have is just solid,” Johnston said.  

With five returning starters and a bench that saw significant action last season, the Scarlet Hawks enter the fall with composure, cohesion, and a clear sense of who they are.

Women’s Tennis Eager to Build Off Last Season

For the Illinois Tech women’s tennis, the 2026–27 season isn’t about starting over, it's about building on momentum. After a remarkable run last year that saw it rise from preseason middle-of-the-pack predictions to a conference championship and an NCAA Division III tournament berth, head coach Jack Lunn enters his first full preseason as head coach with something new: time.

“It’s been great to have a little more of a runway than we had last year to really ramp up,” Lunn said. “This time allows us to be process-oriented instead of results-oriented, at least in the early part of the season.”

With a full preseason to prepare and a core of experienced returners, the Scarlet Hawks are and learning what it means to play as the team that everyone else is chasing.

In their season opener on Sunday, August 30, the Scarlet Hawks in a neutral-site match at Augustana College in Rock Island, Illinois.  

Making Moves

The American Rivers Conference (A-R-C) announced on September 1, 2026, that its Presidents Council has approved , beginning with the 2026–27 academic year.  

The addition of Illinois Tech and the University of Minnesota Morris expands the conference’s men’s and women’s swimming and diving membership to five programs. Illinois Tech will join Minnesota Morris, Coe College, Loras College, and Nebraska Wesleyan University to compete at the A-R-C’s 2027 swimming and diving championships, which will take place February 17–20, 2027, in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.