Annie Van Wetzinga '01

Annie Van Wetzinga swing — **Annie Van Wetzinga '01**

Annie Van Wetzinga '01
Softball

A 2001 NFCA Division III first-team all-America pick after receiving second-team honors in 2000 and a four-time all-region honoree, Van Wetzinga was selected for the 2001 NFCA Division III Catcher of the Year Award.

She helped lead Central to four NCAA tournament berths and was a team co-captain for the 2001 squad which finished second in the national finals. The Dutch also won the 2000 conference crown and Van Wetzinga was a three-time all-league pick.
Central's 2001 LeRoy Timmer MVP Award winner, Van Wetzinga batted .381 in 51 games with 56 hits, 14 doubles, three homers and 32 RBIs. She sparkled even brighter behind the plate with 53 assists. She hit .351 for her career with 184 hits, tying her for ninth place on Central's all-time list and played in 190 games, which ranks third. She had 40 doubles, two triples, 11 homers and 261 RBIs along with a .966 fielding percentage, recording 783 putouts and 159 assists.

Following graduation, Van Wetzinga, a Bettendorf native, served as a coach with her brother, Rusty, at their alma mater, Pleasant Valley High School where they helped the team win a pair of conference titles and made the school's first state tourney appearance in 2005, placing third. They coached four players who later starred at Central. Van Wetzinga was an assistant at St. Ambrose University for a year then spent two seasons as a graduate assistant at Indiana State University, where she received a master's degree in 2007. She was head coach at Colorado School of Mines from 2008-10, leading the squad to the 2008 conference title and an NCAA Division II tournament berth in 2009. spent 2011-13 as coach at Upper Iowa University. She took the Peacocks from 6-41 in 2011 to 28-16 in 2013, then took on her present post at Metropolitan State University of Denver in 2014.

Van Wetzinga has guided MSU Denver to three NCAA Division II tourney appearances and one conference title, with a 38-22 record this past season. She's posted a 296-161 record at MSU Denver and has a 449-317 overall mark.