Pointer Women’s Sports Wrap-Up

Another year is in the books for the athletes of the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point and for the Point women it means another year of success.

The soccer team amassed a record of 11-8, 4-4 in Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play. The Pointer advanced to the semifinals of the WIAC Tournament where they narrowly lost to UW-Whitewater 2-3. Junior forward Molly Sullivan was chosen First Team All-WIAC, while teammate and senior midfielder Molly Sullivan was awarded a spot on the All-Sportsmanship team. Greer was also selected as a D3 All- North Third Team performer by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America. She finished the season with a team-high 23 points and 10 goals through 19 games.

Senior Kelly Haen was the top performer for the cross country team, finishing 13 at nationals with a time of 21:24.05. Haen was selected to the All-American team.

With a record of 26-8, 7-1 in conference, the volleyball team captured their first WIAC championship in 30 years. Junior middle hitter Morgan Bartkowiak, junior left side Christina Brinkman, and freshman setter Alexis Hartman received First Team All- WIAC. Freshman libero Ally Groth was selected to the All-Defensive team. Junior Jessica Dredske received All-Sportsmanship honors. In her 11 season with the program, head coach Stacey White was named WIAC Coach of the Year for the 2011 season.

A 2-15 record is not what the tennis team was looking for, but with each player returning, including senior captains Allison Fortier and Monica Preisig, next year the Pointers will look to turn things around.

The two-time defending champion women’s swim and dive team finished third in the WIAC behind UW-La Crosse and UW-Eau Claire.

The Pointers then finished 44 at nationals. During the fall semester they were awarded the Scholar All-America Team by the College Swimming Coaches Association of America for their cumulative GPA of 3.28.

The women’s basketball team finished the season with a 24-5 record and was ranked 12 and 14 in the D3hoops.com poll and the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association poll, respectively. After being crowned WIAC Champions for both the regular season and WIAC tournament, the Pointers advanced to the second round of the NCAA D3 tournament. Junior guard Sam Barber was voted an All-American by both D3hoops.com and the WBCA. Senior post Ashley Averkamp was selected All-Midwest Region by D3hoops.com.

Senior guard Whitney Verdegan received the All-American Strength and Conditioning Athlete of the Year award courtesy of UWSP strength coach Jon Verdegan and the National Strength and Conditioning Association.

The women’s hockey team amassed a record of 13-12-2 on the season. Senior forward Erin Marvin received All-Northern Collegiate Athletic Conference honors, while junior forward Brooke Hanson received honorable mention. This is Marvin’s third First-Team award as a member of the Point women’s hockey team. Marvin became the fourth Pointer to reach 100 points, and ranks third all-time in goals. Freshman forward Hannah Smith, sophomore defense Janel Winters, and senior defense Ariel Novak received All-Academic honors for the year, Novak’s third time. The 2012-13 season will be Point’s last as a member of the Northern Collegiate Hockey Association.

The women’s track team finished seventh at the WIAC Outdoor Championships in Whitewater. Junior Erin Kline set a new meet record in the 100-meter hurdles for a league title clinching time of 14.39. Kline would later break her own record when she posted a time of 14.23 at a last chance meet at North Central College. Haen continued her success on the track, winning a league title in the 5k with a time of 17:47.04 at the conference meet. In another last chance meet in La Crosse, freshman Julia Colling recorded a time of 36:11 in the 10k, her first ever. That time is currently 15 best in the nation.

A promising 4-0 start to the season at the Finlandia Invitational didn’t translate into wins for the softball team as first year coach Jill Millis led the Pointers to a 14-24 record, 3-13 in conference. The season wasn’t without successes however, as junior first baseman Katie Krueger, sophomore pitcher Bekah Rennicke, and freshman outfielder Jordan Schreiner all received Honorable Mention All- WIAC. Senior catcher Kelly Arndt was named to the All-Sportsmanship team.

After entering the final day in a tie for 14, sophomore Mary Welch posted a final-round 75 to clinch an eighth place finish in the NCAA D3 Women’s Golf Championship hosted by Trine University of Indiana. As a team the Pointers finished second in the WIAC behind UW-Eau Claire, but Welch was crowned the individual champion after finishing with a final round 81, UWSP’s first ever individual medalist at the WIAC Championships. She was also named WIAC Golfer of the Year for her accomplishments in 2011.