Two coaches will make assessments as two others will discuss their plan to set the tone for their respective teams.

Ryan Hawke

It may be Ryan Hawke’s first year conducting practices in the Bush Pool as head coach of Hamline’s swim and dive team, but it certainly won’t be an unfamiliar setting for him.

Hawke grew up in Roseville, Minnesota and was a member of the Star Swim Club which held practice at Hamline University’s Bush Pool. It’s also the same pool Hawke competed against Olympic medalist Tom Malchow.

Hawke’s past experience is what inspired him to apply for the position to become the head coach of the men’s and women’s swimming and diving team for Hamline University.

“I remember looking up in at the record board [at Bush Pool] and being in awe,” Hawke said. “[Hamline] was a place that I always admired…a school that I always thought very highly of…when the position opened up I decided to throw my name into the hat.”

Previously he was the head coach of the University of Wisconsin–River Falls, which is where he was acquainted with Hamline’s former head coach Frank Vaccaro. Hawke and Vaccaro competed against each other but at the same time supported each other’s program. The two would talk over the phone and provide each other with advice. They related to each other because they felt their programs were in a similar situation.

“While I was at River Falls I was talking to Frank [Vaccaro] quite a bit, because we both were kind of going through the rebuilding process at the same time,” Hawke said.

Hawke’s goal as a coach is for his team to become more competitive and hold a presence in the community.

“I want to see [the] name of Hamline athletics and the Hamline swim and dive team get used more in the community [through] events and community service,” he said. “I’d like to see our program grow to get more competitive in the conference. I’m hoping in five years or so that we’re in the top five of the MIAC conference.”

However, Hawke acknowledges the team’s past accomplishments and he doesn’t want to overlook it. The squad has consistently made the Academic All-MIAC and last year the diving team had a few record breaking performances.

“They’ve been making forward progress. The diving program is coming along,” he said.

When Hawke first arrived he was a little unsure of where his athletes thought the program was headed. He sent emails and talked to athletes one on one to hear their perspective on the team’s direction.

Hawke said it was an important step in getting to know the athletes and at the same time created a plan to resolve those issues. Open communication is his theme and he said it will be key in leading this team.

The squad’s first meet will be held Oct. 12, at the Bush Pool for the Hamline Alumni meet.

“I really am excited to be here,” Hawke said. “I’ve always idolized this program and this school so it’s an awesome opportunity to be a part of the tradition and the family.”

Jim Weyandt

Jim Weyandt experienced his first year in the dugout as Hamline’s head coach, last season. Under his leadership the team finished one game short of the playoffs and concluded with the third most wins in school history with a 24-14 record. They also hold the record for the longest winning streak with an impressive 10 games.

“I was proud of our guys, they handled the adversity well,” Weyandt said. “Twenty-four wins, the third most in school history…there was a lot of positives…the biggest disappointment of the season was the weather.”

Last season the spring’s wintery weather conditions delayed the season for three weeks. Weyandt spoke to members who have been a part of the MIAC for 30 plus years and they said it was the worst weather conditions they had ever experienced.

Weyandt said he felt bad for the seniors because their final season was at the mercy of the weather.

“When it gets down to it, I get to coach another season this year. My seniors don’t get to have another senior year and they’re the ones that ultimately got cheated last year,” Weyandt said.

However, he realizes adversity is something that his team will always face and that as a coach he must keep the team upbeat.

“Last year’s adversity happened to be the weather, this year who knows what it will be,” he said.

The baseball team is currently preparing for fall ball and is training for the 2014 season.

“What I expect is 20 plus wins and [to] return to the playoffs. We got to get back to the playoffs this year, bottom line,” Weyandt said, “but there are some other things that are important too. They’re student athletes, students first… to continue to represent the university in a positive manner is very, very important. It’s not overlooked.”

