It was a historic season for the WSU softball team. The Warriors, under third-year head coach Greg Jones, earned the first ever NCAA Division II Regional berth for a WSU softball team in posting a 41-13-1 record.

The Warriors reached the regional by winning the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Tournament and then went on to post a 1-2 record in the regional tournament. The Warriors also won the regular season NSIC title by compiling an outstanding 16-2 conference record. History was on the side of first-year first base player Sarah Carlson (Geneva, Ill). Carlson blasted 14 home runs, setting a WSU single-season record and in the process has already tied the career Warrior record for home runs.

Senior outfielder Kari Webers (Racine, Wis.) also made her mark in the school record book by posting a .453 batting average, the best single-season batting average in school history.

The efforts of Weber and Carlson earned for them Second Team NFCA All-North Central Region honors. Head Coach Jones saw his team put together a school record 14-game winning streak, while the season's 41 wins was the second highest single-season mark in the program's history. For those efforts, Jones was named Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Coach of the Year and now has become the winningest all-time softball coach at WSU with 115 career wins.

The men's tennis team saved the best for last during the 2002-03 season. Led by head coach Sean Kangrga, the Warriors won seven of their last ten matches to finish the season with a 9-17 record. Leading the Warriors was junior Dan Clarke (Antioch, Ill.), who had the best singles record with a 15-13 mark and teamed with freshman Josh Malwitz (Blue Earth, Minn.) for the top doubles record at 8-4.

The Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference did not sponsor men's tennis during the 02-03 season and that forced Winona State to play a complete independent schedule.

Women's tennis continues to be a successful program for the Warriors. For the second straight year, WSU advanced to the NCAA Division II North Central Region Tournament where the Warriors were eliminated from play by Metro State of Denver, Colo.

The effort left the Warriors with an 11-9 overall record, but for the third straight season the Warriors grabbed a share of the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference championship. Head coach Kendall Larson shared the league crown this season after winning two consecutive championships.

Senior Karen Darveaux (Austin, Minn.) earned a number of awards for the Warriors including Verizon All-American First Team honors. It was the second straight year Darveaux earned the academic All-American honor. She was honored by the NSIC as its Player of the Year for a second straight year and also was named the Willis R. Kelly Scholar Athlete of the Year. She completed her Warrior career by winning her third straight conference singles championship and won her second straight conference doubles championship.

Senior Brea Bruggeman (Chaska, Minn.) joined Darveaux on that league championship doubles team, while sophomore Megan Newbauer (Inver Grove Heights, Minn.) and first-year student Karyl Shenck (Loves Park, Ill.) added a second doubles championship for the Warriors and both earned All-Conference honors.

The growth of women's track continued during the 2002-03 season, as the Warriors placed third in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference outdoor track and field championships.

Senior Jamie Miller (Sparta, Wis.) paced the Warriors' efforts in the league finals. She captured the league's 100-meter dash finals with a time of 12.22 seconds and ran a leg on the winning 4 x 100-meter relay team that turned in a time of 49.20 seconds. She added second place in the 200-meter dash and earned All-Conference honors in all three events.

Joining Miller on the All-Conference 4 x 100-meter relay team were junior Jenny Cuculi (Milwaukee, Wis.), and first-year students Brittany Reinbolt (Searcy, Ark.) and Deidra Faber (Plain, Wis.).

Joining Miller in her winning efforts were junior Keri Kreuzer (Winona), who won the triple jump competition with a distance of 36 feet, 7.5 inches and earned All-Conference honors.

Cuculi was an All-Conference performer, placing second in the long jump, while Reinbolt received honorable mention All-Conference honors in pole vault along with sophomore Jenny Foegen (Onalaska, Wis.).

Weather played a key role in the season for the WSU baseball team. The Warriors lost a total of 14 games to weather and eight of those contests were scheduled for Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference play, which ended up playing a major role in the failure of the Warriors to reach the league tournament.

The season was finished under the watchful eye of first-year head coach Kyle Poock with a 21-17 record. Senior Kyle Butt (Appleton, Wis.) captured the top honor by being named to the Third Team Verizon All-American academic squad. He also received the NSIC's honorable mention All-Conference selection in his final collegiate season.

Others named to the NSIC All-Conference team were senior Erik Steigerwald (Wittenberg, Wis.) and freshman Josh Schultz (La Crosse, Wis.); Conference Honorable Mention honors went to senior Jeff Dobbertin (McHenry, Ill.).

Head Coach Robert Newberry and the women's golf team closed out their season by placing in the top three in two of the four meets the Warriors played this spring.

The Warriors tied for fourth out of 12 teams in the Minnesota Women's Collegiate Championship. Senior Kim Sovereign (Cresco, Iowa) paced the Warriors by placing second with a 36-hole total of 156, earning All-State honors, and being named Most Improved Player of the Year.

Individual play sparked spring play for the Warriors men's golf team, as freshmen Caleb Turbett (Wisconsin Dells, Wis.) and Justin Carrier (Rushford, Minn.) each qualified for the NCAA Super Regional Tournament.

The individual duo fared well for the Warriors in the regional competition: Carrier finished tied for 19th with a 54-hole total of 232, while Turbett tied for 33rd with 240. On the team side of play, the Warriors, placed in the top three in three of their six meets and placed no lower that seventh in any of the six meets they participated in this spring.

Last Modified: Monday, December 06, 2004 14:07 by