In its 11th year as a full member of NCAA Division II (Sept., 1998), Western Washington University already has made national appearances in men's and women's basketball, men's cross country, women's soccer, women's rowing, football, men's and women's golf, softball and volleyball.

The Vikings have won the last five NCAA II National Championships (2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009) in women's rowing, becoming the first school in any NCAA rowing division to accomplish that. Western placed second nationally in volleyball in 2007 and in women's rowing in 2002 and 2003, and reached the national semifinals in men's basketball in 2001 and women's basketball in 2000.

A member of the Great Northwest Athletic Conference, Western has won the league's All-Sports Championships five times (2001-02, 2002-03, 2003-04, 2004-05, 2008-09) and placed second the other three years.

In women's basketball, Western ranks among the top 15 in all-time victories among all four-year schools, once having a streak of 10 national appearances. The Vikings had the fourth-longest winning streak in NCAA II history when they won 57 consecutive league matches in volleyball from 2002-04 and took 38 straight victories in women's soccer from 1982-84. Western won the NAIA National title in softball in 1998.

The Vikings' athletic history dates back over a century. Intercollegiate competition began in football and basketball in 1903. Today, nearly 400 student-athletes compete in 15 varsity sports.

The 2007 NCAA Report found that 69 percent of Western student-athletes receive their degrees in six years or fewer. That was five percentage points higher than the average for student-athletes in the nine-team Great Northwest Athletic Conference (64 percent), and 14 points higher than the national average for NCAA II schools (55 percent).