Student-athletes at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls earned the 2009-10 Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference All-Academic Award for their outstanding performance in the classroom.

During the 2009-10 academic year, nearly 50 percent of the student-athletes competing in the conference achieved a 3.0 grade point average or better (on a 4.0 scale) and were named to the Scholastic Honor Roll.

Individuals named to the Scholastic Honor Roll receive a certificate.

“This is another example of how engaged Falcon student-athletes are regarding the academic rigors of college life,” said Athletic Director, Roger Ternes. “They are model students for the young men and women who attend the University of Wisconsin-River Falls to emulate”.

Women’s Head Coach Cindy Holbrook said “It is a great honor for our student athletes. We expect all our players to excel in the classroom and the court.”

The six student athlets from the 2009-2010 season include:

Melissa Carmody   G 5-7 Fr.  Barneveld

Brittany Gregorich   F 5-9 Fr.  Altoona

Tiffany Gregorich   G 5-5 So.  Altoona

Kelli Hilt   G 5-6 Sr.  Lakeville, MN / North HS

Jenna Hanson   G 5-6 Sr.  Altoona

Lindsey Olson   F 6-0 Fr.  Plainview, MN / Plainview-Elgin-Millville HS 

Nikki, Tiff and Tess

Awards handed out at the UW River Falls Women’s Basketball Postseason Banquet. The Falcon players were honored with several awards Sunday April 11.

All players were thanked and honored for there contribution for the 18-7 season. Many great things were accomplished this year

The 18 wins are the most since 1988-1989 season, matching the 2000-2001 team with 18 wins.

13-0 start is the best in school history.

#13 rankings highest ever for the Falcon women.

Maranda Dohrn’s 22 rebounds ties a Falcon single game record.

Tiffany Gregorich’s 30 points is one of the tops in Falcon history.

The Falcon fan attendance almost triples from the prior year.

The Backcourt Club has record membership (first year of the Club so that was easy). Become a member now.

Summer Basketball camps best ever.

Falcon Buddies program has record participation (first year too).

Alumni weekend was special and a fun Alumni game.

The Ball Kids were the best ever always on time and very helpful to the players.

Record number of UWRF Falcon women basketball fans on Facebook. Become a fan of our team now.

Awards handed on this day included:

WIAC players of the week. Maranda Dohrn and Tiffany Gregorich.

Dohrn Named WIAC Basketball Player of the Week

Dohrn, 6-0, scored a career high 23 points and grabbed a career high 22 rebounds in the team’s 57-46 win. The 22 rebounds ties the Falcon record for most rebounds in a game. In the team’s two games last week she scored 33 points and had 28 rebounds. She also had one assist, one blocked shot and two steals.

WIAC Player of the week. Tiffany Gregorich, Sophomore (Altoona), Guard of UW-River Falls

Gregorich helped the Falcons to a perfect week with wins in two WIAC games, including a victory over No. 15-ranked UW-Stevens Point. She finished with a game-high 27 points in a 73-52 triumph at UW-Superior on Dec. 2, converting 9-of-12 shots from the field, including three-of-five from behind the arc. Gregorich also grabbed six rebounds and dished out two assists. In a 72-61 win over the Pointers on Dec. 5, she recorded a team-best 19 points, five assists and three steals. In the two games, she shot 16-of-25 (64.0 percent) from the field, four-of-eight (50.0 percent) from three-point range and 10-of-11 (90.9 percent) from the free-throw line. Her 59 minutes of playing time included 11 rebounds, five steals and four assists. 

Kelli Hilt award WIAC Sportmanship award

The WIAC’s All-Sportsmanship team is for individuals that displayed exemplary sportsmanship throughout the season. The team included one member from each school as selected by that school.

Maranda Dohrn named WIAC honorable mention all conference

Her best game of the year was against Platteville on Feb. 23 when she scored a career-high 23 points and grabbed a career-high 22 rebounds. The 22 rebounds tied the school record. Dohrn was named the team’s Player of the week twice and was named the WIAC Player of the Week on Feb. 23.

Tiffany Gregorich was named to the first team all WIAC and all Defensive team

led the Falcons in scoring averaging 13.8 points a game. She also led the Falcons in assists (56) and was second in steals (47). Gregorich was named the team’s Player of the Week four times and was named the WIAC Player of the Week on Dec. 8.

Guards Tiffany Gregorich (So., Altoona, Wis.) and Kelli Hilt (Sr., Lakeville, Minn. North HS) and forward Maranda Dohrn (So., Lake City, Minn.) have all been named to 2010 All-WIAC teams.

