IWLCA Congratulates Chris Sailer and Fran DenHartog for Tewaaraton Honors
The Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA) proudly celebrates outstanding achievements in the lacrosse community, and today, we extend our heartfelt congratulations to two remarkable individuals. The Tewaaraton Foundation has announced the 2024 Tewaaraton Spirit and Legends honorees. Chris Sailer has been named the 16th Spirit of Tewaaraton recipient, while Fran DenHartog, a standout alumna of Harvard University, has been recognized as a 2024 Tewaaraton Legend
"We are thrilled that the Tewaaraton Foundation will be honoring Chris Sailer and Francesca DenHartog at the 2024 Tewaaraton Awards Ceremony at the end of May," said Kelly Gallagher, IWLCA President and head coach at the University of Tampa. "Chris and Fran personified excellence as both student-athletes and collegiate coaches and represent an important part of the history of our game. It's important to recognize their contributions to the game and the impact they had on their peers and their players. It is truly special to see who has been chosen for the Spirit of Tewaaraton and the Tewaaraton Legend awards each year, as they link the current generation of collegiate players to the historical greats and remind us all why this game is so important to so many."
The Spirit of Tewaaraton is presented to an individual who has contributed to the sport of lacrosse in a way that reflects the spirit of the values and mission of the Tewaaraton Award. The Tewaaraton Legends Award annually honors recipients who played college lacrosse prior to 2001, the first year in which the Tewaaraton Award was presented.
“The Spirit and Legends Awards are vital parts of our program: honoring the history and heritage of lacrosse is central to the mission of the Tewaaraton Foundation,” said Andy Phillips, President of the Tewaaraton Foundation. “Chris Sailer has meant so much to the game of lacrosse, and Bill Miller and Francesca DenHartog are truly legends of the sport, so we’re proud to be able to recognize these icons.”
Chris Sailer, Princeton’s coach for 36 seasons, won three NCAA titles, 16 Ivy League championships, and led the team to 11 national semifinals. She retired in 2022, ranking fifth in all-time women’s lacrosse wins and first in wins at one Division I program. Princeton reached 12 consecutive NCAA Tournaments under her tenure. Sailer guided the team to back-to-back national titles in 2002 and 2003, making them the second team in NCAA women’s lacrosse history to achieve this feat. She received three national Coach of the Year awards, the Diane Geppi-Aikens Memorial Award in 2008, and was inducted into the USA Lacrosse Hall of Fame in 2008 and the IWLCA Hall of Fame in 2022. The Chris Sailer Trail at USA Lacrosse headquarters was dedicated to her in 2017. Sailer coached five Tewaaraton finalists, including the 2003 winner, Rachael Becker.
DenHartog had an extensive Team USA career, playing for the U.S. Women’s National Team First Team (1982, 1988, 1989); Reserve Team (1983, 1984, 1985, 1987); U.S. World Cup Team (1982, 1986, 1989); and the U.S. Touring Team (1984, 1987). She was a club player for 14 years (New England I, Philadelphia I, Hampshire Club) and received the Beth Allen Award in 1998. DenHartog was inducted into the Harvard Varsity Club Hall of Fame in 1998, the USA Lacrosse New England Chapter Lacrosse Hall of Fame in 2000, and the USA Lacrosse National Hall of Fame in 2010.
All recipients will receive their awards at the Tewaaraton Award Ceremony May 30, 2024, in Washington, D.C.
Past Spirit of Tewaaraton recipients include Dick Edell, Diane Geppi-Aikens, Sid Jamieson, A.B. “Buzzy” Krongard, Roy Simmons Jr., Richie Moran, Bob Scott, Brendan Looney, Oren Lyons, Tina Sloan Green, George Boiardi, Welles Crowther, Feffie Barnhill, Bill Belichick and Alf Jacques.
Tewaaraton Legend recipients are chosen on the basis that their collegiate performance would have earned them a Tewaaraton Trophy, had the award existed when they played. The previous Legends Award winners are Syracuse’s Jim Brown (2011), Cornell’s Eamon McEneaney (2012), Johns Hopkins’ Joe Cowan (2013), Navy’s Jimmy Lewis (2014), Syracuse’s Brad Kotz (2015), Maryland’s Frank Urso (2016), Penn State’s Candace Finn Rocha (2016), Army’s Peter Cramblet (2017), Virginia’s Cherie Greer (2017), Johns Hopkins’ Larry Quinn (2018), Temple’s Mandee Moore O’Leary (2018), North Carolina’s Tom Sears (2019), University of Delaware’s Karen Borbee (2019), Johns Hopkins’ Dave Pietramala (2022), Northwestern’s Kelly Amonte Hiller (2022), Maryland’s Doug Schreiber (2023) and Temple’s Kathleen Geiger (2023).
For more information on the Tweaaraton Spirit and Legends Awards or to attend this exciting event, visit tewaaraton.com.
About The Tewaaraton Foundation: Founded at the University Club of Washington, DC and first presented in 2001, the Tewaaraton Award is recognized as the preeminent lacrosse award, annually honoring the top male and female college lacrosse player in the United States. Endorsed by the Mohawk Nation Council of Elders and USA Lacrosse, the Tewaaraton Award symbolizes lacrosse’s centuries-old roots in Native American heritage. The Tewaaraton Foundation ensures the integrity and advances the mission of this award. Each year, the Tewaaraton Award celebrates one of the six nations of the Haudenosaunee/Iroquois Confederacy – the Mohawk, Cayuga, Oneida, Onondaga, Seneca and Tuscarora – and presents two scholarships to students of Native American descent. To learn more about The Tewaaraton Foundation, please visit www.tewaaraton.com.
About the IWLCA: The IWLCA is a membership-led, professional association representing the nation’s intercollegiate women’s lacrosse coaches within Division I, II & III of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), and the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA). The IWLCA is a 501c(3) nonprofit educational organization. Currently, there are over 550 institutional members and over 1,200 coaches participating in NCAA Division I, Division II, Division III, and the NAIA.