Indiana University Athletics
Coaches Tour Makes Successful Stop In Sellersburg, Ind.
7/8/2005 12:00:00 AM | General
May 25, 2005
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Indiana University continued the 2005 Coaches Tour with a stop at the Covered Bridge Country Club in Sellersburg, Ind. on Wednesday, May 25. Over 100 IU fans and alumni joined IU coaches Terry Hoeppner, Mike Davis, Sharon Versyp and Mike Freitag, along with Athletic Director Rick Greenspan for golf, food and festivities.
Don Fischer, the veteran play-by-play radio voice of IU football and basketball, served as the master of ceremonies and introduced each of the four speakers, all of whom expressed sincere appreciation to Hoosier fans for their support. Greenspan noted that the loyalty is a two-way street, meaning that it is just as important for the Hoosiers to visit fans around the state as it is for the fans around the state to travel to Bloomington to support all 24 IU programs.
Davis is enthusiastic about a team that returns four starters in addition to Auburn transfers Marco Killingsworth and Lewis Monroe to go along with talented newcomers Ben Allen, Joey Shaw and Earl Calloway. In particular, Killingsworth and 2005 Big Ten Freshman of the Year D.J. White give the Hoosiers one of the top front court duos in the league and nation, while Monroe and Calloway provide much-needed experience at point guard. He also stressed that this team is the deepest and most talented team he has seen at IU in quite a while.
Versyp equalled Davis' excitement about the upcoming 2005-06 campaign. Versyp, who grew up in Indiana, will enter her first season with the Hoosiers and looks forward to the excitement and potential of the women's hoopsters. Versyp returns to her home state after leading Maine to three-straight America East regular season championships (2003, 2004, 2005), the 2004 America East Tournament title and a trip to the 2004 NCAA Tournament. In addition to on-court success, Maine annually ranks among the nation's top 40 in attendance. While compiling an overall record of 98-51, including a 67-19 conference record in her five years, Versyp earned 2003 and 2005 America East Coach of the Year honors.
Freitag mentioned the stop in Washington, D.C. last Friday, as the Indiana soccer team visited the White House for its 2004 national championship recognition. The Hoosiers are hardly resting on their laurels, posting a 5-1 spring ledger as they prepare to welcome the nation's top recruiting class to Bloomington for 2005.
Although 2005 season football ticket sales are already surpassing the 2004 total, Hoeppner said that the fact is just "scratching the surface" of what his program can do. He discussed his team's productive spring workouts and feels that the Hoosiers are on their way to immediate progress. A key step in this development is making the state of Indiana a recruiting priority.
The Indiana Coaches Tour will be back on the road at the Radisson Ballroom on Monday, June 6. The event will take place from 7-9 p.m. in Merrillville, Ind. The tour also will have stops in Elkhart, Ind. (June 7) and Ft. Wayne, Ind. (June 8). For more information, contact the IU Varsity Club at 812-855-0866.
