Time to look beyond big name athletic schools for college sports dynasties
Tuesday, May 26th, 2009There is a new dynasty in college sports that has flown under the radar that deserves some recognition. Turn on ESPN and you’ll hear plenty about college sports such as NCAA basketball and football, and hot-dog eating for that matter. Robert J. Elisburg writes in the Huffington Post that athletic powerhouse schools have a new college to contend with, Northwestern.
Chances are you haven’t heard much from the woman’s lacrosse world. It’s even less likely that you’re aware of the amazing accomplishments of the Northwestern Wildcats woman’s lacrosse team, winner of 5 National Championships in a row. This kind of a winning streak just doesn’t happen. Many of the best players leave college to join to pros, or graduate. This means the composition of the team is constantly changing, making it hard to consistently win. A dynasty at the college level is a rare feat indeed.Well these girls aren’t playing for money, or their future: they play because they love the game.
North Carolina, Texas, Notre Dame, UCLA and Florida are well known for their top notch sports teams, but not Northwestern. That’s one reason why this championship winning streak comes as a surprise. Northwestern is typically the school renowned for its contributions to academia, science, politics, and law. The school has rigorous entrance requirements, with only 31% of applicants offered enrollment.
Northwestern’s sleeper athletics department is an unprecedented success. The Wildcats, with leadership of head coach Kelly Amonte Hiller, have broken record after record this year: the first non-eastern team to win the championship, the all-time record for most goals in a championship game, as well as the biggest margin of victory in a championship game (21-7).
Are you looking for a rigorous learning environment or a place with great team spirit? Thanks to the Northwestern Wildcats, there’s proof that you don’t have to belong to a big name sports college to win championships. You can have the best of both worlds.
