UIS athletics ready for another exciting year
Although the calendar says that summer is still here for another month, the 2022-23 athletic year is already underway as our UIS student-athletes began returning to campus at the beginning of the month.
Last year proved to be a memorable one with much success for the Prairie Stars. In the fall, the men’s soccer team had its best season since legendary head coach Aydin Gonulsen was roaming the sidelines. UIS was one game away from winning a GLVC Regular Season Championship and advanced to the conference tournament championship game. The Prairie Stars earned their first NCAA Tournament berth and sent a huge crowd away from Kiwanis Stadium happy after a thrilling 2-1 win over Maryville University in the national postseason tournament.
Last winter, the top scorer in UIS history, Lauren Ladowski, led the women’s basketball team to its best season in its D-2 history. The Prairie Stars traveled to Peoria and defeated NCAA Division I Bradley University during the regular season. In front of an electric home crowd, they capped off the season with their first GLVC Tournament victory over Missouri S&T.
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The spring ushered in a historic run by the UIS baseball team. The Prairie Stars have been the No. 1 program in the NCAA Midwest Region for five years and finally broke through in 2022 with a ticket to the NCAA Division II National Championship Tournament. Along the way, UIS Baseball won another GLVC regular season and regional championship, and its first GLVC Tournament Championship. The team clinched a trip to Cary, N.C., at home with an exciting victory over Quincy University, securing the first Super Regional Championship. While in Cary, the team participated in some community engagement, the tradition of Division II, as they spent an afternoon at the Raleigh Boys Club.
There were many more accomplishments throughout the year, including cross country and track having four national qualifiers and two GLVC champions, women’s golf having a NCAA regional qualifier, and softball having its fifth 30-win season in program history. UIS had four All-Americans, won 18 all-region awards, and had 34 all-GLVC honors — all while still maintaining a cumulative GPA of over 3.4.
After arriving in Springfield late last September as the new athletic director, I am excited to begin my first full academic year. This fall we are welcoming some new faces in the coaching ranks as Summer Quesenberry takes the helm of the women’s basketball program. After serving in an assistant role, alum Emmons King will serve as interim men’s and women’s cross country/track & field coach this year. Ross Graham joins the Prairie Stars as interim head men’s & women’s tennis coach for the upcoming season.
With the challenges of the past couple of years behind us, this year will see the Prairie Stars out in the community at a much higher level. We look forward to working with youth in the area though the local schools and community organizations. We are also looking forward to reconnecting with our alumni and developing new relationships with local businesses.
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The NCAA Division II student-athlete advisory committee (SAAC) adopted an overarching goal to provide all student-athletes with opportunities to develop into a “total package student-athlete.” One of the components of this goal is professional development, and we know our alumni and community partners will be great resources and mentors in this endeavor.
Competition begins soon, and we invite everyone to come out to campus to see our exceptional student-athletes in action doing what they love. A few important dates for the fall seasons: Women’s soccer kicks off the home slate of games against Wisconsin-Parkside on Aug. 25, and men’s soccer has Parkside as their first opponent at Kiwanis on Aug. 31. Women’s volleyball and men’s & women’s cross country begin their home competitions on Sept. 9. Homecoming this year is Sept. 23, and that is also the date to save for a celebration of the UIS baseball team’s accomplishments.
Stay up to date with all schedules on uisprairiestars.com and follow us on social media for the latest news. GO STARS!
Laura Liesman is the UIS director of athletics.
This article originally appeared on State Journal-Register: UIS athletics ready for another exciting year
