UW-Green Bay to Add Women's Golf for 2007-08 School Year

Feb. 2, 2007

Green Bay, Wis. - When the 2007-08 academic year rolls around it will have been 15 years since the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay added men's swimming and diving as its most recent sport for the 1992-93 season. That will all change this fall as women's golf hits the course as the University's 16th athletics program. Coinciding with the announcement of the program's inception, UW-Green Bay Director of Athletics Ken Bothof has hired Lucas Hana as the team's first head coach.

"We're excited to begin a new athletics program at UW-Green Bay," Bothof said. "We are fortunate to have an individual like Lucas to lead our new program with his eagerness and professional background. His experience with junior golf throughout the area will be a tremendous asset in his recruiting efforts across the region."

With the addition of women's golf, UW-Green Bay will now boast 16 NCAA teams, with nine women's programs and seven men's teams.

Women's golf is one of the fastest growing sports offered by the NCAA. The number of teams offered has grown from 146 teams in 1994-95 to 228 programs in 2004-05. UW-Green Bay's program will be the second Division I program in the state (Wisconsin) and sixth in the Horizon League (Butler, Cleveland State, Detroit, Loyola, Youngstown State).

Hana has served as a PGA Assistant Golf Professional and Director of Instruction at Green Bay Country Club since 2001 and will continue to serve in that capacity. A 2000 graduate of New Mexico State University, he was honored as the 2005 Wisconsin PGA Assistant Golf Professional of the Year. Hana has also heavily been involved in conducting numerous private individual and group lessons as well as conducting clinics. He was elected to PGA membership in March 2002.

"The opportunity to start a new endeavor and to grow a team from the very beginning has endless possibilities," said Hana. "I'm optimistic to lead and grow a team to be competitive both in the Horizon League and the nation. I also want to lead a team that's not just focused on golf, but one that committed to classroom and community."

Story provided by UW-Green Bay Sports Information