The second day of the NFCA Convention on Thursday was highlighted by the Victory Club luncheon, honoring coaches that reached milestone victories during the 2018 season.
The luncheon honored three coaches who reached the 1,300-win milestone in 2018. The trio included former DePaul head coach Eugene Lenti; California head coach Diane Ninemire; and Phoenix College (NJCAA) head coach Heinz Mueller.
George Wares of Central College was honored for his 1,100th career victory. Wares has spent thirty-four seasons as the Dutch head coach, beginning in 1985, and is the winningest D3 head coach of all-time. He was the first D3 coach to reach the 1,000 win milestone, a feat that was accomplished in 2014. In 2007, Wares was inducted into the NFCA Hall of Fame and owns four national championships with the Dutch, most recently winning the title in 2003.
Celebrating the 1,000 win milestone included Tim Kiernan of Sacramento City College; Kate McCluskey of Eastern Arizona College; and Courtney Miller of Seminole State College of Florida.
Other notable coaches honored during the luncheon included Ken Eriksen (South Florida, 900 wins); Brent Vigness (Creighton, 900); Mike Davenport (North Georgia, 800); Thomas Macera (Valdosta State, 800); Tim Walton (Florida, 800); Chris Cannata (Albany, 700); Deanna Gumpf (Notre Dame, 700); Mark Montgomery (Louisiana Tech, 700); and Jane Worthington (Eastern Kentucky, 700).
Reigning national champion head coach Lonni Alameda of Florida State was also honored for earning her 600th career win.
Alameda later was on the speakers’ list, talking on the topic of her 2018 national championship-winning team and her coaching style. Alameda was joined on stage by assistant coaches Travis Wilson and Craig Snider, and the trio spoke for nearly an hour on every aspect of the team’s season and eventual success.
In classic Alameda style, the speech included frequent and flowing praise for the team that the Seminoles bested in the WCWS Championship Series, the Washington Huskies. The chemistry between the trio of coaches, who have been a part of the Seminoles’ coaching staff for the past seven years, was extraordinarily evident during the speech.
Alameda shows a favorite quote: "Purpose is the reason for your journey… Passion is the fire that lights the way." #NFCAPlayBall #JWOS
— JWOS (@JustinsWorldSB) December 6, 2018