. Dohrn earned honorable mention and Hilt was named to the All-Sportsmanship team.

Gregorich, 5-5, led the Falcons in scoring averaging 13.8 points a game. She also led the Falcons in assists (56) and was second in steals (47). She shot 110-228 (.482) from the field, including 33-87 (.379) from three point range. She finished 65-81 (.802) from the line. Gregorich, who earned honorable mention to the 2009 All-WIAC team, scored a career-high 30 points in the team’s game against Eau Claire on Feb. 3. She also had a career-high eight rebounds in the team’s game against Washington & Jefferson on Dec. 29. She scored in double figures in 16 games. Gregorich was named the team’s Player of the Week four times and was named the WIAC Player of the Week on Dec. 8.

Dohrn, 6-0, averaged seven points and 7.1 rebounds a game for the Falcons. She led the Falcons in rebounding and blocked shots (20). She also had 13 assists and 19 steals. She shot 68-144 (.472) from the field, including 1-5 (.200) from behind the arc. She was 37-59 (.627) at the line. Her best game of the year was against Platteville on Feb. 23 when she scored a career-high 23 points and grabbed a career-high 22 rebounds. The 22 rebounds tied the school record. Dohrn was named the team’s Player of the week twice and was named the WIAC Player of the Week on Feb. 23.

Hilt, 5-6, averaged 6.1 points and 2.7 rebounds a game. She had 38 assists, 41 steals and a blocked shot. She shot 53-134 (.396) from the field, including 5-31 (.161) from three point range. She was 42-63 (.667) from the line. Hilt, who was named to the 2009 All-Sportsmanship team, scored in double digits three times. She twice scored 11 points in a game and had a season-high six rebounds in the team’s game aginast Stouton Jan. 6. The WIAC’s All-Sportsmanship team is for individuals that displayed exemplary sportsmanship throughout the season. The team included one member from each school as selected by that school.

RELEASED:  Thursday, March 4, 2010

UW-Stout’s Hirssig Tops All-WIAC Women’s Basketball Selections; UW-Whitewater’s Carollo Named Coach of the Year

MADISON, Wis.–University of Wisconsin-Stout’s Julia Hirssig was voted the Player of the Year to top the 10 individuals that were voted to the 2009-10 All-Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) Women’s Basketball Team by the league coaches, while UW-Whitewater head coach Keri Carollo was chosen the Coach of the Year.

Hirssig is one of four Blue Devils who have combined to win a total of five conference player of the year plaques.  She leads the WIAC with 21.4 points per game and a .682 field goal percentage, while ranking second with 10.6 rebounds per contest and ninth with 1.74 steals per game.  The .682 field goal percentage (217-of-318) leads the NCAA Division III, while her 579 points established a school single-season record.

Hirssig, who claimed first team honors for the third straight year, started all 27 games and reached double-figures in scoring in 26 contests.  She scored 20-plus points in 20 games, including a career-high tying 37 points at UW-Oshkosh on Jan. 16.  Hirssig tied for the league lead with 14 double-doubles, including nine in the last 12 games.  She grabbed 18 rebounds in back-to-back contests against UW-River Falls on Jan. 23 and UW-La Crosse on Jan. 27.

Her career totals included:  110 games played (including 81 straight starting assignments), 997 rebounds and school-records of 1,738 points, 416 free throws made, 675 free throws attempted and a .619 field goal percentage.  Hirssig’s career field goal percentage and free throws attempted lead the WIAC all-time chart, while her free throws made are third and points are fifth.

Repeat choices on the first team included:  UW-Stevens Point’s Britta Petersen (2009) and UW-Whitewater’s Kelsey Hendrickson (2008, 2009).

Named to the All-Defensive Team were:  UW-La Crosse’s Danielle Frank, UW-River Falls’ Tiffany Gregorich, UW-Stevens Point’s Andrea Flease, UW-Stout’s Julia Hirssig and UW-Whitewater’s Kelsey Hendrickson.  Hirssig received the honor for the third straight year.

Carollo claimed the coaching honor after directing the Warhawks to their second WIAC championship in the last three seasons and fifth in team history.   She is in her eighth year at UW-Whitewater and owns a career mark of 137-80.

An All-Sportsmanship Team was chosen for individuals that displayed exemplary sportsmanship throughout the season.  It included one member from each school.

