University of Minnesota Athletics
Women's Hockey
Darwitz, Natalie
Natalie Darwitz
- Title:
- Women's Hockey Assistant Coach
The 2021-22 season will be assistant coach Natalie Darwtiz’s third season on the Golden Gophers women’s hockey coaching staff and first since 2010-11.
Darwitz rejoins the Minnesota coaching staff from Hamline University, where she coached the Pipers to back-to-back Frozen Fours and the 2019 National Championship game as head coach. She previously served as an assistant coach on Frost’s staff during the 2008-09 and 2010-11 seasons, with a season-long hiatus in between to captain the U.S. Women’s National Team during the 2010 Olympics.
Darwitz, an Eagan, Minn. native, began her coaching career in 2007-08 as an assistant coach with Eagan High School’s girls hockey team. There, she helped coach the forwards with her father and head coach Scott Darwitz. In her year with the Wildcats, Darwitz helped Eagan to its first state championship berth in four years with a 20-9-1 overall record. During her first stint with the Gophers, Darwitz coached Minnesota to its first WCHA title since she was on the roster and helped the Gophers to their first Frozen Four appearance since 2006. During her first stint with the Gophers, Darwitz helped coach the Gophers to a combined record of 58-15-5 in two seasons and two NCAA Frozen Four appearances. Following the 2010-11 season, Darwitz was announced as the next head coach of Lakeville South High School’s girls hockey team. With Darwitz at the helm, the Cougars went 79-25-10 in three seasons. In 2015, her final year coaching at the school, the team went 24-6-1 and earned a berth into the 2015 MSHSL AA State Tournament.
In 2015-16, Darwitz was named head coach of Hamline’s women’s hockey team. During her time there, she led the Pipers to the NCAA Division III Frozen Four in 2018 and NCAA Division III National Runners-Up in 2019. In her first season at Hamline, the team posted a 9-13-3 record, the most wins by the program in nearly a decade. In the 2017-18 season, Hamline made the NCAA tournament for the first time in program history and finished third overall. That season, Darwitz was named both MIAC and USCHO Coach of the Year. The next season, Hamline posted a program record 23 wins and advanced all the way to the NCAA Division III Championship game. This was the first time a MIAC team had reached the national championship. During her time at Hamline, she coached seven All-Americans and the 2019 AHCA National Player of the Year. In six seasons under Darwitz, Hamline went 88-41-14 overall and 58-26-9 in the MIAC.
Darwitz played at the ‘U’ for three years (2002-05). In that span, she helped the Gophers win back-to-back National Championships in 2004 and 2005 and was named 2005 Frozen Four Most Outstanding Player. In the 2005 season, Darwitz scored 42 goals and 72 assists for 114 points, breaking the NCAA record for points in a single season and was named Bob Allen Women’s Player of the Year. The Patty Kazmaier Award finalist led the country in points per game (2.85) and assists (72). In just 99 career games for the Gophers, the three-time All-American currently ranks third in program history in points (246), first in points per game (2.48), fifth in goals (102), second in assists (144), and first in assists per game (1.45). Not only did Darwitz set the record for points in the NCAA tournament with nine points (3g-6a), she also scored the game-winning goal for the Gophers with 1:08 remaining in the contest to lead them to their second national championship in two years. The 2005 WCHA Scoring Champion, tallied 72 points in conference action alone and was named a first-team All-WCHA selection for the third straight season. As a freshman, she was also named the 2003 WCHA Rookie of the Year, becoming the first Gopher to earn the distinction.
On the national stage, Darwitz is a two-time Olympic silver medalist and three-time IIHF World gold medalist. She has represented the United States in three Olympics, eight IIHF World Women’s Championships, and ten Women’s 4 Nations Cups. In the 2002 Winter Olympics, Darwitz was named to the All-Tournament Team on her way to winning bronze. She was the youngest player to be selected to the national team at age 15. Darwitz received USA Hockey's Bob Johnson award, given to a U.S. athlete who has excelled on the international scene, in 2009. Other accolades include being inducted into the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame, Minnesota Sports Hall of Fame, and Minnesota State High School League Hall of Fame.
Darwitz at a Glance
Education
Darwitz rejoins the Minnesota coaching staff from Hamline University, where she coached the Pipers to back-to-back Frozen Fours and the 2019 National Championship game as head coach. She previously served as an assistant coach on Frost’s staff during the 2008-09 and 2010-11 seasons, with a season-long hiatus in between to captain the U.S. Women’s National Team during the 2010 Olympics.
Darwitz, an Eagan, Minn. native, began her coaching career in 2007-08 as an assistant coach with Eagan High School’s girls hockey team. There, she helped coach the forwards with her father and head coach Scott Darwitz. In her year with the Wildcats, Darwitz helped Eagan to its first state championship berth in four years with a 20-9-1 overall record. During her first stint with the Gophers, Darwitz coached Minnesota to its first WCHA title since she was on the roster and helped the Gophers to their first Frozen Four appearance since 2006. During her first stint with the Gophers, Darwitz helped coach the Gophers to a combined record of 58-15-5 in two seasons and two NCAA Frozen Four appearances. Following the 2010-11 season, Darwitz was announced as the next head coach of Lakeville South High School’s girls hockey team. With Darwitz at the helm, the Cougars went 79-25-10 in three seasons. In 2015, her final year coaching at the school, the team went 24-6-1 and earned a berth into the 2015 MSHSL AA State Tournament.
