For Immediate Release
Thursday, June 11, 2015
NSIC Media Relations
Full PDF Release
NSIC Hall of Fame
BURNSVILLE, Minn. — The Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) has announced its 2015
Hall of Fame Inductees. The induction ceremony will be held Wednesday, July 15 at the Best Western Premier in Burnsville, Minn. at the NSIC’s 16th annual Summer Kickoff event. A social will begin at 6:30 p.m. followed by the ceremony at 7 p.m. Reserve your tickets for the banquet by visiting
www.NorthernSun.org/SummerKickoff and filling out the online Hall of Fame Banquet Registration Form. Registration is due by June 26 as space is limited for this event.
The class of 2015 includes:
Patti (Fitzgerald) Zwiers, Bemidji State University;
Jennifer Pozzani, Concordia University, St. Paul;
Jennifer (Warrick) Reierson, University of Minnesota Duluth;
Lynn (Peterson) Murray, Minnesota State University, Mankato;
Larry Scott, Minnesota State University Moorhead;
Jammie (Coyle) Raba, Northern State University;
John K. Sterner, Southwest Minnesota State University; and
Sarah (Herrick) Wagenfuhr, Wayne State College.
Founded in 1986, the Northern Intercollegiate Conference (NIC - the former men’s conference) Hall of Fame was established to recognize and honor those who made significant contributions to the conference, to create favorable publicity and public relations for the league and to help preserve the history of the NIC, its member institutions, student-athletes, and other significant individuals affiliated with the league. For the first two inductions (1986 and 1990) each selection hailed from the NIC. In 1992-93, the Northern Sun Conference (NSC - the former women’s conference) and the NIC merged, creating the current Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC). After annual inductions since 2000, the NSIC Hall of Fame now boasts 181 members and one team.
The 23-member Class of 2000 was the first to include standout female student-athletes in the former NSC. The 2000 inductees entered the Hall at the inaugural NSIC Summer Kickoff Event in Becker, Minn. The distinguished class of 2001 was enshrined in Willmar, Minn., as the conference moved the annual Summer Kickoff Event. This year’s NSIC Hall of Fame includes eight prominent inductees that are being recognized at the 16th annual NSIC Summer Kickoff Event, at its new home in Burnsville, Minn.
Each NSIC school (who has been a league member for at least ten years) is asked to submit one candidate per institution for induction into the Hall. Each of the selectees are derived from individuals who have been affiliated with the NSIC, NIC, NSC and their member institutions.
In order to be eligible for the NSIC Hall of Fame, candidates must have made their contributions in one of the following areas: 1) former student-athletes, 2) administrator/coach, 3) official/supervisor/coordinator, 4) contributor/supporter, or 5) team. The conference provides two plaques, one of which will go to the inductee and one to the institution represented. A history of each inductee will be kept in the league office and each institution will prominently display the plaques of their respective NSIC Hall of Fame inductees.
Patti (Fitzgerald) Zwiers
Bemidji State University
Track & Field
Patti (Fitzgerald) Zwiers was a three-year letter winner for the Bemidji State University women’s track and field team and head coach Jan Berg. She earned All-Northern Sun Conference (NSC) honors six times and was a five-time All-American in the shot put. She won the NSC shot put titles in 1988 and 1989 and posted a conference record of 44-10.5 en route to the 1988 outdoor shot put championship. The Beavers finished second at both the 1988 NSC Outdoor Championship and the 1989 NSC Indoor Championship. Fitzgerald qualified for the NAIA National Championships six times, earning the 1989 indoor shot put national championship with a heave of 44-08. A three-time team captain, Fitzgerald was selected as BSU’s Most Valuable Player in 1988 and was tabbed NSC Field Athlete of the Year in 1989. She left Bemidji State as the indoor shot put record holder at 45-3.75. Fitzgerald also shined in the classroom, where she was named an NAIA Scholar-Athlete in 1989 and earned NAIA Academic All-America accolades in 1988, 1989 and 1990. She graduated Magna Cum Laude in 1990 with a degree in Math Education. Patti and her husband John have three children, Zak, Thomas and Natalie, and reside in Fergus Falls, Minn.
Jennifer Pozzani
Concordia University, St. Paul
Basketball / Softball
Jennifer Pozzani was an All-NSIC First Team performer in basketball and softball helping Concordia University, St. Paul to three NSIC Tournament Championships, an NSIC regular season basketball title and five total NCAA Tournament appearances. She helped the basketball team reach the NCAA Tournament in Concordia’s first year eligible for post season play in 2002-03, led the program to its first NCAA Tournament win in 2003-04 and to the NCAA Sweet Sixteen in 2004-05. She helped the softball team reach the program’s first NCAA Tournament in the spring of 2004, reaching the NCAA Sweet Sixteen, and the following year the Golden Bears won the regional title and advanced to the Elite Eight.
