Football and Men's Basketball Highlight 2015-16 Spartan Athletics
Jun 17, 2016
DUBUQUE, Iowa - Highlighted by a pair of Iowa Conference champions, football and men’s basketball, the men set a school record by placing second overall in the Iowa Conference all-sports standings while the women placed eighth. Together, the University of Dubuque ended up fourth overall.
Both Spartan champions left their marks with football winning their second IIAC title since 2011 in their first undefeated IIAC slate (7-0) since 1979 and men’s basketball securing their first regular season IIAC title since 1990.
It was the first time in school history both teams have claimed IIAC Championships in the same season.
Andre Norris led the charge for men’s basketball as a consensus All-American, two-time IIAC MVP, one-time IIAC Defensive Player of the Year, and the leading scorer in UD history.
The senior was named UD’s Male Senior Student-Athlete of the Year along with women’s soccer defender, Kim Trinco, who represented the female award winner. Trinco started 72 of 75 career games and anchored a defensive backline that won women’s soccer their first-ever IIAC regular season title in 2015.
The Schaumburg, Ill. native became the third straight women’s soccer player to win the female award.
Below are Twitter-like recaps of every intercollegiate Spartan sport and a next level stat for the 2015-16 season!
Fall 2015
WSOC: “Lynn, Trinco both 1st Tm All-IIAC, add in Rosas and trio winningest (53 W) class in UD WSOC. #jUstDoit 4th straight yr, 5+ All-IIAC plyrs”
Stat: No. 2 – Highest ever NSCAA Regional ranking in school history, also climbed to No. 24 nationally
MSOC: “Gonzalo UD’s 1st-ever IIAC MVP, All-Region, leads to 1st-ever UD tourn title match. Best NSCAA region rank (7) since ’12. #EyesonthePrize
Stat: 83% - Spartans put 5 of 6 shots on goal, but fell in IIAC tournament title game to eventual national runner-ups, 1-0, thanks to a 50th minute goal
FBALL: IIAC CHAMPS! 1st undefeated IIAC slate (7-0) since ’79, 2nd title in 5 yrs. Snitker DEF MVP, Zweifel COY. UD record 17 All-IIAC. #CHAMPS
Stat: 21 – Outscored IIAC opponent by an average of 21 points per game, includes 45-13 romp over #13 Wartburg on Homecoming and fifth-straight Key City win at Loras, 42-7.
WTENN: Martinez All-IIAC singles, Flight A runner-up for 2x time. Joers wins IIAC Flight C, only 1st yr named All-IIAC. #BuildingBlocks
Stat: 21 – Martinez only needs 21 overall (singles + doubles) wins to secure the all-time UD women’s record, already has 47 through her first two seasons.
VBALL: Basierak 1st 4-time All-IIAC in UD VBALL, 3rd in NCAA in career kills. Led UD to most wins (17) since ’07, 5th straight IIAC berth #LEGEND
Stat: 8th – Basierak ranked eighth nationally in total kills and total attacks during her final season.
MXC: Bass 1st All-IIAC for UD since 2000, 2nd best time (26:16) ever. UD 6th in IIAC w/ new HC Gundlach. 2 Seniors on Varsity #YouthMovement
Stat: 1959-62 – In fall of 2016, Bass aims for back-to-back, Top-10 IIAC finishes for the first time since the Spartans’ Peter Boyd accomplished the feat from 1959-1962.
WXC: Ortiz 1st 2x 1st-team All-IIAC UD woman, smashes SR (22:25), and All-Region. Gundlach 1st-year HC, 7th at IIAC. No seniors! #UpandUp
Stat: 0.7 – Ortiz was 0.7 seconds away and one spot out from qualifying for the Division III National Championships.
Winter 2015-16
WBKB: Brinker drops 41 pts in OT vs. Loras in front of 2100+, earns nat’l honor. #Ballin Two games in Puerto Rico and hosted tourn w/ 3 UD alums
Stat: 64.7 – Brinker added 14 rebounds to go with 17 made field goals, both career-highs, in 41-point explosion. Eleven of 17 (64.7%) made FG were jumpers.
