CWRU Sports Overview

A quick primer on all Spartans’ sports

 

When you think of Case Western Reserve University, you probably don’t think of powerhouse athletic teams dominating the competition. However CWRU has an excellent athletics tradition. In the 46 years since the federation of CWRU, Spartan student-athletes have excelled both academically and athletically.

CWRU has 17 varsity sports—nine men’s, eight women’s— and is a member of the University Athletic Association (UAA), a conference in National Collegiate Athletic Association Division III. In football, the Spartans are a member of the Presidents’ Athletic Conference (PAC) as well. The Spartans’ main rival is the Carnegie Mellon University Tartans, another top notch research university.

Blue CWRU, formed in 2014, is the official student section for the Spartans. Members attend all home athletic events, no matter the weather. The following is a quick guide to all of the fall varsity sports here at CWRU. The Spartans’ season kicks off on September 1 when the men’s soccer team faces Mount Union at home and the women’s team travels to Oberlin.

 

Football

Home Venue: DiSanto Field

Head Coach: Greg Debeljak (13th Season, 82-41 record)

Players to Watch: Rob Cuda (QB), Nick Kwon (CB), Zech Medved (TE)

2015 Record: 7-3 (6-2 PAC)

Conference Titles: Six (1984, 1996, 2007-09, 2011)

Playoff Appearances: Three (2007-09)

 

Men’s Soccer

Home Venue: DiSanto Field

Head Coach: Brandon Bianco (Fourth Season, 27-17-9 Record)

Players to Watch: Calvin Boyle (G), Zach Broujos (D), Jacob Grindel (M)

2015 Record: 13-4-1 (4-3-0 UAA)

Conference Titles: Two (2006, 2011)

Playoff Appearances: Two (2006, 2011)

 

Women’s Soccer

Home Venue: DiSanto Field

Head Coach: Tiffany Crooks (Tenth Season, 76-69-21 record)

Players to Watch: Christine Breindel (D), Neha Cheemalavagu (D), Amy Lindberg (F)

2015 Record: 7-7-4 (0-6-1 UAA)

Conference Titles: None

Playoff Appearances: One (2011)

 

Volleyball

Home Venue: Horsburgh Gymnasium

Head Coach: Karen Farrell (15th Season, 287-206 Record)

Players to Watch: Marian Barton (OH), Shannon Carroll (S), Kayla Pfaff (MH)

2015 Record: 25-8 (5-2 UAA)

Conference Titles: None

Playoff Appearances: Two (2010, 2015)

 

Cross Country

Home Course: Squire Valleevue and Valley Ridge Farms

Head Coach: Kathy Lanese (15th Season)

Runners to Watch: Galen Caldwell, Sam Merriman, Isa Torres-Padin

2015 Regional Finish: Fourth (Women), Ninth (Men)

Conference Titles: 15 (1971-77 (men), 1983 (men), 1985-86 (men), 1988 (men), 1993-94 (men), 2006 (women), 2008 (women)

All-Americans: 22

 

Men’s Basketball

Home Venue: Horsburgh Gymnasium

Head Coach: Todd McGuinness (First Season)

Players to Watch: Javier Alvarez (G), Eric Black (F), Colin Zucker (G)

2015-16 Record: 12-15 (5-9 UAA)

Conference Titles: None

Playoff Appearances: None

 

Women’s Basketball

Home Venue: Horsburgh Gymnasium

Head Coach: Jennifer Reimer (10th Season, 107-118)

Players to Watch: Kara Hageman (F), Hillary Hellmann (G/F), Jessica McCoy (G)

2015-16 Record: 8-17 (3-11 UAA)

Conference Titles: None

Playoff Appearances: One (2002)

 

Swimming and Diving

Home Venue: Veale Natatorium

Head Coach: Doug Milliken (Seventh Season)

Athletes to Watch: Drew Hamilton (Free/IM), Oliver Hudgins (Back/Free), Suhan Mestha (Back/IM)

2015-16 Conference Finish: Sixth (Men), Seventh (Women)

Conference Titles: None

Individual National Championships: Four

 

Wrestling

Home Venue: Horsburgh Gymnasium

Head Coach: Danny Song (Second Season, 1-7 Record)

Athletes to Watch: Gavin Dersh-Fisher (184 lbs.), Brian McNamara (heavyweight), Nick Tommas (165 lbs.)

2015-16 Conference Finish: Third

Conference Titles: Five (1988, 1991, 1993-94, 1996)

Individual National Championships: Four

 

Men’s Tennis

Home Venue: Carlton Courts

Head Coach: Todd Wojtkowski (Ninth Season)

Players to Watch: James Fojtasek, Phil Gruber, Robert Stroup

2015-16 Record: 22-8 (2-2 UAA)

Conference Titles: Eight (1972-79)

Individual National Championships: One

 

Women’s Tennis

Home Venue: Carlton Courts

Head Coach: Kirsten Gambrell (Fifth Season)

Players to Watch: Nithya Kanagasegar, Jessica Liu, Peyton Young

2015-16 Record: 14-5 (2-1 UAA)

Conference Titles: None

Individual National Playoff Appearances: Four

 

Baseball

Home Venue: Nobby’s Ballpark

Head Coach: Matt Englander (11th Season, 234-187-2 Record)

Players to Watch: Aaron Cain (OF), Jake Shields (RHP), Daniel Watson (1B/OF)

2016 Record: 26-15 (5-3 UAA)

Conference Titles: Two (2013-14)

Playoff Appearances: Four (2011, 2013-14, 2016)

 

Softball

Home Venue: Mather Park

Head Coach: Josie Henry (Seventh Season, 147-98 Record)

Players to Watch: Katie Dzierwa (P), Grace Tritchler (IF), Annie Wennerberg (P/OF)

2016 Record: 21-19 (2-8 UAA)

Conference Titles: Four (1997-99, 2014)

Playoff Appearances: One (2001)

 

Track and Field

Home Venue: Veale Convocation Center (Indoor), DiSanto Field (Outdoor)

Head Coach: Eric Schmuhl (Fifth Season)

Athletes to Watch: Olivia Newman (Sprints), Temi Omilabu (Throws), Pat Shober (Throws)

2016 Conference Finish: Fourth (Women), Sixth (Men)

Conference Titles: Eight (1972-75, 1978, 1994 Men’s Outdoor; 1994, 1995 Men’s Indoor)

Individual National Championships: Eight
Note: Swimming and diving, cross country and track and field have both men’s and women’s teams. They are combined because they share a coaching staff and schedule. All records are since 1970.