Karla
Wolters < wolters@hope.edu > has coached collegiate athletics
for 36 years, the past 22 years at the helm of the Flying Dutch
softball team.
A coaching milestone was reached when the Flying Dutch posted a
pair of victories in the 2008 MIAA conference tournament. A
7-1 victory over Saint Mary's was the 1,100th collegiate coaching
victory for Karla
Wolters who over her career has guided student-athletes in five
different sports, including the past 22 years as coach of the
Flying Dutch softball
team.
A 4-0 win over Alma a day later put Wolters at an amazing 1,101-606
over 56 coaching seasons in softball, volleyball, basketball,
field hockey and tennis. Through the 2009 school year, she has
coached 1,754 athletic
coaching seasons. Her records by sport are: softball (664-380),
volleyball (375-194), field hockey (40-26-7), basketball (24-21)
and tennis (14-9).
She has coached teams with winning records in a season 45 times
compared to nine losing campaigns and three .500 marks.
Wolters
has brought a new level of success to the Hope softball program.
She has led the Flying Dutch to
five NCAA Division III tournament appearances (1991, 1992,
1995, 1996 and 2006). The 1991 Flying Dutch finished third
in the nation and
the 1995 team tied for fifth. Wolters was named the Region
softball coach of the year in 1991, 1992 and 1995. The Hope
staff was honored by the MIAA in 2006. Her career
collegiate coaching record over 31 seasons is 664-380.
Her 22-year softball record at Hope is 495-302.
She entered the 2009 season ranked
the fifth winningest Division III coaches all-time.
She is part of an elite group that includes Donna Newberry
of Muskingum (858 victories),
George Wares of Central, Iowa (805) and June Walker of
Trenton State (721), and Bob Timmons of Coe, 717.
Wolters taught and coached for 13 years
at Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Michigan. She led
the Calvin softball team to seven conference championships
from 1979-87 and took Calvin to the NCAA Division III
playoffs on four occasions (1983-84-85-87).
Wolters
is a 1973 Hope College graduate. She was a standout
student-athlete during her undergraduate years. In
her four years at Hope, she played 13 varsity sports
seasons, lettering in tennis, field hockey, basketball
and volleyball.
She received the Master of Arts degree
from Michigan State University in 1978. She has the
academic rank of associate professor of kinesiology
at Hope.
In 1986 she was voted the NCAA Division
III coach-of-the-year by the Intercollegiate Volleyball
Coaches Association. She is among the most successful
coaches in the history of the Michigan Intercollegiate
Athletic Association with 20 conference championships
in softball, volleyball and women's basketball.
Wolters and her husband Tom, also a
Hope College graduate, reside in Zeeland, Mich. Hope College in 2008 honored the Wolters by naming the college's
new softball stadium in their honor.
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