2009-10 All-WIAC Women’s Basketball Team
First Team
Name, School, Year, Position, Height, Hometown (High School)
Nicole Bundy, Whitewater, Senior, Guard, 5-9, Fredonia (Ozaukee)
Dana Churchill, La Crosse, Junior, Forward, 6-0, Sheboygan (North)
Andrea Flease, Stevens Point, Junior, Guard, 5-5, New London
Tiffany Gregorich, River Falls, Sophomore, Guard, 5-5, Altoona
Kelsey Hendrickson, Whitewater, Senior, Guard, 5-7, Monroe
Julia Hirssig, Stout, Senior, Forward, 5-11, Rochester, Minn. (Mayo)
Hannah Mesick, Eau Claire, Junior, Center, 6-2, Chatfield, Minn.
Stacia Nemitz, Platteville, Senior, Forward, 5-9, Bloomington (River Ridge)
Britta Petersen, Stevens Point, Junior, Forward, 5-11, Luck
Kim Stokke, Stout, Senior, Guard, 5-9, Menomonie

Honorable Mention
Cassie Bandow, Stevens Point, Sophomore, Guard, 5-11, Plover (Pacelli)
Danielle DeWitt, Stout, Senior, Guard/Forward, 5-11, Green Bay (Bay Port)
Maranda Dohrn, River Falls, Sophomore, Forward, 6-0, Lake City, Minn.
Danielle Frank, La Crosse, Junior, Center, 6-4, Caledonia, Minn.
Hailey Hart, Superior, Sophomore, Forward, 5-9, Osseo
Megan Maslowski, Stout, Senior, Forward, 5-11, Marshfield
Ellen Plendl, Eau Claire, Sophomore, Center, 6-5, Chippewa Falls (McDonell)
Charity Stotmeister, Platteville, Senior, Forward, 5-7, Cuba City (Potosi)
Connie Urmanski, Superior, Freshman, Guard, 5-4, Edgar

All-Defensive Team
Andrea Flease, Stevens Point, Junior, Guard, 5-5, New London
Danielle Frank, La Crosse, Junior, Center, 6-4, Caledonia, Minn.
Tiffany Gregorich, River Falls, Sophomore, Guard, 5-5, Altoona
Kelsey Hendrickson, Whitewater, Senior, Guard, 5-7, Monroe
Julia Hirssig, Stout, Senior, Forward, 5-11, Rochester, Minn. (Mayo)

All-Sportsmanship Team
Brittni Buechel, Stevens Point, Sophomore, Center, 6-1, St. Cloud (New Holstein)
Danielle DeWitt, Stout, Senior, Guard/Forward, 5-11, Green Bay (Bay Port)
Ali Gillberg, Eau Claire, Senior, Forward, 5-10, Drummond
Kelli Hilt, River Falls, Senior, Guard, 5-6, Lakeville, Minn. (North)
Melissa Lang, La Crosse, Junior, Guard, 5-10, Greendale
Megan Lund, Oshkosh, Sophomore, Guard, 5-8, Reedsville
Hillary Peterson, Superior, Freshman, Forward/Center, 6-0, Sturgeon Lake, Minn.
Heidi Sonntag, Whitewater, Senior, Guard, 5-6, Milwaukee (Wisconsin Lutheran)
Charity Stotmeister, Platteville, Senior, Forward, 5-7, Cuba City (Potosi)

Player of the Year:  Julia Hirssig of Stout
Judy Kruckman Scholar-Athlete:  Julia Hirssig of Stout
Coach of the Year:  Keri Carollo of Whitewater

By Cristy Brusoe
UWRF Sports Information

Talent runs in the bloodline of the UW-River Falls women basketball team, literally. Tiffany and Brittany Gregorich are the top two scoring leaders for the Falcons.

Tiffany leads the team, averaging 14.2 points per game and scoring 313 points total this season. Brittany comes in second averaging eight points per game and scoring 184 points this season.

Along with playing side-by-side on the court, these teammates are sisters. Brittany Gregorich, who is the younger at 18-years-old, and Tiffany Gregorich, 20-years-old, grew up in Altoona, Wis. Both started playing basketball in second grade. It wasn’t long from then that Brittany (as a junior) and Tiffany (as a senior) went to the state tournament in high school.

Both agreed that it is the competitiveness of basketball that they enjoy most in playing. “I enjoy being competitive and being on a team. Basketball contains both so it is just all around fun and you can always get better,” Tiffany explained.

Tiffany, a point guard for the team, and Brittany, a guard/forward, believe this year’s team has been through its ups and downs, but has stayed strong through the games.

