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Women's Basketball NWC Athletic Communications

The Road to 1,000 Wins

ORANGE CITY, Iowa – With 1,000 wins and 54 seasons passed, the history of Northwestern women's basketball has set a strong basis for what is to come.

Since the program's inception in 1970, Northwestern has seen decades of success. Under the direction of eight different head coaches, the Raiders have honored 47 All-Americans, six NAIA Players of the Year, and countless all-conference selections. Northwestern has five national titles and has made the NAIA tournament 20 times and counting, winning 53 games in the tournament.

As a budding program, Northwestern captured winning records in 10 of its first 17 seasons, setting a foundation for what was to come. In the 1998-99 season, the Raiders broke into the national tournament for the first time, setting the stage for a tradition of winning under fifth-year coach Earl Woudstra. It only took three years of postseason play to pick up the program's first championship in 2001, defeating Albertson College 77-50, led by two time NAIA Player of the Year, Rachel Binneboese. 

Perhaps the greatest run in program history came between the years of 2008 and 2012, when the Raiders collected four national championships in five seasons. During that span, Northwestern went 155-24. That era was highlighted with All-American honors for Red Raider greats Deb Remmerde, Amy Larson, Becca Hurley, Randa Hulstein, Kendra De Jong, and Kami Kuhlmann. For his career, Woudstra was the owner of four national titles and 403 wins and was a four-time NAIA Coach of the Year.

"It was a great privilege to coach the outstanding women who were a part of Red Raider basketball," Woudstra stated. "We enjoyed some wonderful success on the court, but more importantly the women honored Christ through the use of their gifts, and so many lifelong relationships were formed. I am so grateful to witness the way Coach Yaw continued the tradition of excellence and for the continued success for Raider basketball under the leadership of Coach Rotert and her staff."

Change came prior to the 2011-12 season, within Northwestern's championship run, as Chris Yaw stepped up from his assistant coaching position to take the helm. Yaw's teams found immediate success, winning 28 games and defeating College of the Ozarks for the 2012 NAIA Division II National Championship. Northwestern made it to the semifinals three more times in Yaw's tenure, winning 224 games at a 70% winning percentage.

"There have been numerous coaches, players, and families that have contributed to the success of the Red Raider women's basketball program," Yaw added. "A special recognition and thank you to those players, families, assistant coaches, and Earl Woudstra for pushing the program to burst onto the national scene beginning in the late 1990s. There was a special foundation and tradition built during this time that I was able to be part of as an assistant and as a head coach! I am grateful to have been able to meet and get to know so many outstanding young women and their families through my coaching opportunity and to have locked arms with these people to glorify God through the growing and sharing of the gifts given to all of us."

Now, under the direction of fourth-year head coach Kristin Rotert, the Red Raiders have set their sights toward the future. Northwestern has made the NAIA tournament in each of the last three seasons, all under the new, one-division format of the field. Rotert picked up her first NAIA postseason win last season when the Raiders took down Rio Grande in the First Round, led by a 34-point, 17-rebound performance from Molly Schany.

"It's an incredible honor for me to get to play a very small part in this program milestone," Rotert commented. "So many incredible coaches and players have come before me to build the legacy of this program. Our staff and players are grateful and humbled to get to celebrate this milestone and we hope to continue to build upon the success and tradition of Red Raider women's basketball."
Don't forget to follow Northwestern College Athletics on Facebook @nwcraiders, Twitter @nwcraiders, and Instagram @nwcraiders! #RaidersStandOut
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Players Mentioned

Molly Schany

#34 Molly Schany

F
6' 1"
Senior

Players Mentioned

Molly Schany

#34 Molly Schany

6' 1"
Senior
F