University of Minnesota Athletics
Natalie Darwitz to Leave Minnesota Coaching Position
8/2/2011 12:00:00 AM | Women's Hockey
Aug. 2, 2011
Minnesota women's hockey head coach Brad Frost has announced that assistant coach Natalie Darwitz will be leaving her post at the University of Minnesota for a head coaching position in the high school ranks.
"It was a tough decision to step away from the U of M," said Darwitz. "I am looking forward to building a program as the head coach at Lakeville South. I will always value my experiences as a student-athlete and coach at the University of Minnesota."
Darwitz, who finished her Gopher career in 2005, served as an assistant coach for Minnesota in 2008-09 and 2010-11, while taking the 2009-10 season to compete in her third-straight Olympics in 2010. Darwitz started her coaching career in 2007-08 as an assistant coach with Eagan High School. 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 tournament berth in four years with a 20-9-1 overall record. As an assistant with the Gophers, Darwitz aided Minnesota to its first WCHA title since she was on the roster and helped the Gophers' to their first Frozen Four appearance since 2006.
In just 99 career games for the Gophers, Darwitz set a school record of 246 points when she tallied 102 goals and 144 assists. In her final year with Minnesota, Darwitz scored 42 goals and 72 assists for 114 points, breaking the NCAA record for points in a single season. The Patty Kazmaier Award finalist led the country in points per game (2.85) and assists (72). The three-time first-team All-American was named the Most Outstanding Player for her performance at the 2005 NCAA Frozen Four. Not only did Darwitz set the record for points in the NCAA tournament (3-6-9), she also scored the game-winning goal for the Gophers with one minute and eight seconds remaining in the contest to lead them to their second consecutive national championship. Darwitz, the 2005 Western Collegiate Hockey Association's 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 WCHA Rookie of the Year, the Gophers first honor.
On the USA Hockey front, Darwitz and Team USA earned a silver medal at the 2002 and 2010 Winter Olympics and a bronze medal in 2006. Since joining Team USA, Darwitz has been on eight world championship teams and was the youngest player to be selected to the national team at age 15. Darwitz received USA Hockey's Bob Johnson award, which is given to a U.S. athlete who has excelled on the international scene in 2009.
"I want to congratulate Natalie on her new position," said Coach Frost. "She has been a huge part of our program over the last decade, both as a player and a coach. We will miss her greatly, but I know that she will be successful at Lakeville South. The opportunity for her to be a head coach at the high school level and invest in that community is something that she will enjoy. They are getting a great coach, but an even better person."
A search for Darwitz's replacement at the University of Minnesota will begin immediately.
