Save the Date!

Swimming and Diving Reunion
UWSP will host a swimming and diving alumni gathering during Homecoming weekend, October 9-11. The festivities will include an alumni meet, grill party and bonfire. All swimming and diving alumni are invited. For more information, go to athletics.uwsp.edu/index.aspx.

Athletics
athletics.uwsp.edu

Fall/Winter 2008-09 - A return to dominance
Four of the seven fall teams secured Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) titles, as football, men's cross country, women's golf and women's soccer added four more conference championships to the trophy cases.  The advent of the winter season carried with it the success of the fall for Pointer athletics. 

Football (9-2, 6-1 WIAC)
The Pointer football team defeated the defending national champion UW-Whitewater on their way to one of the most successful and exciting seasons in school history, winning a share of their 14^th conference title and earning a trip to the NCAA Division III Playoffs for the first time since 2001.  

While the Pointers suffered an early exit in the first round of the playoffs, the successful season translated into several postseason awards for UWSP. Fourteen players received All-WIAC accolades, including Player of the Year Brad Vickroy.

Women's Soccer (19-4, 8-0 WIAC)
The women's soccer team had a very successful season this fall.  The team advanced to the Sweet 16 round of the NCAA Tournament for the fifth time in school history and the second year in a row.  The Pointers had a winning streak of seven and two six-game winning streaks throughout the season on their way to a 12^th WIAC title.  The Pointers only allowed 17 goals in their 23 games. They posted 14 shutouts and did not allow a single goal in regular season conference play.

Women's Golf
The women's golf team completed their second straight conference championship this fall and finished the season ranked No. 3 in the final Division III Golf World/NGCA Golf Coaches Poll.

They will return to action in the spring, where they will look to build off of their accomplishments in their fall season. The Pointers also earned an automatic bid to NCAA Championship at the PGA Golf Club in Port St. Lucie, Fla., May 13-16.

Cross Country
The men's team had a successful season, grabbing the WIAC Championship and finishing fourth at the NCAA Division III Cross Country Championships.

The women's team had a solid year as they finished first or second in four of the team's eight meets. They also finished fourth at the WIAC Championships and seventh at the NCAA Regionals.

Volleyball
The volleyball team struggled in a tough WIAC conference this year which sent four of its nine teams to the NCAA Tournament.  The Pointers finished the season 12-23 overall, with eleven of those wins coming in Berg Gym.

The young squad is looking to build for a successful future, as they had only one senior on the roster.

Women's Tennis
The Pointers tennis team wrapped up a roller-coaster season with a fifth place finish in the WIAC Tournament and finished 7-9 overall.

After starting hot, winning five of their first six matches, the Pointers dropped four of their final six matches of the season before the conference tournament.  At the WIAC tournament, the Pointers posted a fifth place finish. The team will return to action in spring, as they start out against Edgewood College on April 11.

Men's Basketball (24-5, 14-2 WIAC)
Compiling a 21-4 overall record through the regular season, 14-2 in conference play, the Pointers captured their league-best 25^th conference title and the postseason tournament's No. 1 seed.  UWSP then rolled through the conference tournament, defeating UW-Oshkosh and UW-Platteville for their fifth tournament title.

In the NCAA Tournament, the Pointers were sent on the road, and after defeating Cornell College (Iowa) in the first round, fell to the nation's No. 1 ranked Tommies of St. Thomas in the second round, 53-50.

Women's Basketball (26-4, 14-2 WIAC)
En route to adding yet another conference title to the trophy cases, the Pointer women's basketball team added two more impressive feats. The team set a new school record for consecutive wins at 14. The 14th victory was also the 350th career win for Head Coach Shirley Egner.

The Pointers advanced to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament, defeating Maryville and Concordia at home in the opening rounds.  In the round of 16, the Pointers came up short against the nation's No. 1 ranked and undefeated Titans of Illinois Wesleyan, falling 77-64 and finishing the season with a 26-4 record, the fourth most wins in school history.

Swimming and Diving
Sixteen swimmers, 10 men and six women, qualified for the 2009 NCAA Division III Championships after an impressive regular season that saw the men's team capture their 10^th consecutive conference title and 15 event championships. 

On the women's side, the Pointers captured four event championships on their way to a second-place finish.

Bennett Court Dedication
In front of a capacity crowd at a Pointer men's basketball game on Saturday, February 7, the Quandt Fieldhouse court was named for Dick and Jack Bennett, men's basketball coaches who spent nine years of their careers at UWSP. Together they boast 373 wins in Pointer history.

"Thank you so much for making this a wonderful day," said Dick Bennett to the crowd. "It is a tribute to the young men, coaches and fans who were so important and so good in those days."

"No one could say it better than Lou Gehrig," said Jack Bennett. "He simply said, ‘Today, I'm the luckiest man on the face of the earth.' Today, Dick and I are the luckiest guys."

A video of the dedication may be seen on UWSP's home page at the video link Bennett Court Dedication.

Pointer coaches honored
Five Pointer coaches were named the Coach of the Year by the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC).

Women's Basketball Coach Shirley Egner, Football Coach John Miech, Soccer Coach Sheila Miech, Men's Basketball Coach Bob Semling and Cross Country Coach Rick Witt were all honored this season. In addition, Tom Journell, the Pointer football team defensive coordinator, was named the Assistant Coach of the Year.

Egner was named WIAC Coach of the Year for the second straight season and the third time in her years at UWSP. Egner led the Pointers to their eighth 20-win season in the last nine seasons. Earlier this season Egner tallied her 350th career win with the Pointers as the team set a new school record for consecutive victories at 14.    

John Miech led the Pointers to an 8-0-0 conference record and the team's 12 WIAC title. Miech's career record in her 22 years as the Pointers head coach is 319-102-27, which includes an astounding 115-7-7 record in WIAC play.

Sheila Miech led the Pointers to a 9-1 overall record and share of the WIAC title, UWSP's first since 2001. The Pointers 9-1 record is the best in Miech's regime, and one more win would make 2008 the winningest season in the 113-year history of the program.

Semling earned his second Coach of the Year award after leading the team to a 24-5 finish in the 2008-09 campaign and the programs 25th regular season WIAC title and the fifth tournament championship in the last nine seasons. In his four seasons at the helm of the Pointers, Semling has compiled a 90-25 record and boasts a 52-12 record in conference play.

Witt earned his 13^th WIAC Coach of the Year honor last fall, leading the men's cross country team to their fourth conference title in school history and the first since 1997.  Under his direction, the team finished third at the Midwest Regional and earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Championships, where they went on to finish fourth.