Katherine Haney

SPRINGFIELD, Ohio - Former Denison University lacrosse standout Katherine Haney has been named head women's lacrosse coach at Wittenberg University, Director of Athletics and Recreation Garnett Purnell announced.

Haney replaces Nancy Beck, who held the position for 17 years before leaving Wittenberg in May. She joins the Tigers after spending the 2002-03 school year as an assistant women's lacrosse and women's soccer coach at Utica College, an NCAA Division III institution like Wittenberg and Denison located in Utica, N.Y. Previously, Haney spent two years as head girl's lacrosse coach at Smoky Hills High School in Aurora, Colo., and she also has experience coaching Team Colorado in the annual Vail Shootout and assisting with the Mountain Region National Team.

"I believe that the Wittenberg women's lacrosse program is past-due," said Haney, who graduated from Denison in 2000 with a bachelor of arts after majoring in history and minoring in English. "This program is capable of competing not just in the North Coast Athletic Conference but on a national level."

As a player, Haney helped the Big Red, one of Wittenberg's NCAC rivals, to two conference championships and two berths in the NCAA Division III Tournament. Denison posted four straight winning seasons and finished the NCAC regular season with perfect 7-0 records in 1998, 1999 and 2000. Haney was the team's starting goaltender from 1996-2000, and she played at least three-quarters of the minutes of each season in the net. In 2000, Haney had her finest season, posting a save percentage above .500 and earning first-team All-NCAC and first-team All-West Region.

Haney, a native of Atlanta, graduated from Episcopal High School in Alexandria, Va., where she was a standout in lacrosse. In addition to her duties as head women's lacrosse coach at Wittenberg, Haney will serve as an assistant coach with the Tiger field hockey program.

Wittenberg women's lacrosse concluded the 2003 season with records of 8-6 overall and 5-2 in the NCAC, the program's best conference finish ever. Six players earned All-NCAC honors, and five of them went on to garner all-region recognition. Jenny Burns, who will be a junior in 2003-04, was named third-team All-America.