The history of athletics at Lawrence stretches all the way back to 1868 and the rise of baseball as a popular game.
The real start for intercollegiate athletics at Lawrence came in 1889 when Lawrence invited Ripon College for a track and field day.
After a few more athletic contests, the two schools met in Oshkosh in 1891 to create a constitution for the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Association.
Football took center stage during the early years of Lawrence athletics with the first season coming in the fall of 1893 under the guidance of coach David H. Walker.
Two more football coaching legends had great influences on Lawrence's athletic history.
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Bernie Heselton coached the football team from 1938-64 and served as director of athletics.
Ron Roberts joined the football staff in 1963 and took over as head coach in 1965.
He amassed a 121-54-1 record while his teams won six conference championships and advanced to the semifinals of the 1981 NCAA Division III playoffs.
Other long-time coaches with tremendous contributions to the college include Art Denney (1923-64), Mary Poulson (1964-93) and Gene Davis (1959-91).
Denney coached cross country and track and field and served as director of athletics.
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Poulson was a pioneer in women's sports and coached tennis, basketball, volleyball and fencing.
It was early during Denney's tenure that Lawrence officially became the Vikings.
Prior to the mid-1920s, Lawrence athletic teams were called the Blues or the Blue-Somethings (for example, the swimmers were the Blue Fish).
In January 1926, the sports staff of the student newspaper, The Lawrentian, held a contest to pick a new mascot or team name, with the winner to go to the Lawrence-Hilltop basketball game in Milwaukee.
The winner was Steven Cincowsky '29, and the vote was Vikings 252, Blue Jays 56, Trojans 46.
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The legends of Lawrence athletics stretch back to men like the Tippets, Ralph, Earl and Walter, who were football, basketball and tennis standouts for the school before World War I.
Lawrence's first All-American was track standout Jim Fieweger '43 and the first football All-American was Claude Radtke '50.
Women's sports were established at Lawrence in 1974 with tennis and basketball followed in 1975.
In the next decade, Lawrence would have women's teams in track and field, cross country, volleyball, soccer, swimming and softball.
It was women's sports that gave Lawrence its first national champion as Diana Ling '94 won the long jump at the 1994 NCAA Division III Championships indoors at UW-Oshkosh.
The biggest splash by Lawrence athletics since the turn of the century came with men's basketball in the 2000s.
In the 2003-04 season, Lawrence won the MWC title and qualified for the NCAA Division III Tournament.
Lawrence would go all the way to the Elite Eight before dropping a heartbreaker in overtime to eventual national champion UW-Stevens Point with a trip to the Final Four on the line.
The 2005-06 men's basketball squad posted an undefeated regular season at 22-0 and was the only team in the country at any level to record that achievement.
Lawrence would go on to win three more games (two in the MWC Tournament and another in the NCAA Tournament) to reach the Sweet 16.
Lawrence finally saw its season come to an end before a standing-room only crowd at Alexander Gymnasium.
The 2005-06 team also became only the second team in MWC history to achieve a No.
In celebration of the 175th anniversary of Lawrence University’s founding in 1847, the Department of Athletics chose the top 25 moments in Lawrence sports history.
All leading to No. 1: The 2005-06 men's basketball team, building on momentum from a deep NCAA tournament run the year before, posts a 22-0 regular season and becomes the No. 1 ranked NCAA Division III team in the nation.
Joe Vanden Acker, director of athletic media relations since 1999, led the project, seeking guidance from Rick Peterson, sports information director from 1979 until he moved into Lawrence’s Office of Communications in 1993 (he retired in 2019), and Kim Tatro, longtime coach and former director of athletics.
“There were many events that were obvious choices, but as we started going through the first rough draft, we all added events to the list,” Vanden Acker said.
“I kept coming back with more and more choices, and I considered making it a top 50 at one point.
“It was easy to come up with a lot of quality events, but the hard part was, how do you rank them?” he said.
“We really looked at it in a few ways.
One was the historic nature of the event.
A first-time national championship, for example, or something that Lawrence hadn’t done before or since-winning three straight league titles in football or sweeping the conference titles in cross country.
Two was the unique nature of the event.
The first time Lawrence football was played on television, as Rick described what a huge deal that was when it happened, or Mallory Koula setting NCAA records in women’s soccer.
Three was the impact the event had on the campus and the community.
Here's a glimpse into some key moments and competitors in the world of wrestling:
- October 25, 2003 - Impact Zone Wrestling: Lawrence Tyler & G.Q.
- March 2, 2004 - Impact Zone Wrestling: C.C.
- May 10, 2005 - Impact Zone Wrestling: Peter Goodman & Antonio Mestre vs Lawrence Tyler & G.Q.
- June 21, 2005 - Smackdown!: Lawrence Tyler worked for WWE Smackdown!
- December 9, 2005 - Impact Zone Wrestling: Mr.
- April 22, 2006 - Rising Phoenix Wrestling (Invitational Tournament): Lawrence Tyler defeated Mr.
- April 25, 2006 - Impact Zone Wrestling: “XXX” Lawrence Tyler defeated GQ Gallo to retain the IZW Heavyweight title.
