March 3, 2005
“Emily Wagstrom is one of the finest student-athletes I have worked with during my 19-year coaching career,” said UI Head Coach Mandi Kowal.
A senior from Faribault, Minn., Wagstrom has been named to the 2004-05 McLeodUSA StarHawks team this week.
In addition to her commitment to athletics and academics, Wagstrom serves as Secretary on the Iowa Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, a group of student-athletes from each of the UI’s varsity sports programs who help to shape departmental policies and procedures and to initiate department-wide outreach programs. She is majoring in exercise science, and is an academic all-Big Ten student.
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” Emily Wagstrom is one of the finest student-athletes I have worked with during my 19-year coaching career.”
UI Rowing Coach Mandi Kowal
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“Emily is intelligent, dedicated, responsible and can see the `big picture'”, Kowal said. “I appreciate her maturity, level-headedness and leadership.”
A novice in 2001-02, Wagstrom was a member of the V4+ crew that defeated Kansas State and Wisconsin, two teams considered powers in the sport. In 2002-03, she was a member of the 2V8+ crew that placed second at the Big Ten Championships. She was also a member of the V8+ crew that placed 16th at the Head of the Charles, considered by most to be the premier race in the country. In 2003-04 she was a member of the 2V8+ that finished second in the petite finals of the Big Ten Championships.
Unfortunately, Wagstrom has been bothered by a back injury. “I have no doubt she would have been one of the top athletes to come through this program had she not been hindered by that injury,” said Kowal. “Even so, she does whatever it takes to be in the best shape possible with only the very limited activity allowed her.
“On top of that, she has constantly pushed her peers to stay on track and stay true to team values. That’s not necessarily a popular stance, but that doesn’t matter to Emily. What matters to her is that our team is confident and executes all activities to the best of their ability.
“I would put Emily in the top 5 percent of all the student-athletes I have ever worked with,” said Kowal. “It’s my dream that Emily can finish her senior year on a high note as a reward for all of the hard work, commitment and leadership she has invested in this program. She will be missed upon graduation.”
The StarHawks program is an initiative funded in part by McLeodUSA, a leading telecommunications company with corporate headquarters in Cedar Rapids and a long-time member of the UI’s Partners in Excellence corporate sponsorship program. The StarHawks team is a collection of student-athletes at the University of Iowa who truly represent the very best the intercollegiate athletics program at the UI has to offer. StarHawks typically excel athletically and academically, and also are active in community or leadership activities.