Northwestern University Athletics
Kelly Amonte Hiller Named IWLCA National Coach of the Year
7/1/2008 12:00:00 AM | Women's Lacrosse
July 1, 2008
EVANSTON, Ill. -- After leading the Wildcats to a 21-1 record and a fourth-straight national championship, Kelly Amonte Hiller has been named the Division I National Coach of the Year by the Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA). It marks the second time Amonte Hiller has captured the award, also being honored in 2005 after Northwestern's first national championship.
It was a season of milestones for the Wildcats, and Amonte Hiller was no exception. She recorded her 100th career victory on the NU sideline with a 14-8 victory over Vanderbilt on March 30, and currently boasts an overall record of 111-24 (.822) over the past eight seasons. Amonte Hiller has won 23 consecutive American Lacrosse games and the last six ALC championships. She is even more productive in the postseason, as Northwestern has compiled a 17-1 record under Amonte Hiller in the NCAA tournament, including 16 straight tournament victories. Her .944 winning percentage is tops all-time in NCAA Championship history.
Amonte Hiller has also been a mentor to a handful of the top lacrosse players. She has coached the last three Tewaaraton Trophy winners (Kristen Kjellman in 2006 and 2007 and Hannah Nielsen in 2008) and over two dozen All-Americans in the past eight seasons. A four-time All-American player at Maryland, Amonte Hiller helped lead the Terrapins to the national championship in 1995 and 1996, bringing her career total of national championship rings to six.
IWLCA Division I Coaches of the Year
National Coach of the Year: Kelly Amonte Hiller, Northwestern
Regional Coaches of the Year:
Mid-Atlantic: Karin Brower, Pennsylvania
Northeast: Gary Gait, Syracuse
South: Amy Bokker, George Mason
West/Midwest: Kelly Amonte Hiller, Northwestern
