Michigan State University Athletics
Michele Madison Departs Field Hockey Program At MSU
2/3/2006 12:00:00 AM | Field Hockey
Feb. 3, 2006
EAST LANSING, Mich. - Head field hockey coach Michele Madison recently announced her departure from Michigan State to take the reigns at Virginia. In 13 seasons with the Green and White, Madison compiled a 155-116-2 record, and helped establish MSU as one of the top programs in the country. Madison led the Spartans to two NCAA semi-final appearances (2002, '04), three Big Ten Championships (2001, '03, '04) and two Big Ten Tournament Championships (2002, '03). Overall, Madison owns a solid 208-143-8 career record in 17 years of collegiate coaching.
"I never thought the day would come that I would leave Michigan State," stated Madison. "I want to thank each and every player from the last 13 years for a heart full of great memories and joy. You have touched my life. You are my champions. Thank you for believing."
"My assistants throughout the years, especially Rolf van de Kerkhof - I have all the gratitude in the world for all of your collective loyalty, commitment and belief in me and the championship vision," added Madison. "I must also thank the university, President Simon, Ron Mason and my supervisors Karen Langeland and Greg Ianni for their support and mutual respect, as well as Merrily Dean Baker for the opportunity to be a Spartan. We never could have accomplished as much as we did without the support from the entire community, including the athletic training staff, academic support, groundscrew, Ralph Young Fund and the Select 100 Club, the administrative support staff and the ball girls. We've had great players, great families and above all great friends - whose unconditional support is the root of a championship program. Spartan pride never dies."
In Madison's final season with the Spartans, the team concluded the 2005 campaign with an overall record of 12-8, 3-4 in Big Ten play, and were ranked 18th in the nation by the National Field Hockey Coaches' Association. State posted three shutouts, including back-to-back blankings of Pacific (2-0, Sept. 3) and Stanford (3-0, Sept. 5), as well as a 3-0 win over Central Michigan on Oct. 13. In perhaps the Spartans' biggest win of the year, the Green and White upset then-ranked No. 8 Ohio State, 3-2, in East Lansing on Oct. 29. A week later in a hard fought battle; MSU fell to the Buckeyes, 1-0, in the Big Ten Tournament opener.
In total, four players earned NFHCA honors in 2005. Michelle Huynh-Ba became just the third player in MSU history named First-Team All-America, while Christina Kirkaldy was named Second-Team All-America. Jessica Miller and Inge Kaars Sijpestijn were both named Second-Team All-Region. In addition to the national honors, the four received All-Big Ten honors; Huynh-Ba was a unanimous First-Team selection, while Kirkaldy, Miller and Sijepestijn collected Second-Team accolades.
Also in 2005, Madison was named as one of 11 members elected to the USA Field Hockey Board of Directors. Of those 11, she is one of only two active coaches on the list, joined by Penn State's Char Morett.
Arriving in East Lansing in 1993, Madison took a struggling Spartan field hockey program and developed it into one of the premiere programs in the nation. Recruiting some of the top players in the world to play their collegiate career at MSU, Madison is one of the most successful Division I coaches to date. In encouraging her athletes to be the best of the best, Madison unquestionably leads by example. During her tenure at MSU, Madison won more games than any other coach in the 33-year history of the program.
At State, Madison coached 17 NFHCA All-American selections, including three first-team recipients in Alexandra Kyser (2003), Verlee Goudswaard (2004) and most recently Michelle Huynh-Ba (2005). The Spartan accolades give Madison at least one All-America performer in 10 of the past 11 seasons. Two Big Ten Freshman of the Year recipients (Emma Fernandez, 1994 and Bridget Cooper, 1998) and one Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year (Bridget Cooper, 2001) also have been under the training of Madison. Spartan players have been awarded all-region honors 44 times and All-Big Ten kudos on 42 occasions under Madison's watch. MSU was ranked in the top 25 at various times every year of the past decade.
In as much as the team has flourished into a prime program athletically, Madison's players also have excelled in the classroom. Madison coached 47 Academic All-Big Ten honorees, with her players receiving NFHCA National Academic award winners 32 times during her tenure at State.
