STEVENS POINT, WI (UWSP-WSAU) — UW-Stevens Point has announced that it will honor retired women’s basketball coach Shirley Egner by naming the Berg Gymnasium floor “Shirley Egner Court”. The naming ceremony will take place on November 19, 2022, at halftime of the UW-Stevens Point versus North Central College women’s basketball game. The game is scheduled for a 2:00 p.m. start.
The court naming is in honor of Coach Egner’s dedication to basketball, teaching, leadership development and mentoring student-athletes on and off the court in her various roles throughout her 33-year career. As part of naming the basketball court, women’s basketball was the beneficiary of phase one of a legacy endowment campaign. Phase 1 included alumni, coaches committee members and Pointer families with a goal of $100,000. We are very pleased with the results of phase one and announce today our entrance into Phase 2 of this campaign. Phase two is now open publicly for everyone to honor Coach Egner’s legacy and ensure the continued success of Pointer women’s basketball by giving to the Women’s Basketball Legacy Fund.
Egner, a four-time WIAC Coach of the Year, won the league’s honor in 2003-04, 2007-08, 2008-09 and 2010-11 seasons. The Wisconsin Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) named her Division III Women’s Coach of the Year three-straight years from 2010 to 2012. In 2010, she was inducted into the WBCA Hall of Fame. The Pointers made 10 trips to the NCAA Tournament under Egner. In addition to the National Championship in 2002, her Pointers took fourth in 2004 and reached the Sweet 16 three other times as well as going to the Elite 8 in 2010.
UWSP Director of Athletics Brad Duckworth is excited about the success of Phase One of this campaign and looks forward to new heights that can be reached in Phase Two.
“Coach Egner symbolizes what an NCAA Division III coach should be,” stated Duckworth. “Her numbers and accomplishments are remarkable; however, the impact Coach has had on people well outpace her basketball successes. The endowment will forever commemorate Coach Egner while providing necessary funding to help continue the successes of our historic program.”
Tickets to the November 19, 2022, game will be sold at the door. The doors open at 1:00 p.m. that day.