“I think this year’s team is really talented – we have a lot of different players with different strengths,” Brittany said. “We are doing really well with circumstances that have been thrown at us,” Tiffany added.

Both women acknowledged that there are rewards and challenges to playing on the basketball team together.

“I love playing with my sister. We are really close so bringing that on the court is nice. We are both brutally honest with each other. If she does something dumb and no one says anything to her about it, I make sure I make it known,” Tiffany said.

“I have always enjoyed playing with my sister. In middle school I always played with my grade and played up with my sister’s team as well. We are both super competitive and want to win. We click on the court and we bring out the best in each other. We know each other’s strengths and weaknesses and can push each other differently because we are sisters,” Brittany said.

The Gregorich sisters are sometimes so similar in looks and style of play, that even though they are two years apart; they can still easily be mistaken for one another on the court. “Referees will get us mixed up on the court,” Brittany explained.

These similarities ring true even in the sister’s future goals for basketball. “My goals are to get as far as possible each season and to give my all,” Tiffany said. “I want to keep improving as a player and also I want our team to win a conference championship and get a NCAA bid,” Brittany added.

Posted: Monday, February 8, 2010 11:00 pm | Updated: 11:28 pm, Mon Feb 8, 2010.

By Justin Harings Leader-Telegram staff

“We just have a pretty well-balanced team,” UW-River Falls coach Cindy Holbrook said. “I expected a lot out of us this year.”

By anyone’s standards, she’s getting it. Thanks in part to a group of former Altoona standouts, the Falcons (17-4, 9-4) are second in the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, trailing preseason favorite UW-Stevens Point by a half-game with two weeks to play.

If the Falcons can hold steady, they will earn their best finish since winning back-to-back WIAC championships in 1987-’88 and 1988-’89. They have placed third three times since winning those titles but not higher.

“We have a lot of athletic girls,” sophomore guard Tiffany Gregorich said. “I think our main thing is defense.”

Gregorich, who was one of the area’s best prep players before graduating from Altoona, has been a centerpiece since stepping onto campus. She led the Falcons in scoring as a freshman and received honorable mention all-WIAC. Her 15.5 points per game this season are third-best in the league and lead a team that returns every player who started a game last year.

She has been partially supported by five freshmen, including her younger sister, Brittany. The 5-foot-9 forward is third on the team in scoring (7.7 ppg) and second in rebounding (4.7 rpg). The Gregoriches’ contributions emphasize the promise of a team that has but five upperclassmen on the roster.

“It’s a fun year,” Tiffany Gregorich said. “Yeah, we’re young, but we can also learn.”

The Falcons, who were picked to finish sixth by the conference’s sports information directors after finishing last year in that position, have stood at or near the top all season. They won their first 13 games and were ranked nationally by both d3hoops.com and the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association until losing four of five games during a January hiccup. They still were receiving votes in both polls.

“Our sophomores have been really up and down,” said Holbrook, who took over in 2000 and has the second-most wins in program history. “They’ve been unpredictable. There’s no question about it. But we have a good basketball team.”

The victories are coming again now. The Falcons have won three consecutive games, including a rare victory at UW-Eau Claire’s Zorn Arena on Wednesday and a 64-48 statement victory over UW-Whitewater last weekend. They travel to leader UW-Stevens Point for a critical game at 3 p.m. Saturday. The Falcons beat the Pointers at home in December.

“During January, we just kind of dropped our defense a lot,” Tiffany Gregorich said. “We practice on it all the time now. Hopefully, that keeps going.”

Instead of fighting just to gain entrance to the six-team WIAC tournament at the end of this month, the Falcons are contending for one of two first-round byes. They have never played in the championship game of the conference tournament, dating back to 1999.

Perhaps the most telling indicator of the Falcons’ progress is their reluctancy to focus on anything but the present. The longer the Falcons keep playing this season, the better the chance that senior guard Jenna Hanson can return from an injury and finish her collegiate career on the court.

“If we keep going, then she can come back and play for us still,” said Tiffany Gregorich, a friend of Hanson’s dating back to their time at Altoona. “It’d be nice to do it for our seniors because they’ve been here for four years.”

Soon enough, even the youngest Falcons will be on the other end of that sentiment. But not too soon.

“We’ve got a bright future,” Holbrook said. “There’s no question about it. We’ve got a lot to look forward to.”

Here is a link to the article.

