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2018 Kristina Quigley Scholarship Winner Announced

By IWLCA Admin, 10/19/18, 1:00PM EDT

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IWLCA President Kathy Taylor announced that Shannon Hertz, head coach at Bloomsburg University, has been named the 2018 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. The bus driver and Quigley’s unborn son also did not survive. The Kristina Quigley Scholarship will help offset the cost for Hertz's family to accompany her to the IWLCA Annual Meetings in Florida in November.

“It was my pleasure to inform Shannon that she had been chosen as this year’s Kristina Quigley Scholarship recipient,” said Taylor, who is also the head coach at Le Moyne College. “Shannon’s application demonstrated the commitment she has made to her family and her program at Bloomsburg. She embodies many of the values Kristina espoused, and helping Shannon bring her family down to Florida ensures that Kristina Quigley’s legacy remains in the forefront of our collective memory.”

Hertz and her husband Matthew have two sons, Jackson (5) and Jayden (4). In her application, Hertz wrote, “Every single time I travel to a scrimmage or game, I think about Kristina and I think about how lucky I am to be coaching. I think about all the things my family and I have experienced since her death and I try to live my life with as much passion as possible. Anyone who is a part of my world knows that my team and my family are where I direct all my energy. I allow there to be overlap with my team and with my boys because they are my two passions in this world. I do my best to make sure whichever one I am with I am present in that moment. Like all coaches, I struggle with the work-life balance, but I continue to strive to give my team and family what they need.”

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. 

Hertz 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 Annual Meeting.” After being informed of her selection, Hertz said: “I am honored and humbled to be receiving the Kristina Quigley Scholarship and I would like to express my sincere gratitude to the IWLCA for presenting my family and me with this tremendous opportunity. While I never had the privilege of meeting her, the fact that a scholarship of this magnitude is in her name speaks volumes. I am extremely blessed to have had the chance to carry out Kristina’s same passion for family and coaching every day. My family has made tremendous sacrifices to allow me to live out my dream of being a college coach and I am overwhelmed to be able to share this experience with them.”

The 2018 IWLCA Annual Meetings will be held November 14-16 at Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. Hertz will travel with her husband, sons, and her parents to Florida.

Shannon Hertz with her parents and sons.

Jayden and Jackson Hertz.