Miscellaneous: Two recent events — one hosted by Connecticut College and the other by the Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference — sought to encourage women to consider pursuing careers in intercollegiate athletics, as coaches or administrators. Connecticut College’s forum April 2 on “Women in Coaching and Athletics” featured a keynote address by Mary Mazzio, a member of the 1992 U.S. Olympic Rowing Team whose film company produced “A Hero for Daisy” about a Title IX-based protest at Yale University; Linda Shields, whose husband Fran Shields is athletics director at the school; and two head coaches from the institution, Debbie Lavigne from field hockey and Eva Kovach from rowing, who discussed the history of women in athletics. “We hope to encourage women to consider coaching as a possible career option,” Lavigne and Kovach said in a joint statement promoting the event. “There is a definite need to increase the number of women in the coaching field who act as role models for female athletes.” The Iowa Conference’s April 7-9 “Opportunities for Women in Athletics Symposium” in Des Moines, which was developed by the league’s senior woman administrators, sought to provide current women student-athletes with an overview of opportunities in intercollegiate athletics. Four student-athletes from each of the conference’s nine member institutions who have expressed interest in coaching or administration were selected to participate, along with two mentors from each of the schools’ coaching staffs. Speakers included Kathy DeBoer, executive director of the American Volleyball Coaches Association; Christine Grant, former women’s athletics director at the University of Iowa; and Bridget Belgiovine, NCAA director of Division III. “This symposium addresses a very significant need at all levels of athletics, and Iowa Conference institutions take tremendous pride in their continuing support of these types of important educational and developmental initiatives,” said John Cochrane, conference commissioner. “It is important that young women understand the opportunities available to them and that we continue to foster access to, and an understanding of, the important role that women can and should be playing in the conduct of athletics programs.” Both events were supported by NCAA grants, and the Iowa Conference is planning a second symposium in September.

Milestones: Sharon Pfluger became just the second coach to collect 300 career wins in Division III women’s lacrosse when The College of New Jersey defeated Colorado College April 20. Pfluger, who joins Pat Genovese of William Smith College (with 325 victories in her 33rd season) in surpassing the mark, also becomes only the third coach in all NCAA divisions to achieve the distinction (joining 334-game winner Cindy Timchal of the University of Maryland, College Park). Currently in her 20th season at TCNJ, Pfluger has coached the defending Division III champion Lions to 10 of their 11 national titles ... Anita Kubicka collected her 500th victory in softball when Montclair State University defeated Richard Stockton College of New Jersey April 24. Kubicka, who also recently notched her 100th victory in New Jersey Athletic Conference competition in a win over The College of New Jersey, is in her 16th season at the school. She entered this season with the 11th best winning percentage among Division III coaches who have served at least 10 years (.724), and has coached teams to eight Division III Softball Championship appearances, including a runner-up finish in 1997.