Springfield, Ohio – As he continues to build the Wittenberg women’s golf program, Head Coach Jeff Roope has gained recognition from his peers after being named Women’s Golf Coaches Association (WGCA) Great Lakes Region Coach of the Year for the 2012-13 season.
The award is a first for Roope, who has led the men’s and women’s golf programs at Wittenberg since 2007. He has been named North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) Coach of the Year on the men’s side following each of the last four seasons, coinciding with the Tigers’ four-year run atop the league standings.
Wittenberg’s women finished second in the NCAC Championship Series, behind only 2012 NCAA Division III Tournament runner-up DePauw, which has been ranked in the top five nationally throughout the 2012-13 season. The Tigers won three of their 11 tournaments during the campaign, picking up victories at the Denison Fall Invitational, Wittenberg’s Pat Clouse Invitational and the Mount Union Spring Invitational.
Ranked 12th in the final regular season poll distributed by the WGCA, Wittenberg is the highest ranked team that wasn’t selected to compete in the 2013 NCAA Division III Tournament. Three student-athletes, freshman Maggie Smith (Cincinnati, Ohio/Sycamore), freshman Allie Lawwill (Springboro, Ohio/Middletown) and sophomore Nicole Waers (Canton, Ohio/Perry) earned All-NCAC honors, although Wittenberg was shut out in the regional awards.
Roope is currently in Florida coaching Wittenberg’s men’s golf team in the NCAA Division III Tournament. Making their 19th NCAA Division III Tournament appearance and 20th national tournament appearance overall, including a 1974 berth as a member of the NCAA College Division, the Tigers, also ranked No. 12 nationally, made the 15-team cut after the first two rounds.
Written By: Ryan Maurer