THE OFFICIAL ATHLETICS SITE OF THE UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN-WHITEWATER

J.P. Fisher ‘62 was a two-time All-American, three-time all-state and three-time all-conference selection as a member of the men’s basketball team from 1958-62. A four-year letterwinner and leading scorer, Fisher finished his career as the program’s all time leading scorer, and is currently third in career scoring and 14th in points for one game (38). He led the Warhawks to a conference championship in 1961-62. Fisher was also an All-American in baseball, hitting .465 in 1961 to lead the conference and rank 13th in the nation, and batting .460 in 1962. The marks rank first and second, respectively, for batting average in one season in program history. Following his distinguished career as a student-athlete, Fisher was inducted into the UW-Whitewater Athletics Hall of Fame in 1977. A member of the NAIA Distinguished Athletes Association, Fisher also finished as the Class B Wisconsin left-handed golf champion in 1974. Widely regarded as one of the finest male athletes in school history, he was inducted into the UW-Whitewater Athletics Hall of Fame in 1977. Fisher served as a teacher and coach at Elkhorn High School until his retirement, and is married with three children. An active volunteer in the community, Fisher has served as a public address spotter at football games for 50 years. He resides in Whitewater.
 
Nancy Nelson ‘70 is commonly referred to as one of the greatest female athletes in UW-Whitewater history. She earned 13 letters during her time as a Warhawk – four in women’s basketball, four in golf, two in volleyball, two in softball and one in women’s tennis. She was a three-time team most valuable player and two-year captain in leading the women’s basketball team to a 32-5 record over four seasons, and was a four-year team medalist in golf. Nelson was named to the Who’s Who in American Colleges and Universities list in 1970. Following her UW-Whitewater career, she continued to compete in softball, basketball and golf. Nelson competed in basketball in the Amateur Athletic Union – the highest amateur league in the United States – and led her team to six appearances in the national tournament. She was named first team all-league in 1973. Nelson was a No. 1 draft choice of the now-defunct International Women’s Professional Softball Association in 1979 and was named the league’s MVP the same season as a member of the St. Louis Hummers. In golf, she won state championships and was highly competitive in several tournaments around the state. She was also a Big Ten volleyball official and served as a volunteer for the Red Cross. Nelson taught physical education and coached tennis, track and field, basketball, softball and JV volleyball at Milwaukee Lutheran High School, where she led the girls’ basketball team to a state championship and four top-four finishes in the state. Nelson is retired after a 42-year teaching career and currently resides in Wauwatosa.
 
Ed Schwager ’32 was a student-athlete, and eventually a coach and administrator, at UW-Whitewater. He was a three-year letter winner and three-time all-conference honoree for both the football and men’s basketball teams. Schwager led the men’s basketball team in scoring three times and was a captain in 1929-30. He also competed for the men’s track and field team during his career. Schwager was a player/coach for the Fort Atkinson Blackhawks, a team that lost just one game in 1931 (to the Green Bay Packers), and was selected the American Legion Award winner for athletics and scholastic achievement in 1932. Following graduation, he coached football at Dodgeville High School from 1932-38, and was an assistant coach at Madison Central until 1942, when he joined UW-Whitewater as director of intercollegiate athletics. Schwager was head coach for the football (1942, 1946-55), men’s basketball (1942-44, 1946-48) and baseball (1955-59) programs. He claimed conference titles in football (1950), men’s basketball (1942-43) and baseball (1957, 1958). Schwager also served as head track and field coach for seven years (1946-53) during his tenure as director of intercollegiate athletics, a position he held until 1971. He is credited with aiding the addition of golf, tennis, baseball, cross country, wrestling, gymnastics and swimming and diving in his time at the helm of the department. Schwager served in the Navy in World War II from 1942-46 and was a member of the Whitewater American Legion and Lions club. He also served as chairman of the American Red Cross water safety committee. Schwager passed away in 1992.