Feb. 8, 2010

Guard Tiffany Gregorich (So., Altoona, Wis.) helped the Falcons to two WIAC wins last week. Gregorich, 5-5, started both games in the team’s 83-62 win at UW-Eau Claire and a 64-48 win over UW-Whitewater at the Karges Center. She scored a career-high 30 points in the win at Eau Claire. She also had two rebounds, two assists and three steals. In the win over Whitewater she scored four points and grabbed seven rebounds. She led the team with five assists and she had one steal. Gregorich, the team’s point guard, had just two turnovers in 39 minutes of play against UWW. This year she leads the Falcons averaging 15 points a game. She also leads the team with 53 assists and 42 steals. Gregorich averages 4.3 rebounds a game.

Tiffany Gregorich

 

Feb. 2, 2010

Guard Tiffany Gregorich (So., Altoona, Wis.) had two solid games for the Falcons last week. The Falcons split two WIAC games, winning on Saturday over UW-Oshkosh, 59-50, but losing on Wednesday to UW-Superior, 55-54. Gregorich, 5-5, led the Falcons in scoring in both games. Against Superior she shot 6-10 from the field and 8-9 from the line for 21 points. She also led the team with four assists and three steals. Against Oshkosh she shot 6-8 form the field, including 4-6 from behind the arc. She was 2-2 at the line for 18 points. She led the team with seven rebounds, five assists and two steals. In the two games she was 12-18 (.667) from the field, including 5-10 (.500) from three-point range. She was 10-11 (.909) from the line. Gregorich leads the Falcons in scoring with a 14.7 points per game average. She also leads the team with 46 assists and is second with 38 steals. She also averages 4.2 rebounds a game.

The Falcons won both games in the Classic. On Monday the Falcons beat SUNY-Purchase, 74-21, and on Tuesday defeated Washington & Jefferson, 63-59.

The two wins improved the team’s record to 11-0. The Falcons are ranked No. 20 in the latest D3Hoops.com poll.

Against SUNY-Purchase, Gregorich scored four points and had four rebounds in 16 minutes of playing time. She had one assist and four steals. Holst scored seven points and had four rebounds in the game. She also had two assists and two steals in 15 minutes of action.

Gregorich, a 5-5 guard from Altoona, Wis., led the Falcons in the win over W&J scoring 21 points. She also pulled down eight rebounds, had two assists and three steals. She scored 10 of the team’s last 14 points in the come-from-behind win. The Falcons trailed by eight points with 4:09 to play before rallying for the win. Holst, a 5-8 forward from Plainview, Minn., also had a big game scoring 13 points and she had four rebounds, one steal and a blocked shot.

The Falcons will host St. Scholastica in a non-conference game on Saturday at 5 p.m., at the Karges Center. UWRF returns to WIAC play on Jan. 6 when they host UW-Stout at 6 p.m., at the Karges Center. The Falcons are in first place in the WIAC with a 4-0 record.

Alise Holst

Tiffany Gregorich

Tiffany Gregorich, Sophomore (Altoona), Guard of UW-River Falls
Gregorich helped the Falcons to a perfect week with wins in two WIAC games, including a victory over No. 15-ranked UW-Stevens Point. She finished with a game-high 27 points in a 73-52 triumph at UW-Superior on Dec. 2, converting 9-of-12 shots from the field, including three-of-five from behind the arc. Gregorich also grabbed six rebounds and dished out two assists. In a 72-61 win over the Pointers on Dec. 5, she recorded a team-best 19 points, five assists and three steals. In the two games, she shot 16-of-25 (64.0 percent) from the field, four-of-eight (50.0 percent) from three-point range and 10-of-11 (90.9 percent) from the free-throw line. Her 59 minutes of playing time included 11 rebounds, five steals and four assists. 

Coach Holbrook said, “It’s nice to start our conference season with two wins.  Tiffany played really well both games, we couldn’t ask for more productive minutes.  She shot well, made a ton of hustle plays and really lead our team competitively this week.”

Also nominated:
UW-Eau Claire, Hannah Mesick, Junior, Center, Chatfield, Minn.
UW-La Crosse, Melissa Lang, Junior, Forward, Greendale
UW-Oshkosh, Heidi Baerenwald, Sophomore, Forward, Appleton (East)
UW-Platteville, Stacia Nemitz, Senior, Guard/Forward, Bloomington (River Ridge)
UW-Stevens Point, Britta Petersen, Junior, Post, Luck
UW-Stout, Kim Stokke, Senior, Guard, Menomonie
UW-Whitewater, Dana Thompson, Senior, Center, Belleville

View WIAC info here.