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UW-Whitewater Athletics 2013-14 Five-Year Anniversary Series:
            Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5
 
The University of Wisconsin-Whitewater Department of Intercollegiate Athletics' 22 teams enjoyed a vast amount of success in the decade spanning from 2010-19.
 
The run was highlighted by the 2013-14 academic year, when the Warhawks finished second in the Learfield Directors' Cup and claimed national championships in football, men's basketball, gymnastics and baseball. UW-Whitewater became the first school in NCAA history to claim the football, men's basketball and baseball titles in the same academic year.
 
In addition, UW-Whitewater holds the second-longest active streak with at least one national championship (team or individual) every year for the last 19 years. Wartburg (Iowa) holds the current record with 25 years.
 
The department's athletic and academic accomplishments during that span included:
 

• 12 Team National Championships
  • 2010-11: Football
  • 2011-12: Football, Men's Basketball, Gymnastics
  • 2012-13: Gymnastics
  • 2013-14: Football, Men's Basketball, Gymnastics, Baseball
  • 2014-15: Football
  • 2016-17: Gymnastics
  • 2017-18: Gymnastics

 

• 36 Individual National Championships

 

• Ten top-20 finishes in the Learfield Directors' Cup, which measures the overall athletic success of collegiate institutions.
  • 2009-10: 15th
  • 2010-11: 6th
  • 2011-12: 5th
  • 2012-13: 4th
  • 2013-14: 2nd (highest finish all time)
  • 2014-15: 6th
  • 2015-16: 8th
  • 2016-17: 6th
  • 2017-18: 20th
  • 2018-19: 15th

 

• 14 National Athletes of the Year
• 3 CoSIDA Academic All-Americans® of the Year
• 563 All-American Honors (265 All-Americans)
• 63 Conference Championships
• 22 Conference Tournament Titles
• 70 Conference Athletes of the Year/Meet
• 41 Conference Coach/Coaching Staff of the Year Honors
• 45 Conference Scholar-Athletes of the Year
• 371 UW-Whitewater Chancellor's Scholar-Athletes (senior academic status, 2+ years sport participation, 3.25 cumulative GPA or higher and 90+ degree credits)
• 3,368 WIAC Scholastic Honor Roll Awards
• 10,000+ Hours of Community Service/Engagement

Several of our coaches and staff members weighed in on the success of the department during the 2010-19 decade. We will add quotes below as they are released on social media.

Frank Barnes, Head Men's and Women's Tennis Coach
"The success of Warhawk Athletics in the past decade stems from many advantages, including support from higher administration, unique location with proximity to the Madison, Milwaukee and Chicago areas, long-tenured coaches who all support each other and the mission of the department, our successful camps/clinics program that has an incredibly strong regional reputation and the reputation of UW-Whitewater's College of Business and Economics."

Kevin Bullis, Head Football Coach
"UW-Whitewater draws talented students, athletes and staff, which ensures a great learning experience for all. These experiences and high standards ensure that we continue to build on that tradition – Powered By Tradition."

Ryan Callahan, Interim Director of Athletics
"I don't know if we will ever see the level of success from a public institution at the Division III level like we saw from 2010-19 at UW-Whitewater. The decade was the perfect storm for UW-W. We were generously supported by the upper administration and everyone across campus. The consistent winning on the national stage helped increase our enrollment to record numbers. It was a special time when we didn't have a lot of turnover throughout campus and everyone had a shared vision of what athletics could look like and where athletics could take this campus. The folks that were directly involved with athletics and those who supported Warhawk athletics should be very proud of their accomplishments during the past decade."

Keri Carollo, Head Women's Basketball Coach/Senior Woman Administrator/Assistant AD, Compliance
"We have incredibly highly-motivated coaches who work extremely hard, and they have high expectations for their individual sport programs. We have been given the autonomy to create a culture for our student-athletes that is one of the best in the country. Our administrators have given us support, provided resources, and respected athletics as an integral part of the campus community. Winning is contagious, winning is an attitude, winning is what we do."

