Contact Us

Advertising

Comics

Crossword

The Arizona Daily Wildcat Online

Catcalls

Policebeat

Search

Archives

News Sports Opinions Arts Classifieds

Thursday April 26, 2001

Reader Survey
Crazy Town Photos
Basketball site
Tucson Riots
Ice T Photos

 

PoliceBeat
Catcalls
Restaurant and Bar Guide
Daily Wildcat Alumni Site

 

Student KAMP Radio and TV 3

Coach of the Year nominees

Vote for athletes and coach of the year!

While the saga of the men's basketball team was the story of the year in UA athletics, 2000-2001 marked another season of achievement in UA athletics. Was Lute Olson's accomplishment the top coaching job of the season? It's up to you - here are the nominees.

Greg Allen - In his first year as the head coach for the Arizona women's golf team, Allen has guided the Wildcats to a No. 2 ranking in the polls and continued to meet the high expectations for an unbelievably successful program. While Arizona was winning the National Championship twice in the last five years, Allen served as an assistant coach for the University of Texas men's team. He has successfully made the transition to the UA program and has the Wildcats on pace for another title.

Joan Bonvicini - Bonvicini earned her 500th career victory this season, becoming one of 17 Division I coaches to reach the milestone. Bonvicini took a group of young players, led by one senior, and turned them into 20-game winners.

Frank Busch - The head swim coach led the women to second place at the Pacific 10 Championships and fifth at the NCAA Championships. He also coached the men's team to a sixth-place finish at the NCAAs.

Mike Candrea - Candrea is well known for his ability to put championship-caliber teams on the field, as evident by Arizona's five NCAA softball titles since 1991. This season, Candrea has excelled at keeping arguably his most talented team focused on the task at hand - winning the College World Series. Right now, Arizona is ranked first in the country, leads the nation in hitting and pitching and is second in defense.

Brad Dancer - In his second year as head coach of the women's tennis team, Dancer has taken a young squad and molded them into a potential powerhouse in the Pac-10 Conference. Winning three matches against ranked opponents and compiling a 6-2 non-conference record this season, the Wildcats should be in a position to compete for a conference title next season.

Cathy Klein - In her first season as the UA women's soccer coach, Klein led the Wildcats to a 3-15-2 record despite a lineup laden with 12 freshmen. Despite the departure of Chrissy Sanford, who left last spring, Klein made her debut a good starting point for the future.

Rick LaRose - In his 23rd season at the helm of the Arizona men's golf program, LaRose has distinguished himself as being the only coach to win both a men's (1992) and women's (1996) NCAA Championship. LaRose has won eight NCAA Regionals, five Pac-10 Conference titles and three Rolex Match Play crowns. The Golf Coaches Association of America recently named LaRose head coach for the United States in a series of matches between the United States and Japan.

Dave Murray - In his 34th year at UA, Murray has once again churned out successful seasons in cross country and track and field. In cross country, the men's and women's teams both finished 3rd in the conference and in the top-20 at nationals.

Lute Olson - The silver-haired coach's 18th season at Arizona may have been one of the most successful, but it certainly wasn't the easiest. After being named the preseason favorite to win the NCAA title, Olson had to endure the pain of losing his wife, Bobbi. The team struggled while Olson spent several weeks away from the team to mourn the loss. However, after his return in mid-January, Arizona won 18 of its final 21 games and advanced to NCAA championship game against Duke.

Dave Rubio - The women's volleyball coach was honored by the Pac-10 as the league's Co-Coach of the Year. This season, Arizona became the only school other than UCLA or Stanford to win the Pac-10 conference title. Rubio took a program that nine years ago was winless in conference play to its first Elite Eight bid and a No. 5 ranking.

Bill Ryden - In his third year as gymnastics coach, Ryden led the GymCats to the Regional Championships this season. Two UA gymnasts - senior Kara Fry and junior Randi Liljenquist - earned All-American and regional honors. Ryden said his goal next year is for the GymCats to make the NCAA Tournament.

Jerry Stitt - With 15 new pitchers on his staff, Stitt has put together a winning record (28-19) with an all-freshman starting rotation. Stitt has a knack for developing local Tucson talent like Shelley Duncan, Ernie Durazo, Erik Torres and Brian Anderson - all who have made an impact this season. Stitt's team is once again competing for a spot in the NCAA Regional playoffs.

Dick Tomey - Few thought the UA football team would do much in 2000, but Tomey relished the role of the underdog and led the Wildcats to a blistering 5-1 start before losing the team's remaining five games. Though he resigned following the team's final loss - a drubbing by Arizona State at home - Tomey remains the program's winningest coach.

Bill Wright - Wright's men's tennis team made the NCAA Regionals this year despite having one senior, Jari Niskala. The team upset both No. 12 Washington and No. 30 California as two members of last year's recruiting class - Carl Hagman and Whi Kim - played in the No. 3 and No. 4 singles spots. With one senior graduating, Wright will have a veteran team poised for a run next season.