EMU Women’s Golf Coach Sandy Wagner Resigns

Complete Release (PDF).

YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) – Eastern Michigan University Vice President and Director of Athletics Heather Lyke announced today, June 4, that Sandy Wagner has resigned from the position of head coach of the women's golf program. Wagner served as the head coach of the squad for 10 seasons.

"Being apart of the Eastern Michigan family the past 10 years has been a wonderful experience for me," remarked Wagner. "I am grateful for all the life lessons I was able to teach the student-athletes that I have had the privilege to coach. We know playing the game of golf teaches us a lot about life and I know that I am a better person now because of all the wonderful experiences I have had here at EMU. To be surrounded by such wonderful co-workers who are now my friends, to have such a wonderful support system of boosters who have supported us financially and helped keep our golf program so competitive, and to have been at a job that didn't really feel like work – I am so very thankful and appreciative for the opportunities I was given."

The most successful coach in EMU women's golf history, Wagner turned around the Eagles during her 10-year stay in Ypsilanti. Her teams finished as the Mid-American Conference Championship runner-up six times while closing the gap between her squad and perennial conference power Kent State University. In total, EMU recorded an astonishing 131 individual top-10 finishes under Wagner considering the program had just 54 in the nine seasons prior to her arrival.

"I appreciate Sandy's strong leadership qualities and the positive impact she has had on our women's golf team," Lyke said. "Under her guidance, our student-athletes improved tremendously as golfers but most importantly, they grew as students and leaders."

Selected as the 2006-07 and the 2010-11 MAC Coach of the Year, Wagner produced a MAC individual champion, three MAC Freshmen of the Year, eight Academic All-MAC selections, 21 All-MAC honorees and 31 WGCA All-American Scholars.

"I would like to thank everyone who has touched my life these past 15 years of coaching. My Grandma Hartzell always said 'leave it better than you found it' and so with that I am leaving a program that is rooted in traditions of strong academic, athletic and personal development," Wagner added. "The student-athletes that I have had the opportunity to coach have come through our golf program have become champions on and off the course and that is what I am most proud of as a coach. "

Earlier this year, the Eagles posted a runner-up showing at the MAC Championship as Kent State claimed the championship. The Eagles challenged the Golden Flashes all day long, as the Green and White posted the lowest-round of any squad at 306. On the front nine, Kent State saw the advantage shrink to just three before rebounding to shoot a final round 309. The 10-stroke differential was the smallest in the 17-year history of the championship, bettering the previous low of 12 between KSU and EMU in 2011.

Eastern Michigan had one of the best seasons in program history in 2015, as the Eagles posted the second-lowest 18-hole average in program history at 306.35. The tally was just 0.61 behind the 2011-12 squad's record-setting mark of 305.74. Overall, EMU posted a pair of tournament championships with wins at the Cardinal Classic, Sept. 22-23, and the Middleburg Bank Intercollegiate, March 30-31.

Last year, EMU picked up another major accolade, as the team was ranked 11th nationally in the Women's Golf Coaches Association's All-Scholar Team GPA Awards. The Eagles boasted a cumulative team GPA of 3.720.

The 2011-12 campaign was a magical one for Wagner and the women's golf program, as the Eagles finished with the best four-player team scoring average in school-history. EMU recorded an averaged of 305.74, bettering the mark of 306.87 set by the 2009-10 squad. The mark was 18.94 strokes per 18 holes (305.74 to 324.68) better than when Wagner arrived on the Ypsilanti campus.

A season prior, Wagner guided the Eagles to another runner-up showing at the 2011 MAC Women's Golf Championship. Individually, Sarah Johnson claimed the MAC Women's Golf Individual Championship to become the first EMU player to win individual medalist honors since the program began prior to the 1996-97 campaign.

The Eagles ranked as the 10th best team in the nation in total short game with a .485 average at the conclusion of the 2008-09 campaign. In addition to the short game accolade, the Eagles ranked 81st nationally by the Golfweek/Sagarin ratings after achieving its highest national ranking ever at 52nd on Oct. 17, 2007.

A Grand Rapids, Mich. native, Wagner came to EMU after serving an assistant women's golf coach at the University of Michigan for five years.

Prior to joining the U-M women's golf staff, Wagner was a golf professional at Walton Golf Range (1996-99) in Pontiac and also at Willow Creek Golf and Sports Center (1998-2000) in Lake Orion. As a player she finished fourth at the 2000 state of Michigan Women's Open, and also won the Red Holman Pro-Am tournament, shooting a one-under par 73 at Meadowbrook Country Club.

The 46-year-old Wagner graduated from Ferris State University in 1991 after earning a bachelor's degree in business management. She served as a three-year captain of the FSU softball team and also played on the basketball squad for one year.

A national search will be conducted for the program's sixth head coach.

Eastern Michigan Athletics

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