Gary Harms, Director of Recreation Sports and Facilities
"UW-Whitewater has enjoyed unparalleled success in both the WIAC and at the NCAA Division III level over the past decade due to a number of factors. Most importantly, I would rank the atmosphere that was instituted over the years by previous campus administration and really modeled by former Chancellor Richard Telfer. His vision and support provided us with an atmosphere conducive to winning, which included the emphasis and funding placed on expanding and improving all of our outstanding athletic facilities. Additionally, students and staff all felt that we were in this together and this feeling of family propelled us to enjoy success in recruiting outstanding student-athletes, coaches, administrators and support staff. When the entire campus bleeds purple and we have the support from the Whitewater community as well, success is bound to happen. We took it to another level."

Mike Johnson, Head Men's and Women's Track and Field Coach
"I feel what really helped us be successful was each other (as a staff). The passion each coach has and the success they had motivated all of us to do the same. In a sense, it was a healthy competition. It also helped all of us since the better we do as a whole, the easier it is for us to market our programs to the outside world and attract tremendous student-athletes."

Lee Munger, Director of Sports Performance
"I don't think there is one certain thing that has defined our success over the last decade. It's been a combination of factors. I believe that the support we have gotten from the top-level administration of our university, as well as our athletic administration, has set the foundation for success. It makes the jobs of the coaches and support staff easier with tremendous support. The success that we have had on a national level has been its own unique recruiting tool. Athletes find us instead of us finding them. This all starts with a level of commitment and accountability from our student-athletes that is like no other. Every athlete pushes themselves to be better daily and that accountability has transpired into a tradition of excellence that we want to sustain year after year."

Ryan Quamme, Head Women's Soccer Coach
"Talented People – like-minded, competitive, goal-oriented coaches, administrators and athletic supporters (both inside and outside of the university community) who strived for student-athlete excellence academically and athletically. Coaches and administrators found a way to get things done for the betterment of the department often thinking outside the box by refusing to settle for how things had been done in the past to be an innovative leader in DIII athletics."
 
"Competitive Environment – Success is contagious. Coaches and student-athletes were motivated by other Warhawk Athletics program success and driven to do their part to be a part of the winning culture."
 
"Capitalized on Success – Athletics capitalized on the success that came with our athletic success by using the benefits of winning at the highest level to promote all of our programs in the recruitment of student-athletes as well as community and alumni support. "For example, when our athletic programs were recognized nationally by media outlets such as ESPN and The New York Times, the free marketing created valuable promotion and attention to not only our department, but also served as a key recruitment piece for every program in the department with perspective student-athletes and donors. Lastly, our drive to be and stay at the top and the benefits to the campus as a whole provided more resources in the areas of facilities, staffing and finances, helping reduce the gap and challenges we face against many of our competitors regionally and nationally."

John Vodenlich, Head Baseball Coach
"We are Powered By Tradition and led by a capable administration and staff. UW-Whitewater reached the pinnacle of success in almost every sport during the last decade. Our solid academic reputation and ideal location have allowed us to recruit the very best student-athletes from the area. Our Midwestern values have allowed us to stay close but go far."

Brenda Volk, Head Softball Coach
"I feel one of the reasons UW-W Athletics has been so successful is because of our veteran coaching staff in the department. That consistency in leadership in all of our programs is hard to come by. I also believe our coaches are very committed and care about their athletes, not only as players but as people. We all strive to give the athletes the best possible experience that they can have at UW-W and in return, our athletes work hard for us.  Winning is contagious – when one program is successful, it fuels the desire of both the coaches and athletes to want to be as successful. Lastly, I believe our administration and support staff are some of the hardest working people around, and we wouldn't be where we are today without them."

Andrea Wieland, Head Golf Coach
"I felt very welcomed by the community of coaches, athletes and administration when I started in 2016. I think we have great people at the university on all levels. Everyone is working hard and there's a great sense of pride in the athletic department. I think this hard work has obviously directly contributed to our continued success as a department."