IWLCA Names 2022 Kristina Quigley Scholarship Winner

The IWLCA has announced that Karen Heggerness, head coach at Hamline University, has been named the 2022 winner of the Kristina Quigley Scholarship. This award honors the former Seton Hill coach, Kristina Quigley, who was tragically killed in a bus accident in 2013 while traveling with her team.

“I would like to congratulate Karen Heggerness on receiving the 2022 Kristina Quigley Award,” said Mike Scerbo, former head coach at Duquesne University, chair of the selection committee, and Quigley’s mentor in her first collegiate coaching position. “Our committee was unanimous that Karen embodies all of the wonderful qualities that guided Kristie in her life; devotion to family, love of coaching, and the harmonious blending of both.”

In her scholarship application, Heggerness wrote, “This job is hard on family. Long weekends away. Nights and mornings away. My wife has been at my side through it all. My passion for coaching can only happen if I keep my family and my team connected. I’ve learned while raising a toddler and coaching a team that it's more similar than different. Both require patience, consistent training, and lots of relationship building.”

Heggerness went on to describe how her wife, Briana Brady, stepped into the position of caretaker and parent all in the blink of an eye as Heggerness faced a medical emergency that would sideline her for six months while also fighting to obtain full custody of their nephew. “On top of doing all parent and foster care duties like visitations and social work calls, my wife also became my at-home nurse. When I felt like I would never heal, she would be supportive and lend a listening ear. Every day, I get to see the scar which reminds me of how she cared for me and Layne during such a challenging time.”

The Kristina Quigley Scholarship description reads, in part:

To honor the passion, commitment, and values of Kristina Quigley, the IWLCA has established a scholarship in her name. The purpose of this scholarship will be to subsidize a trip to the location of the IWLCA Annual Meeting for the recipient’s family. The time-intensive nature of the coaching profession is significant and family time is often sacrificed. The opportunity for a family to join a coach on this trip represents the very essence of Kristina Quigley. 

Heggerness was selected by the Kristina Quigley Scholarship committee based on her essay response detailing her “passion for coaching and family,” and describing “what it would mean to have your family with you at the IWLCA Convention.” After being informed of her selection, Heggerness said: My family and I are honored to receive the Kristina Quigley IWLCA Scholarship for a sponsored trip to the IWLCA convention. Kristina's passion for merging her coaching life and family life is something I strive to achieve in my own life. Now that my wife and I will soon be adopting our biological nephew through kinship foster placement, we are thrilled at the chance to make some amazing memories on our trip to Dallas.

The 2022 IWLCA Convention, presented by StringKing, will be held at the Hilton Anatole in Dallas, TX, from November 16-18. Heggerness will attend with her wife Briana, and their adopted two-year-old son, Layne.