Right now, Weyandt has one game in particular marked on his calendar. The annual Alumni Game that will start of their fall ball season. It will be held September 21 at St. Anthony Park at 11 a.m. The current roster will face alums that have graduated from Hamline in the past 10 to 15 years.

“It’s good to see our guys play a game and to see our alums come back and be able to spend some time with them,” Weyandt said.

Alex Morawiecki

Alex Morawiecki, head coach of Hamline’s men’s soccer team, returns for his second year as the head coach on Paterson Fields. The once soccer athlete for the Pipers is on a mission to restore the tradition of its winning ways and make the playoffs as it did when he played here in 2005.

“An intangible goal is to become relevant in our conference and the Twin Cities…just to become relevant once again on Snelling Avenue would be an accomplishment,” Morawiecki said.

However, Morawiecki said he has learned from last year not to get ahead of himself.

“[Last year] my vision was a little bit farsighted instead of thinking about more of the immediate future,” he said.

“Take it one day at a time and stay grounded,” is his new philosophy.

Morawiecki does look at his first season as a positive.

“I was really proud of the way the guys embraced our new demands and culture of what we’re trying to do,” he said.

The team finished the season 3-12-3 but remained competitive as five of their losses were by a margin of one goal.

“I guess we didn’t win as much as we preferred to [but] it was good in laying a foundation from a cultural standpoint,” he said.

The Pipers have made a few tweaks in the way the team trains and in their style of play. Morawiecki said they will play in a much more disciplined style and it won’t be as open as it was last year.

He said he’s also leaning on leadership from his senior captains Greg Northup and Mike Murphy.

As for the team becoming more competitive and winning games, Morawiecki said if they get off to a good start and win early on it will build their confidence.

“Confidence early on is going to be key,” he said.

He cited the saying, “Just as losing is a habit, winning is the same way.”

He stated the team’s ultimate goal which is to make the MIAC playoffs, but he wants his team focused on improving and becoming more competitive.

“We have to learn how to compete first and win second,” he said.

As it’s still early in the season, Morawiecki is ecstatic to be on the sideline coaching his team.

“I’m just excited to get going, better our mark and continue to improve individually and collectively,” he said.

Chad Rogosheske

Chad Rogosheske is entering his first season as the Hamline Pipers football head coach. Rogosheske has years of experience as an athlete who played with the Pipers, as well as serving as an assistant coach under then head coach Dick Tressell. Both Rogosheske and Tressell later went on to join the coaching staff of the NCAA Division-I Big Ten conference football program at Ohio State University.

Rogosheske said he’s honored to be back and to take the reins as head coach.

“It was a good opportunity to come back to a place that really means a lot to me,” he said.

In addition to a new head coach Athletic Director Jason Verdugo has also renovated the entire coaching staff. The Pipers also acquired nearly 40 new players, which is more than the 37 who are returning.

“That’s an interesting dynamic,” Rogosheske said. “We’re adding that dimension where we got a core group of players that has to meet an equal number of newcomers and they all got to get to know the coaching staff… that’s going to be an initial challenge for us.”

Throughout the preseason the team endured workout sessions while the coaches installed plays and game plans. Rogosheske also set aside time for the players to bond and build camaraderie. However, despite the roster situation he feels that camaraderie is something that will work itself out within the team.

“The unique thing in football is that you are guaranteed that you’re gonna be put in situations that are a little stressful and adverse,” he said. “I think when you come out of those situations positively that also helps develop bonds…the great thing about football is that those situations are guaranteed to arise.”

Rogosheske expects this year’s football team to be one that improves every week and will adjust his game plan to scheme around his player’s ability.

“[We will] evolve our schemes towards the things that we see in our players [strengths, things] they can execute well,” he said.

Rogosheske said his team’s goal is the same that he had told his team during their first meeting.

“Our goal is to get better each day…we want to end the day better than we were when we woke up this morning,” he said. “If we string a bunch of days like that together, we feel like we’re going to start accomplishing the things we’d hope to accomplish.”