Softball Staff Earns Honor
July 05, 2002 | Softball
The University of Wisconsin softball coaching staff, head coach Karen Gallagher and assistant coaches Ali Viola and DeeDee Weiman, earned the 2002 Speedline/NFCA Division I Mideast Region Coaching Staff of the Year award. Selected by their coaching peers, the Wisconsin staff shares the honor with the University of Notre Dame staff.
In its third season as a staff, the UW trio led the Badgers (31-22) to their best league finish in program history. Wisconsin took fourth in the Big Ten Conference and advanced to its third-straight Big Ten tourney. This year, the Badgers also made its second consecutive trip to the NCAA tournament. UW earned the No. 5 seed at the Iowa City Regional.
Wisconsin topped No. 1 Arizona, No. 4 Oklahoma, No. 12 Michigan and No. 18 Alabama in 2002, en route to its third-straight season with over 30 wins. The Badgers broke into the USA Today/NFCA poll at No. 25 early in the year.
The Badger staff of Gallagher, Weiman and Viola led UW to its first-ever Big Ten tournament appearance in 2000, its first-ever NCAA tournament appearance in 2001 and its first win in NCAA tournament play in 2001.