In basketball, Pozzani was a two-time NSIC Defensive Player of the Year, yet had the offensive firepower to set the school scoring record (1,647) which stood for 10 years. She also had the highest single season field goal percentage (57.3%) and still holds the career steals record (245). She earned 2005 NSIC Tournament MVP honors as well as being named to the NCAA North Central All-Tournament Team. Pozzani helped turn around a program that had produced 10-straight losing seasons. She earned NSIC Freshman of the Year honors as she led the Golden Bears to four 20-plus win seasons in her four years with a 96-27 overall record, and a 52-14 record in NSIC play.
In softball, her acumen was similar. Pozzani excelled defensively in centerfield, yet she also held a .309 career batting average, including a career-high .355 average as a senior. She was able to run the bases with 39 steals in 46 tries.
Her Hall of Fame candidacy can be summed up by her impact as a senior. After leading women’s basketball to the NCAA Sweet Sixteen, Pozzani transitioned immediately to the softball diamond. The team was 9-10 until Pozzani rejoined the lineup, going 35-5 the rest of the year as she was inserted into center field and the leadoff spot in the lineup to lead the team to a regional championship and the NCAA Elite Eight.
Pozzani graduated from Concordia-St. Paul in 2005 and went on to earn a master’s degree from National-Louis University in 2011. She is currently a teacher in her hometown of Beloit, Wis.
Jennifer (Warrick) Reierson
University of Minnesota Duluth
Soccer
Jennifer (Warrick) Reierson was a standout on the University of Minnesota Duluth women’s soccer team. The Lino Lakes, Minn., product was a three-time NSCAA All-Central Region second team selection (1998-2000) and became the first Bulldog to secured a spot on the All-NSIC team all four seasons. She was named NSIC Player of the Year as a sophomore in 1999 and the NSIC Tournament Most Valuable Player as a senior in 2001. Warrick captained the 2001 Bulldogs to their third NSIC title in four years as she reigned as UMD’s all-time leader in goals (52) and points (125) until this past fall. She paced UMD in scoring as a rookie, sophomore and senior, racking up a school-record 15 goals in both 1998 and 1999 and still holds a share of the Bulldog single-game mark for points with eight. She continues to work with the team as a volunteer assistant coach, with the Bulldogs since 2012. Warrick became the first soccer player to be inducted into the UMD’s Hall of Fame when she was enshrined in 2013. Warrick was a standout in the classroom as well, earning NSCAA Scholar All-American recognition in both 2000 and 2001 and was a three-time NSIC All-Academic Team member. After graduating from UMD with a degree in Communication and Spanish, she went on to receive her PhD from North Dakota State University in Communication and Public Relations/Risk+Crisis Communication. She returned to UMD to work as an assistant professor in the Department of Communication and currently teaches in the Labovitz School of Business and Economics and works as a Public Relations Strategist for the Flint Group of Agencies. She and her husband Andy, have two children, Hayden and Campbell, and reside in Duluth, Minn.
Lynn (Peterson) Murray
Minnesota State University, Mankato
Basketball
Lynn (Peterson) Murray was a four-year letterwinner at Minnesota State University, Mankato as she set 19 career, season and game records on the basketball court. She still holds the MSU season records for most points (799), scoring average (24.9), field goals attempted (656), field goals made (318) and free throws attempted (183), setting all of them during the 1980-81 season. The Bricelyn, Minn. native also holds individual game records for most points (43 vs. Minnesota Duluth) and most field goals made (18). The 43 points, which was an NSIC record, is just one point shy of the current record, while the 18 field goals made still stands as the best ever in the NSIC. She ranks fifth on MSU’s career scoring list with 1,518 points and was named MSU’s Outstanding Senior Female Athlete for the 1980-81 academic year. Peterson was named All-Region twice and was team captain and the Maverick’s Most Valuable Player in 1980-81. Peterson led the Northern Sun Conference in scoring in 1980-81 with 28.6 points per game. She graduated Magnum Cum Laude with a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration in 1981 and earned Academic All-American honors in 1979-80. She played for Minnesota Fillies Women’s professional basketball team and was a 1992 Minnesota State Athletics Hall of Fame inductee. She currently works with IBM in Rochester, Minn. as a Advisory Financial Analyst. Lynn and her husband Dave have two children, Stephanie and Jackson and reside in Rochester, Minn.