In 2015-16, Darwitz was named head coach of Hamline’s women’s hockey team. During her time there, she led the Pipers to the NCAA Division III Frozen Four in 2018 and NCAA Division III National Runners-Up in 2019. In her first season at Hamline, the team posted a 9-13-3 record, the most wins by the program in nearly a decade. In the 2017-18 season, Hamline made the NCAA tournament for the first time in program history and finished third overall. That season, Darwitz was named both MIAC and USCHO Coach of the Year. The next season, Hamline posted a program record 23 wins and advanced all the way to the NCAA Division III Championship game. This was the first time a MIAC team had reached the national championship. During her time at Hamline, she coached seven All-Americans and the 2019 AHCA National Player of the Year. In six seasons under Darwitz, Hamline went 88-41-14 overall and 58-26-9 in the MIAC.
Darwitz played at the ‘U’ for three years (2002-05). In that span, she helped the Gophers win back-to-back National Championships in 2004 and 2005 and was named 2005 Frozen Four Most Outstanding Player. In the 2005 season, Darwitz scored 42 goals and 72 assists for 114 points, breaking the NCAA record for points in a single season and was named Bob Allen Women’s Player of the Year. The Patty Kazmaier Award finalist led the country in points per game (2.85) and assists (72). In just 99 career games for the Gophers, the three-time All-American currently ranks third in program history in points (246), first in points per game (2.48), fifth in goals (102), second in assists (144), and first in assists per game (1.45). Not only did Darwitz set the record for points in the NCAA tournament with nine points (3g-6a), she also scored the game-winning goal for the Gophers with 1:08 remaining in the contest to lead them to their second national championship in two years. The 2005 WCHA Scoring Champion, tallied 72 points in conference action alone and was named a first-team All-WCHA selection for the third straight season. As a freshman, she was also named the 2003 WCHA Rookie of the Year, becoming the first Gopher to earn the distinction.
On the national stage, Darwitz is a two-time Olympic silver medalist and three-time IIHF World gold medalist. She has represented the United States in three Olympics, eight IIHF World Women’s Championships, and ten Women’s 4 Nations Cups. In the 2002 Winter Olympics, Darwitz was named to the All-Tournament Team on her way to winning bronze. She was the youngest player to be selected to the national team at age 15. Darwitz received USA Hockey's Bob Johnson award, given to a U.S. athlete who has excelled on the international scene, in 2009. Other accolades include being inducted into the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame, Minnesota Sports Hall of Fame, and Minnesota State High School League Hall of Fame.
Darwitz at a Glance
Education
- B.S. Sports Studies, Minnesota, 2007
- Served as head coach of Lakeville High School girls’ hockey team
- Served as assistant coach of Gopher women’s hockey team
- Spent six years with the Hamline women's hockey team, all of which as head coach
- 2015 MSHSL AA State Tournament berth
- 2018 NCAA Division III Frozen Four Participant - Third place finish, first NCAA Tournament appearance in Hamline program history
- 2018 MIAC Coach of the Year
- 2018 USCHO Coach of the Year
- 2019 NCAA Division National Runners-Up
- First MIAC team to reach national championship
- Hamline program record 23 wins in 2018-19
- Two NCAA Division I Frozen Four appearances as Gophers assistant coach
- Coached 2019 Division III AHCA National Player of the Year
- Coached seven Division III All-Americans
- Three-time All-American (2003, 2004, 2005)
- Two-time national champion (2004, 2005)
- U.S. Hockey Hall of Famer
- 2005 Frozen Four Most Outstanding Player
- NCAA single season points record (114 - 2005)
- 2005 Bob Allen Women’s Player of the Year
- 2005 Patty Kazmaier Award finalist
- Third in program history in points (246)
- First in program history in points per game (2.48)
- Fifth in program history in goals (102)
- Second in program history in assists (144)
- First in program history in assists per game (1.45)
- Most points in a single NCAA Tournament (9 - 3g & 6a)
- Scored the game-winning goal for the Gophers with 1:08 remaining to win 2005 NCAA National Championship
- 2005 WCHA Scoring Champion
- Three-time first-team All-WCHA
- 2003 WCHA Rookie of the Year - first time a Gopher had received that honor
- Two-time Olympic silver medalist (2002, 2010)
- Olympic bronze medalist (2006)
- Three-time IIHF World gold medalist (2005, 2008, 2009)
- Represented the United States in three Olympics, eight IIHF World Women’s Championships, and ten Women’s 4 Nations Cups.
- 2010 U.S. Olympic National Team captain
- 2009 Bob Johnson Award winner
- 2002 Olympic All-Tournament Team
- Youngest player to be selected to the national team at age 15.
- Minnesota Sports Hall of Famer
- Minnesota State High School League Hall of Famer
- ‘M’ Club Hall of Famer
- 487 points in 102 career games at Eagan High School
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