MBKB: IIAC CHAMPS! Norris (2x IIAC MVP + DPOY + UD all-time scorer) led UD to 1st IIAC reg. ssn title since ’90 #GOAT BEAT Loras in front of 2600+
Stat: 1936 – Career points for Andre Norris, who became UD’s all-time leading scorer in his final game. Norris also anchored winningest senior class in UD history with 83 total wins.
WREST: UD wins school record, 13 duals, incl. 8 in a row. Collier all-time UD pins leader. 3 seniors w/ 20+ wins. UD 5th in IIAC. #Reload
Stat: +164 – UD outscored opponents, 261-97 (+164), over the course of their school-record, eight-match win streak that included IIAC opponent, Simpson.
MITF: Murfin broke 34-yr UD SP and 13-yr UD WT school records, 10th in nation in WT, 1 of 3 1st-time IIAC Champs. #jUstDoit UD 5th in IIAC
Stat: 64+ - Distance standout and two-time All-IIAC indoor performer, Alec Bass, crushed school records in the mile, 3000m, and 5000m by over a minute combined (64+ seconds). Lost out on 3000m IIAC CShip by 0.02 seconds.
WITF: Atwater wins IIAC SP, places 12th at Nat’l C’Ships. UD throwers score 40 of 82 pts as UD 4th at IIAC CShips. 6 All-IIAC. #SpinningandWinning
Stat: 46 – Atwater won 8 of 10 indoor shot put events in 2016, qualified for her first National Championships, and improved her previous indoor best by 46 inches or 3’10”.
Spring 2016
WLAX: UD wins school record 11 games, incl. 7 in a row. Schirmers all-time scorer. Wetherald (record 55 goals in 2016) and Esparza All-CCIW #RISE
Stat: 231 – Career goals by departing seniors and Top-2 scorers in UD’s history, Bridget Schirmers (all-time leader with 132), and Kelly Wetherald (99).
MLAX: Just missed out on final CCIW Tourn spot. BIGGEST win in history, 17-1, under 1st-yr HC Burst. Julius led team w/ 36 pts. #WinningWays
Stat: 52.6 – Freshman Michael Julius dished out 10 of his team-high 19 assists (52.6%) in 17-1 win over Carroll (Wis.) in second-to-last game of season. He also added 3 goals in win.
BSB: Clinch 1st IIAC tourn berth since ’05! UD 5th in IIAC. McWhite (led UD .367 BA), Stumpf, and Garst All-IIAC. Van Dyke IIAC AOW. #OurTime
Stat: 18 – Spartans held Central scoreless for 18 straight innings in first-ever, four-game Iowa Conference sweep in school history on Senior weekend. Outscored Dutch, 26-7.
SBALL: Kuras w/ 1st career All-IIAC honor. Season-high 17 runs in 17-10 W over Loras in Strikeout Cancer game, combined to raise $4000+. #KCancer
Stat: 7 – UD batters who registered at least one RBI and one run in win over Loras. Three Spartans each posted three hits as UD set single-game season-highs in runs, hits, and RBIs.
MOTF: Link is Discus All-Amer., places 7th. Murfin wins IIAC SP and HT, UD’s 1st-ever IIAC Field MVP as UD 4th. 4 IIAC Champs, 9 All-IIAC. #Represent
Stat: 34 – years since UD’s only other throwing All-American, Keith Graves, in 1982.
WOTF: Atwater SP All-Amer. and UD’s 1st-ever IIAC Field MVP. UD sets record w/ 3rd and 124 pts at IIAC CShips. 3 IIAC Champs, 9 All-IIAC. #TrendSetters
Stat: 37.1% - Led by Atwater, six UD throwers combined for 5 All-IIAC performances and 46 of 124 points by the Spartans.
MTENN: UD made 2nd straight IIAC tourn, Sablay named IIAC HM for 2nd time. Beat Loras for 13th straight time. #UDominate
Stat: +23 – Outscored their opponents, 34-11, in their five total team wins.
MGOLF: Shere earns All-IIAC after T4th (+14) thnx to best rd of tourn (70) in final day. Leads UD to 5th at IIAC CShips. #BirdiesforDays
Stat: 294 – The Spartans easily outpaced the field in the final round with a blistering 294, the best team round of the tourney one of only two sub-300 rounds. Shere (70), Manternach (71), and Engelken (73) led the way.