In 2004, MSU capped off another spectacular season, concluding the year with an 18-4 overall record (5-1 Big Ten). State opened the season with an impressive eight-game winning streak, with the team's powerful defense and timely goal scoring earning them a No. 1 ranking in the country. The Spartans tied for the conference regular-season title with Michigan and Iowa, who each had one loss on the year. Bowing out to the Hawkeyes in the semifinals of the Big Ten Tournament, the Spartans stepped up their game as they earned a berth to the NCAA Tournament, their fourth consecutive appearance in the post-season event. After defeating both Boston College (4-0) and in-state rival Michigan on their home field in Ann Arbor (3-2), the Spartans advanced to the NCAA Final Four for the second time in the history of the program. MSU bowed out to Duke, 5-2, in the semifinals of the Final Four. All told, each of the four games the Spartans lost in the regular season were in overtime.
Receiving individual accolades for their roles in the success of MSU during the course of the 2004 season, Goudswaard was a finalist for the Honda-Broderick Award as the nation's top player. In addition, she earned First-Team All-America recognition; meanwhile, teammate Annebet Beerman was a Second-Team All-America selection. Four players were named both NFHCA All-Region recipients and All-Big Ten honorees (Goudswaard, Beerman, Michelle Huynh-Ba and Christina Kirkaldy).
In 2003, Madison led her team to a 17-5 record (5-1 Big Ten). Under her guidance, MSU repeated as Big Ten Tournament Champions and captured a share of its second-ever conference title in program history. The team made its third straight appearance at the NCAA Tournament, advancing to the Elite Eight. During the spring of 2004, MSU claimed its third-straight Mercian Championship.
In 2002, Madison led State to its best season in school history, as the team posted a school-record 23 victories, the Big Ten Tournament Championship and the program's first appearance at the NCAA Final Four. For her efforts, Madison was named the NFHCA Regional Coach of the Year. She also was honored by the MSU Varsity "S" Club, which awarded the Spartan coach with an honorary membership for her positive contributions to the Spartan community.
Just one year earlier, in 2001, Madison guided the Spartans to a share of their first Big Ten regular-season title and the team's first berth in the NCAA Tournament. With a 16-6 (5-1 Big Ten) record, 2001's finish was only the beginning for the Green and White, as Madison began to steer the team into the direction she saw fit. The 2001 Big Ten Coach of the Year also garnered the Michigan State Athletic Director's Award for Excellence at the conclusion of the year for her outstanding season.
The respect for Madison's coaching talents extends well beyond the Michigan State campus. One of only two active coaches in the United States to serve on two Olympic coaching staffs, Madison acted as manager for the U.S. Olympic Field Hockey Team that competed in the Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea, in 1988. She also served as an assistant coach on the Olympic coaching staff at the 1996 Summer Games in Atlanta, Ga., and has coached in the Olympic Development Program for 18 years.
Madison, who spent two and a half years on the coaching staff for the U.S. National Team, served as an assistant coach on the 2003 U.S. Under-20 team, after coaching at the prestigious "A" camp for the U.S. Junior National Team trials. In the spring of 2002, Madison assisted the U.S. National Team at the Champions Challenge in South Africa. Before that, Madison was the goalie coach for the U.S. National Field Hockey Team that won a bronze medal at the 1994 World Cup in Dublin, Ireland.
Madison has also coached the Midwest Cyclones of the United Airlines Field Hockey League, leading the team to runner-up finishes in the championship game in 2000 and 2001.
The Philadelphia, Pa., native spent four seasons as the head coach at Temple prior to her appointment at Michigan State. At Temple, she took the team to national championship contention in just her second year at the helm. During Madison's tenure, the Owls compiled a 53-27-6 record and appeared in three NCAA Tournaments, twice advancing to the Elite Eight. Temple won the Atlantic Ten Conference Tournament Championship in 1992.
Madison served a two-year (1989-90) stint as the assistant coach for the Owl women's lacrosse team that advanced to the NCAA Final Four both seasons. During her stay in Philadelphia, Madison coached 12 All-Americans, 21 all-region selections, three Academic All-Americans, two National Team members and one Honda Broderick award winner.
Prior to her position at Temple, Madison served as an assistant coach at Big Ten-rival Iowa for seven seasons (1982-89). During that span, the Hawkeyes advanced to the Final Four four times and captured their first NCAA Championship title in 1986.
Madison was inducted into the Gloucester County (N.J.) Hall of Fame in 1993 and the Williamston (N.J.) High School Hall of Fame in 1992.
Madison is a 1982 physical education graduate of Rutgers University, where she played field hockey and lacrosse. Madison earned her master's degree in athletic administration from Iowa in 1984.
