12 minute read
Esports - Dylan Gentilcore
launch oF varsity esports
Advertisement
by Trent Jackson
In June 2022, UWRF Athletics announced the addition of Esports as its 18th varsity intercollegiate program.
Esports, also known as competitive gaming or electronic sports, has become popular with students on college campuses across the country. UWRF will become the second Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) member school to add Esports as a varsity sport, following UW-Stout.
The brand-new Falcon Athletics program will be coed and will have a dedicated Esports Arena in the Chalmer Davee Library, preparing to compete at the varsity level during the 2023-24 academic year.
“We are excited to announce the addition of a varsity Esports program here at UWRF,” said Director of Athletics Crystal Lanning. “Competitive gaming has experienced tremendous growth over the past few years, and we look forward to welcoming a new demographic of competitive student-athletes to join Falcon Athletics.”
Head Coach Dylan Gentilcore
Dylan Gentilcore will lead the Falcon Esports Team as the inaugural head coach. He came to River Falls from Indiana as a co-director of the Indiana Esports Network and the founder, coach, and director of the esports program at Carmel High School, developed in 2018.
“UWRF has all the pieces in place to execute a successful Esports program,” Gentilcore commented. “After building a strong culture from the ground up with my students at Carmel Esports, I’m excited to have the opportunity to not only repeat that success but work with the excellent staff and students at UWRF to create the most holistic and student-centered Esports program possible.”
The Place to Be
A winning program, a spirited pep band, a welcoming and high-energy tailgating environment and a new state-of-the art video scoreboard combined to make Smith Stadium at Ramer Field the place to be this fall.
On the field, and for the second straight season, the football Falcons finished in the upper division of the highly competitive WIAC, compiling a 7-4 overall record and ending their season with a victory over Washington University (St. Louis) in the second annual Isthmus Bowl.
Off the field, several developments enhanced the fan experience, including:
• Video scoreboard – The 500-square foot Daktronics product features a full LED video display and replaces a conventional scoreboard used for decades. “Our previous scoreboard was more than 40 years old and replacement parts were no longer available,” said
UWRF Director of Athletics Crystal
Lanning. “We held our breath hoping it would work for one more game. The new display dramatically improves our game day experience for our student athletes and fans.”
• Tailgating – Pre-game gatherings in the stadium’s parking lot have become a growing tradition and fans arrive early to get their favorite spots.
• Pep Band – The UWRF Pep Band has grown dramatically and now provides entertainment for the early arriving tailgate crowd as well as performing throughout the game. The talented group led by Tom Barnett will evolve into a marching band in time for the 2023 football season.
• First National Bank of River Falls VIP
Suite – Chancellor Maria Gallo welcomed top donors and corporate partners throughout the season in the suite which now features added amenities including improved food and beverage offerings, a video monitor and Falcon football photo displays.
callie hoFF
One for the Record Books
by Trent Jackson
In March 2020, Callie Hoff and the UW-River Falls women’s hockey team were coming off a win in the NCAA Tournament Quarterfinals, which marked the 400th win in program history and for head coach Joe Cranston. Soon after however, the remainder of the national tournament, along with next year’s postseason, was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Despite the heartbreak of missing out on competing at the national stage for two consecutive seasons, Hoff was granted a fifth year of eligibility and made the most of it, capping off her career as a Falcon as the program’s all-time leading scorer and the American Hockey Coaches Association Laura Hurd Player of the Year.
Hoff, along with classmate and teammate Kora Torkelson, both were elementary education majors and had a semester left of student teaching to finish. The duo of northern Minnesota natives (Hoff of Duluth, Minn., and Torkelson of Thief River Falls, Minn.) made the decision to return for one more year with the goal of leaving a legacy as one of the strongest teams in UWRF women’s hockey history.
“Towards the end of our senior season when we learned the fifth year was an option, Kora and I were really on the fence, and we wanted to make the decision together,” Hoff said. “We knew that if we stayed, we had a good opportunity to have a great team and make a run at the national tournament again. Student teaching and playing hockey was not going to be easy, but now looking back at everything we accomplished, it was definitely worth it.”
The 2021-22 Falcons broke a program record 27 wins while reaching the NCAA Tournament Quarterfinals along with winning the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference regular season title and O’Brien Cup Championship. Hoff led the way, stamping her name atop of the UWRF women’s hockey record books as the all-time leading scorer.
Her list of awards is long, headlined by her AHCA Player of the Year award along with earning WIAC Player of the Year for the second consecutive season, and receiving her second career All-American accolade. In addition, she was honored for her academic efforts and her character, securing a spot on the CoSIDA Academic All-American Team with a cumulative 3.76 grade point average while being nominated for NCAA Woman of the Year.
“Individually, it wasn’t ever a goal of mine to win Player of the Year, but it’s a bonus for sure,” she commented. “Our goal was always to win the O’Brien Cup and make it through playoffs to the National Championship. Even though we came up short with our ultimate goal, we have to be pretty dang proud of what we’ve done and what we’ve established for the future.”
Growing up in Duluth, hockey was a big part of the Hoff family. She grew up skating on the outdoor rinks and blossomed as a high school hockey player for Proctor-Hermantown, where she was recruited by Cranston and the UWRF women’s hockey coaching staff. Years later, Cranston was the first person to share the news that Hoff had reached the pinnacle of Division III women’s hockey individual recognition as the Laura Hurd Player of the Year.
“I didn’t really think much of the award and put things in the past after we lost but planned on watching the ceremony,” Hoff explained the moment as she was enjoying a vacation in Florida. “I was laying by the pool when I got a text from Joe (Cranston), and I broke down crying without knowing it was coming.”