Larry Scott
Minnesota State University Moorhead
Sports Information
A native of Alexandria, Minn., Larry Scott spent 40 years as sports information director at Minnesota State University Moorhead before retiring in 2009.
A 1963 graduate of Alexandria High School, Scott received a B.S. degree in English from Moorhead State in 1967 and was appointed the first full-time MSC SID in 1969. Scott was named sports publicist of the Northern Intercollegiate Conference as well in 1970 working with the league until 2006.
Scott filled a three-year term (1984-87) as a college division representative on the Board of Directors of the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA). Scott was presented the Ike Pearson award as NAIA SID of the Year in 1990 and received the Distinguished Service Award from MSUM in 1988. Scott was inducted into the CoSIDA Hall of Fame in 1991 and the Dragon Hall of Fame in 2009.
A member of the Roger Maris Celebrity Benefit Golf Tournament Committee, Scott served on the media relations committee for NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Final Fours in 1992 and 2001.
Scott won 107 national awards for athletic publications, including 25 “Best in the Nation” certificates and is an adjunct professor in the MSU Moorhead Mass Communications department.
A member of the MSUM football broadcast team, Scott has worked 494 consecutive Dragon football games since 1967. He has also published a book on the life and legacy Ross Fortier, the legendary MSUM football coach that transformed the Dragons into a major player on the regional and national levels.
Jammie (Coyle) Raba
Northern State University
Basketball
Jammie (Coyle) Raba did it all for the Northern State University Women’s Basketball team during her tenure from 1996 through 2000. Coyle ranks second in school history with 1,856 career points as she averaged 16.1 points per game over her career, including a career high 37 point performance. Coyle was the NSIC Scoring Champion in both 1997-98 and 1999-00 seasons, averaging 18.8 and 18.6 point respectively in conference play. Coyle, the NSIC Player of the Year in 1999-00, was a three-time All-NSIC performer and five-time NSIC Player of the Week. She led the NSIC in steals as a junior with 2.8 swipes per game and in the 1999-00 season she was named MVP of the Disney Tip-Off Classic, scoring 80 points in three games, breaking eight tournament records. That same season she earned All-American accolades after tallying 581 points to average 18.2 points per game. In her freshman and sophomore seasons, the Wolves tallied back-to-back NSIC Championships, and took second in her junior and senior seasons. Northern State made three regional appearances during her tenure (1996-97, 1997-98, 1999-00). Coyle earned her B.S. in elementary education from NSU in 2000 and an M.S. in Educational Administration from South Dakota State University in 2006. Coyle was inducted into the NSU Hall of Fame in 2010. She now lives in Belle Fourche, S.D. with her husband Matthew and their two sons Gabriel and Benjamin, where she teaches middle school language arts.
John K. Sterner
Southwest Minnesota State University
Wrestling / Football
John K. Sterner was a wrestler and played football at Southwest Minnesota State University from 1984-1989. He was a member of three Northern Intercollegiate Conference (NIC) Wrestling Championship teams and became the first SMSU national champion in 1989. The 190 pound wrestler completed the year with a 38-2 record while finishing with a career record of 100-21 (.826), which ranks in the top five in career winning percentage in school history. Sterner, a native of Marshall, Minn., was NIC Champion in 1987 and 1989 and was NIC runner-up in 1985. He qualified for the NAIA National Championships all four years and was a two-time NAIA All-American (1987 & 1989). Sterner also played football for four seasons under head coach Gary Buer. A linebacker for the Mustangs, he finished his career with 140 tackles and six and a half sacks. His best season came in 1986 when he had 57 tackles including eight for loss and five fumble recoveries. Sterner was part of a Mustang squad that recorded the school’s first ever wins over MSU Moorhead, Minnesota-Morris and Minnesota Duluth.
Sterner also was a finalist in the discus and the javelin on the 1985 Mustang track & field squad that finished second in the NIC.
Sterner served as head wrestling coach at SMSU for nine season from 1998 to 2007. He led the Mustangs to the 2001 NSIC Championship and was named NSIC Coach of the Year in 2001 and 2003. He also was named Midwest Region Coach of the Year in 2003. Sterner coached 19 Division II national qualifiers, including five All-Americans and also coached two NSIC wrestlers of the year. IN 1998 Sterner coached Link Steffen to an undefeated season and a NCAA II National Championship. Sterner was inducted into the SMSU Hall of Honor in 2005.
Sterner is currently an adjunct faculty member in the Fine Arts & Communications department at SMSU. He and his wife Tracy have two children, Elijah and Julia, and reside in Marshall, Minn.