RED HAWKS SPORTS

Kassidy Walters ’22: Champion on the court and in life

Mike Westemeier, Director of Athletic Communications

Most college first-year students face a big transition coming from high school, but for women’s basketball player Kassidy Walters ’22 of Greenfield, Illinois, her transition was magnified. Midway through the school year, after averaging 2.7 points in 11 games for the Red Hawks, Walters was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma, a cancer of a part of the immune system.

“From the time I was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma to my last radiation treatment, I was physically and emotionally drained,” Walters says. “I tried keeping a positive attitude during that time. While (team members) were fighting their battles on the court, they continued to cheer me on while I was fighting my battle with cancer.”

Emily Rigden ’22, left, and Kassidy Walters ’22 examine a cow’s eyeball during a human anatomy and physiology lab in Farr Hall.

Ric Damm

While she was receiving treatment back home, the team kept Walters in their thoughts and prayers, displaying her number 22 jersey on the bench before and during each game.

“Even though I was missing being there physically, the team did a great job Face Timing me during practice and games,” Walters says. “They never failed to make me laugh or ask how I was doing every day.”

The Red Hawks finished last season with a 19-9 record and a second consecutive Midwest Conference championship, advancing to the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Walters watched every game during their run, attending as many of them as was possible.

“The biggest thing I missed being apart from my team was missing out on being at the game when they won the conference tournament,” Walters says. “I was so happy for them and just wish I could have been in the stands to watch them in person.”

Now back in school for her second year at Ripon, Walters has a whole new perspective from when she stepped onto campus one year earlier.

Skyylar Brescia ’22 hoists Kassidy Walters’ jersey as the team celebrates its 2019 Midwest Conference tournament win over Monmouth College last February.

Ric Damm

"The best thing about being back on the court and in school is that I get a daily reminder of how blessed I am to have the opportunity that I have,” Walters says. “I get frustrated and overwhelmed sometimes with being a student-athlete, but at the end of the day I know I have something to look back on and see how far I’ve come.”

Not only has she built new and stronger connections at Ripon, but Walters also now is connected to many people across the world.

“I feel like I have a new connection to every person who has had to go through some type of cancer,” she says. “It’s something only people who have had to deal with it before know, and I want to be able to be there for others going through what I went through. Going through this has helped make me cherish the small things in life and want to help change others’ perspective for the better.”

Kassidy Walters ’22 is back on the court with her Red Hawks basketball team.

Ric Damm

On Nov. 30, Walters scored her first points since she had been diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma and she continues on a path that will prepare her for the future.

“My goal after graduation is to be a collegiate basketball coach or a sports psychologist,” Walters says. “I would love to make an impact in this world in any small way I can.”

Four decades do not dim grand memory of unlikely lacrosse victory

Jillian Heidenreich ’22, Monroe, Wisconsin

Bill Schnese ’79 looks on as Bob Fine ’80 gets tackled while trying to move the ball up the field in a game during their college years.

Momentous victories by an underdog team 40 years ago will be celebrated again in 2020 by the championship 1980 Ripon College lacrosse team.

This inexperienced team — more than twothirds of the team members had never played lacrosse before college — prevailed in many bouts against Big 10 teams they were not supposed to be able to beat. Bob Fines ’80, now of Mountain Brook, Alabama, and Art Peters ’80, now of Mukwonago, Wisconsin, were the team organizers from 1977 to 1980. They had been recruited by the graduating seniors of 1977.

Fines and Peters attribute most of the team’s success to each player’s love of the game. Despite mismatched uniforms, shared equipment and a lack of funding for traveling to matches, they beat some of the top teams in the state.

Fines, one of the players who joined the team not knowing how to play, ran the business side of the team to ensure that they had the necessary equipment and adequate transportation to games. Some of his responsibilities included going before college funding officials to get funding, attending league meetings to set up the schedule, finding referees and scorekeepers for games, ensuring the field was lined properly, trying to get equipment donated from suppliers, and running fundraisers such as selling T-shirts and bumper stickers.

Peters, one of the few who had played lacrosse during high school, took over teaching the new students how to play and making sure everyone knew what they were doing on the field. He was proud to see the growth as “some of these players who could barely catch and throw their first year (became) starters and major contributors by the time they were seniors.”

Anyone who wanted to be a part of the team could join, and only a few of the members were involved in other athletics.

Everyone on the team grew close. Fines and Peters say that some of their best memories of Ripon come from the lacrosse team. Fines went on to coach elementary, middle and high school teams and he said that “the joy has been exponential” while balancing coaching with traveling for his career in business.

The 1980 team had an undefeated season in the Great Lakes Lacrosse Association including matches with Big 10 teams such as the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Northwestern University and the University of Iowa.

Bob Fines ’80

The most exciting game was against Lake Forest College in a home game which they won 10-7. Lake Forest was considered the best team in the Midwest at the time and they had refused to play Ripon in 1976 and 1977 because of Ripon’s inexperience.

However, when Ripon played them in 1979 and lost by only 18-10, Lake Forest became willing to play them again.

The victorious Ripon team held alumni games in 1987, 1988 and 1989. A few years ago, Jim Mendyke ’83, now of Stevens Point, Wisconsin, started organizing alumni games again and is organizing the 2020 reunion game which will be held June 27 at Ripon College during Alumni Weekend.

Peters says he is not sure how many more reunion games the 1980 team will be able to participate in since they are getting into their 60s now, but the 40th anniversary reunion is bound to be a grand time.

SPORTS HIGHLIGHTS

CROSS COUNTRY - Ripon College’s men’s and women’s cross-country teams finished fourth and sixth, respectively, at the Midwest Conference Championships. For the first time in 30 years and second time in school history, a Ripon student-athlete was the women’s individual champion as Madie King ’21 of Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin, shown right, won with a new personal record time of 24:03. On the men’s side, David Potter ’22 of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, came in third place to become only the second Ripon male runner to finish in the top three at the championships.

Madie King ’21

CYCLING - Two Red Hawks qualified for the USA Cycling Nationals, Elliott Holt ’22 of Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, and Nick Niemi ’23 of Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin.

FOOTBALL - Ripon finished 4-6, with their win total including a 44-20 victory at Lawrence to retain the DoehlingHeselton trophy, given annually to the winner of that rivalry game. That marks the 20th consecutive year Ripon has defeated Lawrence.

Ripon received seven All-Conference selections. Earning First Team honors were Austin Bunders ’20 of Almond, Wisconsin, Lane Barnes ’19 of Selma, California (pictured), and Cameron Gruenwald ’20 of Iola, Wisconsin. Earning Second Team honors were Gruenwald, Tim Ladewig ’21 of Palos Heights, Illinois, Cormac Madigan ’22 of Rosendale, Wisconsin, and Brad Guell ’22 of Malone, Wisconsin.

Barnes, a defensive back, also earned All-Region honors for the second consecutive season, garnering Second Team honors.

Lane Barnes ’19

MEN’S SOCCER - Won the Midwest Conference Sportsmanship Award.

WOMEN’S SOCCER - Won the Midwest Conference Sportsmanship Award. Camrie Schmitz ’21 of Kiel, Wisconsin, was named First Team All-Conference.

WOMEN’S TENNIS - Steve Burns was named head coach of men’s and women’s tennis in August.

VOLLEYBALL - Finished the season winning its final three matches and four of their last five.