2008 Woodie Awards
Niemuth earns coach of the year twice
Robbie Lehman/Staff Writer
Issue date: 3/27/08 Section: Sports
|
After finishing his 21st season by leading the lady Storm to a school-record 27 wins, sweeping the Iowa Conference regular season and tournament titles and earning the school's eighth overall invitation to the NCAA Division III Tournament, Niemuth has picked up a couple more awards to add to an already-stacked trophy case.
Niemuth was chosen as the 2008 IIAC Coach of the Year as well as one of eight 2008 Russel Athletic/WBCA Regional Coaches of the Year. However, he pointed out the major role his players played in him receiving the awards.
"You know you have a good group of players when that happens," Niemuth said. "They accomplished a lot."
After a year of playing baseball and participating on the basketball practice squad at Division I University of Missouri, Niemuth transferred to NAIA Park University in his hometown of Kansas City for the opportunity to play both sports. He went on to become an All-Conference basketball player and honorable mention All-American baseball player. When he finished at Park, there was no question what he wanted to do next.
"I knew when my playing days were over that I wanted to stay involved in athletics," Niemuth said.
He eventually found his way to Simpson in 1986 as an assistant women's basketball coach. That didn't last long as he was named head coach the following season. On top of running his own program, Niemuth also served as an assistant baseball coach on John Sirianni's staff, who was also the athletic director who hired him.
"I learned a lot from John, how to run a program and do things the right way," Niemuth said.
Since coming to Simpson, Niemuth has been a member of the faculty as a physical education professor and served on several administrative positions in the Athletic Department.
But 10 years of baseball was enough for Niemuth when he realized that in order to put together the type of winning program he dreamed of, he needed to focus all of his time on the needs of his basketball team. His career record is 388-168.
Be the first to comment on this story