Hometown Messenger Celebrates "Miss Success," National Champion Coach Kris Huffman

March 26, 2007

Also: View National Championship Photo Gallery

March 26, 2007, Greencastle, Ind. - "For Fort Dodge native and former Senior High standout Kris Huffman, success seems to follow her like a shadow," begins a story in Iowa's Fort Dodge Messenger. "Huffman -- a 1985 FDSH graduate -- recently coached her way to the 2007 NCAA Div. III national championship at DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana with a 55-52 win over Washington University in St. Louis. It was DePauw's first ever national title." [Download Video: "The Final Seconds" - 2719kb]

The coach tells the newspaper, "Winning the national championship has been unbelievable. The players and coaches have talked about this for several years, and for it to have actually happened is amazing." 

Morgan Brown writes, "Finishing her 14th season as head coach of the Tigers, Huffman led the 2006-07 squad to a DePauw single-season record of 31 wins against just three losses." The article notes Huffman's stellar playing career, which continued at the University of Northern Iowa after she graduated from Fort Dodge. "A recent inductee into the Fort Dodge Senior High Hall of Fame, Huffman is also in the Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union Basketball Hall of Fame and the Iowa Women's Basketball Hall of Fame," notes the piece.

Huffman was named to lead DePauw's women's basketball program in 1993. "Quickly establishing herself as a force to be reckoned with, Huffman guided her team to a second-place conference finish in her debut season before taking the Tigers all the way to the NCAA Div. III tournament in 1996. Since then, Huffman's squad has made seven national tournament appearances, including a trip to the quarterfinals in the 2005-06 season. DePauw has reached the round of 16 five times in the past nine seasons."

The newspaper points out that Huffman was the NCAA Division III "Coach of the Year" in 2002, and has received the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference's top coaching honor six times. "Adding to her accomplishments, Huffman has become the winningest coach in DePauw history, turning in 10 seasons of 20-plus wins in the past 11 years for an amazing .787 winning percentage (304-82)," reports Brown.

The complete story, headlined "Miss Success," can be found at the Messenger's Web site. Kris Huffman was also the subject of a weekend article in the Terre Haute Tribune-Star.

Another story -- on sisters and Tiger teammates Gretchen and Gwen Haehl -- can be found by visiting Indiana's Shelbyville News.

Video highlights of last Saturday's championship game (which was televised nationally on CSTV) and the Tigers' celebration can be accessed in this previous story and comprehensive coverage of the team's historic season can be found by clicking here.

Back