“Joe has made a big impact on my life, and I called him immediately to thank him for everything he’s done and pushing me to take my fifth year. I couldn’t have done it without his encouragement and support,” Hoff said.
Hoff is quick to credit others who helped support her athletic and academic career at UW-River Falls, whether it was professors willing to work with her hockey schedule, guidance from current UWRF Associate Athletic Director Kellen WellsMangold, and her teammates and coaches. huge for all the athletes, keeping them on track and seeing what opportunities are out there for us. For sure Kora (Torkelson) helped me. Since freshman year, we were in the same classes and were roommates throughout our five years.”
“I’m thankful for UW-River Falls top to bottom, not only the relationships with my team but with other athletes and students and teachers as well,” Hoff said. “I’ve still been receiving texts and emails from my teachers congratulating me and wishing me well. River Falls has brought me so many opportunities to meet new people.”
Hoff also acknowledges some of her role models, whether it was playing on a line her freshman season with Carly Moran, a 2018 UWRF graduate, or living up to the number 10’s legacy, donned by Dani Sibley, ’17, the first National Player of the Year award winner in UWRF women’s hockey history.
“I never got to play with Dani Sibley but coming into River Falls, she was my idol,” Hoff spoke of her mentors. “Joe (Cranston) joked about having ‘big shoes to fill’ wearing Sibley’s No. 10, and I knew how good of a player and person she was. I pushed myself to live up to those standards and I hope I can be a role model for others the way they did for me.”
Hoff went on to break Moran’s goalscoring record and passed Sibley on the Falcons’ all-time scoring list. She finished her career with 197 points (97 goals with 100 assists) in 120 games played.
The accomplishments continue for Hoff, who was recently selected to compete for Team USA in the 2023 FISCU World University Games, January 11-21 in Lake Placid, N.Y. Current Falcon goaltender Dysen Skinner was also named to the men’s team.
Following graduation, Hoff has been working for her parents’ company, F.I. Salter Real Estate Services and is the head girl’s hockey coach at Duluth Marshall High School.
“I’m just going to see where the opportunities take me and am happy to be home giving back to the community that gave so much to me,” Hoff said. “UW-River Falls prepared me well for whatever’s next.”
Falcons earn second straight Isthmus Bowl title
The UW-River Falls football team capped off its 2022 season defeating Washington UniversitySt. Louis 31-24 in the second annual Culver’s Isthmus Bowl at Bank of Sun Prairie Stadium, the program’s second consecutive Isthmus Bowl championship.
The Falcons, who wrapped up the season with a 7-4 overall record, were powered by a 24-point second quarter and solid defense, including a 50-yard interception return by Aaron Borgerding for the game-winning score. Quarterback Kaleb Blaha totaled 348 yards of total offense to win the Isthmus Bowl Most Valuable Player award.
A PLACE TO CALL home!
Homecoming is always a special time, but after the impact of the pandemic, this year’s celebration took on special meaning. Alumni returned in record numbers to commemorate – in person – the legacy of UWRF.
Homecoming highlights included:
• The traditional campus community bean soup event. The Greek Lifehosted gathering was started by Professor James
P. back in 2016. • A student “border battle” tug of war. Wisconsin pullers edged Minnesota 3-2. • The annual alumni St. Croix
River Boat Cruise attracted more than 40 members of the Falcon family. • The homecoming parade attracted a huge crowd to downtown River Falls and featured varsity and club teams, student organizations, marching bands, community groups and the St. Croix Valley
Shrine Club. • Nearly 3,800 fans packed
Smith Stadium at Ramer
Field to enjoy a dominant 56-3 Falcon football win over UW-Stevens Point. • A record turnout of 120 students and donors turned out for the annual
Scholarship Recognition event. • A near capacity crowd attended the annual homecoming concert featuring the UWRF
Symphony Band, choir and
Alumni Choir.
Plans are already underway for Homecoming 2023, September 28-October 1.
Members of the ’59 Aggies enjoy their session with Professor of Geology and Soil Science Holly Dolliver, far left, during the group’s campus visit on September 13.
A Tradition Continues
It started in 1989, at the 30th reunion of graduates from the College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences class of 1959. The alumni were determined to get together on a more regular basis, and that tradition continued in September.
“Back in 1959, the agriculture department only had about 50 students,” said George Cipov, an agriculture education major. “We were a close-knit group and got to know each other very well over four years.”
The idea for more frequent reunions came about thanks to one classmate who invited everyone to his home on Shell Lake.
“From there, it was every five years,” said Dan Gaeu, broad agriculture major. “A number of people in our class were veterans and older than those of us who were traditional students. As we all grew older, they wanted to meet more often than every five years, so we had a 42nd class reunion, then a 45th, 47th and then a 50th. After that, we’ve tried to get together every two years and we’ve done that, except during the pandemic.”
The Aggie reunions are more than social gatherings. Several years ago, the group started a 1959 Aggies CAFES Scholarship, now awarded to students who meet GPA and financial need criteria.
The September reunion featured a campus tour, sessions with CAFES faculty, lunch at Riverside Commons and a catered dinner.
“They put on a good program for us,” said Louie Barber, agriculture education major. “I appreciated the time with Dr. Zlesak in the greenhouse and Dr. Dolliver in the soils lab. The rest of the tour was really good.”
“Our visit back to campus was eye-opening and kind of awesome because of the fact that there were so many new facilities that did not exist at the time when we were there,” said Capov.
As the years go by, the ’59 Aggies appreciate their reunions even more.
