NCAA president helps Winthrop athletics celebrate top 10 teams in school history
Wednesday, January 26, 2011 at 9:42PM By Jeff Brodeur
brodeurj@mytjnow.com
For all those Winthrop students who decided to hit the gym this past Friday evening, there’s a good chance you noticed something out of the ordinary going on in the West Center lobby.
Dozens of Winthrop student-athletes from past and present showed up dressed in their finest attire as they gathered in the lobby to enjoy a drink and, most importantly, reunite with their former teammates as they were honored as one of Winthrop’s 15 Teams of Distinction.
“This event gives Winthrop athletics an opportunity to recognize 15 teams that were selected based on achievement of certain milestones in their sport,” Athletic Director Tom Hickman said.
The 15 teams of distinction included: 1980-1981 men’s basketball (all-time most wins), 1981 baseball (NAIA World Series runner-up), 1987 softball’s first Big South Championship), 1987-1988 men’s basketball (first Big South Championship), 1988-1989 women’s golf (first Big South Championship), 1994 women’s tennis (first Big South Championship), 1995 baseball (first NCAA baseball bid), 1997 men’s tennis (first Big South Championship and NCAA bid), 2000 men’s cross country (first Big South Championship and NCAA bid), 2002 volleyball (first Big South Championship and NCAA bid), 2002 men’s soccer (first Big South Championship and NCAA bid), 2006 women’s soccer (first Big South Regular Season Championship), 2006-2007 men’s basketball (first NCAA tournament victory), 2007 softball (first NCAA bid) and 2008-2009 women’s basketball (first WNIT bid).
A total of 273 student-athletes and coaches were welcomed at the otherwise invitation-only event.
As several student gym goers passed through, they glanced at the numerous photographs and trophies on display, all to the credit of these men and women of Winthrop’s rich 125 year history. This night was living proof of why we are called the Campus of Champions.
Once everyone had arrived and got a chance to have a drink and socialize, they migrated to the DiGiorgio Campus Center Ballroom, where all the invitees were greeted with a dinner no students would ever confuse with something they’d have at Thomson Café.
A 45-minute video presentation followed shortly after, which documented the entire history and development of Winthrop’s athletics teams, their success along the way, and in essence, why every person who steps foot on this campus should be proud to call themselves a Winthrop Eagle.
The highlight of the event was DiGiorgio’s welcoming of keynote speaker Dr. Mark Emmert, who serves as the fifth president of the National Collegiate Athletic Association.
He addressed the importance of athletics within higher education, but also how he intends to change perception that the NCAA is all about making money, a growing suspicion since signing a $10.8 billion contract with CBS last April.
“We in the NCAA are not in the business of making money…it’s the business of supporting kids to provide them with opportunities to compete at a high level,” he said.
Emmert ensured that out of the $700 million they are making from their new broadcasting contract, 96 percent of that will be given to collegiate athletic departments across the country, a category that would include Winthrop University.
When asked about the decision to expand the men’s NCAA basketball tournament from 65 teams to 68, he stated how mid-major teams are more likely to compete in play-in games, as Winthrop’s men’s basketball did last season.
“The Big South is very likely to get more national exposure…,” Emmert said.
As the night came to a close, Hickman presented Emmert with his very own Winthrop Eagles shirt as a symbol of gratitude for taking the time out of his busy schedule to visit in celebration of the school’s 125 year anniversary.
Just about four years ago, our men’s basketball team was celebrating their first NCAA tournament win over Notre Dame. To this day, people associate this university with that exact milestone.
“It’s amazing how big of an impact sports can have on a school,” Terence Chia said, who was part of the 1997 men’s tennis team that earned Winthrop its first Big South Championship and NCAA bid.
Needless to say, the university has made great strides since opening its doors in 1886 as an all-female institution. Much of this can be thanked to all the great men and women who came out to be honored by the
Athletic Department for helping make this school as we see it today.
