Recruiting QuestionnaireJune 1, 2004
DAVIS, Calif. - Women's golf will become UC Davis' 26th varsity sport when the Aggies begin competition in 2005-06, it was announced on Tuesday by Director of Athletics Greg Warzecka.
Additionally, Kathy DeYoung - among the NCAA's all-time winningest softball coaches who led UC Davis to its first-ever softball national championship in 2003 - is retiring from her position with that program after 26 seasons and will lead the women's golf team into its inaugural season. A national search will be started immediately to find her replacement as softball coach.
The selection of women's golf as the university's newest varsity sport came after a yearlong review of sport options by a committee chaired by Pam Gill-Fisher, Senior Associate Athletics Director. Golf becomes the fourth women's varsity sport at UC Davis added since the 1996-97 academic year, joining rowing, lacrosse and water polo which have each enjoyed tremendous success since their addition to the intercollegiate athletics program.
"Women's golf is becoming an enormously popular NCAA sport," said Warzecka, noting 466 institutions at all three NCAA levels currently offer the sport. "We're excited to offer another opportunity for women to compete athletically at the collegiate level while also gaining a first-class education."
Besides its rising popularity among universities, women's golf is also offered at 27 community colleges in California as well as 639 high schools. Additionally, UC Davis is a future member of the Big West Conference, which currently sponsors a women's golf championship for its six schools that offer the sport. Regional competition is also plentiful with the Pacific-10 Conference, Big Sky Conference and West Coast Conference also sponsoring women's golf championships.
UC Davis currently offers men's golf as well with the Aggies among the top programs at any NCAA level on the west coast. UC Davis captured the NCAA Division II title in 1979. Funding for the new sport is being partially provided by the Campus Expansion Initiative, passed by students in 2002, which increased funding for athletics grants-in-aid.
"There are many benefits to adding women's golf and we're fortunate to be able to do so," said Warzecka. "One of the big pluses is having a coach the caliber of Kathy DeYoung to help establish the program."
DeYoung, a certified United States Golf Teaching Federation professional who teaches golf at UC Davis and has also achieved success locally as a player, is one of the most successful coaches in school history. DeYoung, who coached volleyball at UC Davis for 10 years in the 1970's and 80's and led the Aggies to three fifth-place NCAA finishes, concludes her softball career with an amazing overall record of 777-402-2, including a 417-187 conference mark. She entered the season ranked 21st for all-time victories among all collegiate softball coaches and was fourth among Division II coaches.
DeYoung led UC Davis to 13 postseason berths, eight conference championships, four third-place finishes at the NCAA Championships and the historical national title in 2003. Among her many coaching honors were the 2003 National Coaching Staff of the Year award and a trio of regional Coach of the Year recognitions. Five times she earned conference Coach of the Year honors as well.
She has served successfully as a collegiate head coach in three different sports - softball, volleyball and badminton - during her coaching tenures at Temple University (1976-78) and at UC Davis, reaching the postseason in all three sports. In addition to softball and volleyball she also was an assistant coach in basketball while in graduate school at St. Cloud State University in Minnesota.
DeYoung will begin preparing for the inaugural 2005-06 season over the next year by recruiting players, establishing a schedule and taking steps to build a successful new program.
With the addition of women's golf, UC Davis will offer 14 sports for women and 12 for men. The program is completing its first year of reclassification to NCAA Division I status and will become an active member of that division and the Big West Conference in 2007.