- September 8, 2006 - SmackDown!: Mr.
- December 31, 2007 - RAW: D.H.
Kaylan Hitchcock (Lawrence Elite Wrestling Club) lost Angelina Pena (Michigan) dec. 4-1 SV1 in the finals.
Here are some notable high school wrestlers and their achievements:
- Alan Clothier, Lawrence - The Lions sophomore won league, regional and state championships to finish the year with a 30-1 record.
- Alex Jones, Lawrence - A couple of trips to wrestling camps in Missouri and Pennsylvania last summer helped transform the senior into an elite wrestler. Jones won the Class 6A state championship at the 285-pound weight class and finished with a 22-7 record. He also took second at regionals and third in the Sunflower League.
- Tucker Clark, Baldwin - A 138-pound senior, Clark won a Frontier League title for the third time, took second place at regionals and fourth place at state.
- Tyler Dickman, Mill Valley - The Jaguars senior missed most of the season because of a torn medial collateral ligament in his knee, but returned in time to go 16-0 and win the 5A state championship at the 138-pound weight class. Dickman medaled three times at state in his wrestling career.
- Jake Ellis, Mill Valley - For the second straight year, the 145-pound senior finished in third place at the 5A state tournament, losing in the semifinals this season to the eventual state champion.
- Clayton Himpel, Tonganoxie - One of the top wrestlers in school history, Himpel took first in league and regionals and fourth at the 4A state tournament this year.
- Asher Huseman, Tonganoxie - The Chieftains’ junior compiled a 33-6 record, finishing in first place in the Kaw Valley League, second at regionals and second at the 4A state tournament in the 152-pound weight class. Huseman is a three-time state qualifier and recorded 18 pins and 13 two-point near falls this year.
- Jon Pratt, Baldwin - The Bulldogs junior jumped from the 120-pound weight class, at which he took fifth at state last year, to the 145-pound weight class this season with similar results. Pratt finished with a 38-13 record, placing fourth at state and third at regionals and claiming a Frontier League title for the third straight year.
- Sam Skwarlo, Free State - The Firebirds sophomore lost in the first round of the Class 6A state tournament, but won his next four matches on his way to a fourth-place finish. The 170-pounder posted a 30-10 record as he took second place in the Sunflower League and third at regionals.
- Dalton Weidl, Ottawa - A 195-pound senior, Weidl became only the second individual state champion in Cyclones history after winning a 4A state title. He also won regionals and his second Frontier League title, ending his career with a 100-21 record.
- D.H. The sophomore 182-pounder avenged a loss in the state tournament semifinals as a freshman by earning Sunflower League Wrestler of the Year honors and winning a Class 6A state championship. The Jaguars finished sixth at the 5A state tournament, their best finish in program history. Keal also led them to Kaw Valley League and regional titles.
Here is a summary of the championship finals and medal match results for the Junior girls division:
| Weight Class | 1st Place | 2nd Place | 3rd Place |
|---|---|---|---|
| 100 lbs | Kendall Moe (Indiana) | ||
| 105 lbs | Heather Crull (Indiana) | Makenize Smith (Indiana) | Ava Gardner (Wisconsin) |
| 110 lbs | Caley Graber (Minnesota) | Reanah Utterback (Iowa) | Aroma Marrufo (MO) |
| 115 lbs | Julia Kay (Canyon View Falcons) | ||
| 120 lbs | Alexis Schneider (North Dakota) | Morgan Maschmann (Beatrice High School Wrestling) | Leiannah Landreth (Mulvane Wrestling Club) |
| 125 lbs | Brooklyn Pace (Champions Wrestling Club) | Kailey Benson (Purler Wrestling Inc) | Dealya Collins (Mineral Point Wrestling Club) |
| 130 lbs | Angelina Pena (Michigan) | Kaylan Hitchcock (Lawrence Elite Wrestling Club) | Christina Borgmann (Florida) |
| 135 lbs | Margaret Buurma (Michigan) | Lilliana Banks (Aviators Wrestling) | Taylor Colangelo (Arizona) |
| 140 lbs | Aleksandra Bastaic (Highland Wrestling Club) | Mackenzie Pratt (Illinois) | Chloe Sanders (Big Game Wrestling Club) |
| 145 lbs | Valerie Hamilton (SOT-C) | Gretchen Donally (Montana) | Clare Waite (Team Idaho Wrestling Club) |
| 155 lbs | Skylar Slade (Moen Wrestling Academy) | Sage Rosario (Kansas) | Cali Dupree (Nixa High School Wrestling) |
| 170 lbs | Naomi Simon (Northeast Iowa Wrestling Club) | Amarisa Manuel (Michigan) | Kiley Dillow (Chanute Wrestling Club) |
| 190 lbs | Brooke Huffman (Team Nazar Training Center) | Ella Murphey (Mayhem WC) | Bella Porcelli (Grand View Wrestling Club) |
| 235 lbs | Tilisa Matakaiongo (Utah) | Ella Brown (Iowa) |
2023 Air Force Special Warfare Folkstyle Nationals Junior Girls Champions