Lake Forest College Sports Information
April 5, 2007
Contact: Mike Wajerski, SID

Lake Forest’s Jackie Slaats Earns IBCA Co-Coach of the Year Honors
Coach receives award for the fifth time in her career

Jackie Slaats
LAKE FOREST, Ill. - The Illinois Basketball Coaches Association recently announced its NCAA Coach of the Year recipients and Lake Forest College’s Jackie Slaats earned Co-Coach of the Year honors in Division III.

Slaats led the Foresters to a program-best 24-3 record and the program’s sixth Midwest Conference Championship in 2006-07. Lake Forest posted a 15-1 league record and earned the right to host the MWC Championship Tournament. The school also hosted the opening two rounds of the NCAA Tournament and advanced to round two for the first time in team history. That victory also extended the squad’s school record winning streak to 18 games.

Slaats is now 365-129 in 21 years at the College and has claimed IBCA Coach of the Year honors five times. She was also voted 2007 Midwest Conference Coach of the Year be her fellow league coaches and was named 2007 Regional Coach of the Year by the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association.

Two other Division III coaches shared this year’s state award with Slaats. Mia Smith led Illinois Wesleyan University to a 22-6 record and Beth Baker’s Wheaton College team was 20-8. Both teams advanced to the NCAA Tournament and, like Lake Forest, Wheaton reached the second round. Lynn Plett of Lewis University (28-4) and Wendy Hedberg of Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (20-9) shared the award for Division II and DePaul University’s (19-13) Doug Bruno was the Division I recipient.

The state’s Coaches of the Year will be honored at the 35th Annual Hall of Fame Induction Dinner on Saturday, April 28, at Illinois State University.