New Heights
Raleigh native Kim Lewellen leads Wake Forest to second-place finish in NCAAs
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By DAVID DROSCHAK s a first-team All-American golfer at the University of North Carolina in the early 1990s and more recently head women’s golf coach at Virginia for more than a decade, Kim Lewellen knows a thing or two about ACC rivalries. The Raleigh native is also accomplished at building winning collegiate programs, something she did at East Carolina and with the Cavaliers before taking over the Wake Forest program this season for longtime coaching legend Diane Dailey. 8
TRIANGLE GOLF TODAY • JULY 2019
Photos courtesy of Wake Forest Sports Information
Lewellen and her new team experienced the ultimate ACC rivalry in mid May when the Demon Deacons and Duke Blue Devils advanced to face each other in NCAA Championship match play in the state of Arkansas. In the end, the outcome was razor thin, with Duke coming out on top on the final hole of the final match – three of which went to extra holes. Although not winning the title, it was the highest finish in school history for Wake Forest, and signaled what may become a more intense rivalry with the seven-time national cham-
pion Blue Devils in the near future. Lewellen grew up in the Triangle, competing on the boys’ golf teams at Millbrook High School and then powerhouse Broughton after she was transferred because of school redistricting. It made her a better and mentally tougher player, and she feels this year’s final push to the season and NCAA experience will harden her talented returning players, which includes All-American Emilia Migliaccio of Cary. Lewellen was entrenched at Virginia, taking the Cavaliers to nine NCAA appearances in her 11 seasons,
but her move to Wake Forest last summer was an easy decision, she said. “It was just home for me, and Diane Dailey is one of my closest friends and has always been my mentor so she approached me with ‘hey, would you be interested in doing this?’” Lewellen said. “To follow such an icon in women’s golf was a great opportunity and she was there to help me in the transition -- it just became an obvious good fit.” However, for Lewellen it was a new team with new personalities. Continued on page 9 www.trianglegolf.com