Princeton University Athletics
C. Otto Von Kienbusch Award
August 02, 2000 | General
BLAIR IRWIN:
Looking for a word to sum up Blair Irwin's Princeton squash career? How about this one: Perfect.
Princeton coach Gail Ramsay sent Irwin out for a dual match 44 times in her four-year career, forty-four times Irwin came back a winner.
And this wasn't at the No. 9 spot on the ladder. This came mostly at No. 2 or No. 3, where she was one of the cornerstones of a Princeton squash dynasty.
Irwin's only losses in her career came in the individual national championships, where she still played well enough to earn All-America honors. The rest of the time it was all W's. It didn't matter if it was in the Howe Cup or in against any of the top Ivy teams.
"For four years," Ramsay says, "she was automatic."
Irwin's presence helped Princeton women's squash to a level of sustained excellence that had Tiger opponents seeing red. Especially the Crimson.
Harvard had been the dominant team in women's squash for almost a decade before Irwin arrived at Princeton. After Harvard retained the Howe Cup as national champion her freshman year, Irwin then led the Tigers to back-to-back wins over their archrival in the 1998 and 1999 Howe Cups. Those two wins gave Princeton consecutive national titles for the first time since 1983-84.
Irwin was a four-time first-team All-America and a four-time All-Ivy League selection. She was also named to the Academic All-Ivy League team.
Irwin came to Princeton from Rochester's Allendale Columbia School, where she was ranked among the top five high school players throughout her career, as well as a National Merit Scholar. Her father, Will, is a 1970 Princeton graduate.
by Jerry Price
Career Highlights
o four-time first-team All-America
o four-time All-Ivy League
o undefeated in four years of dual- match play
o undefeated in four years of Howe Cup play
o 2000 Academic All-Ivy League
o 2000 team captain
GOGA VUKMIROVIC:
What does it mean to be a trend-setter? Ask Goga Vukmirovic. This Bosnia native went from being a possible walk-on for a water polo team in its first year as a varsity squad to leading a young program to national prominence in just four years, collecting a few accolades for herself on the way.
Vukmirovic entered the halls of Old Nassau in 1996, when the women's water polo team was beginning its first year as a varsity sport. Not knowing if she would even play, Vukmirovic became one of the dominant goalies in East Coast water polo. The Tigers came a long way from the 11-9 rookie campaign to a 25-6 season and a No. 8 national ranking in 2000. Much of the credit goes to Vukmirovic, although she would rather give than receive the accolades.
"Goga has been the backbone for the Princeton water polo team for the last four years," coach Luis Nicolao says. "She has been one of the major keys to this team's rise. Every team's success starts with defense, and she has been the focal point of our defense."
During Vukmirovic's time at Princeton the Tigers made three trips to the collegiate national championships, set a school record for wins with 26 and won the inaugural ECAC and Ivy League tournaments in 1999. The 2000 captain raked in her share of individual honors, as she was a two-time all-league and all-region selection and was named the 1999 ECAC tournament Most Valuable Player. She earned honorable mention All-America status the last two seasons and was named the 2000 Collegiate Water Polo Association Mid-Atlantic Player of the Year. She accumulated 890 career saves and holds every goalkeeping record in the program's young history, not to mention being honored twice as Academic All-Ivy for her excellence in the classroom.
The only four-year letterwinner in her sport, Vukmirovic put Princeton water polo on her back and climbed onto the national scene. Don't look away too long. After catching her breath, she will be off and running again.
by Jenn Garrett
Career Highlights
o 2000 first-team All-East
o 2000 CWPA Mid-Atlantic Player of the Year
o 1999, 2000 first-team CWPA
o 2000 first-team All-East
o 1999, 2000 first-team All-Mid-Atlantic
o 1999 ECAC championship Most Valuable Player
o 1999 ECAC all-tournament team
o two-time Eastern championship all-tournament selection
o 1999, 2000 honorable mention All-America
o 2000 team captain