Lakeland College

Woltzen inducted into NAIA Hall of Fame

Athletics - posted on 3/14/2013

Former Lakeland College men's basketball coach Duane "Moose" Woltzen was inducted into the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) Hall of Fame posthumously during a banquet for the NAIA Division I Men's Basketball Championship in Kansas City, Mo., on Tuesday.

Woltzen was inducted as part of the banquet, which serves as a kickoff to the oldest college basketball postseason tournament in the country, with origins dating back to 1937. A video presentation about Woltzen was played, and his son Scott Woltzen was presented with a plaque honoring his father's achievement. Former Muskie basketball player Dave Voskuil then delivered a speech remembering his former coach.

Woltzen joined former Lakeland football player Pat Curran as inductees into the NAIA Hall of Fame this year and were among a class of 13 inductees being recognized for their significant contributions to the NAIA, to intercollegiate athletics as a whole and to their individual sport. Curran was honored on Jan. 7 at the National Football Coaches Association's national meetings in Nashville, Tenn.

Woltzen was one of Lakeland's greatest ambassadors, and he carved his own chapter in Wisconsin basketball history. Serving as men's basketball coach and athletic director from 1964-88, his teams won 536 games and amassed an impressive .700 career winning percentage. He died in 2009.

Already a member of four Hall of Fames and frequent guest speaker at camps, clinics and to service clubs, Woltzen was a fixture on the international basketball scene. He took his Muskies all over the world to play, he served as a coach for several international teams and he started an international sports tours business.

Upon the announcement of Woltzen's induction in September, Moose's son Scott, a 1982 Lakeland graduate, said the family was pleased to see both men earn this recognition.

"(Moose) wasn't one going to bang his own drum," Scott Woltzen said. "It's also a tribute to the players that he recruited to Lakeland and melded into a cohesive unit. His teams were fun to watch, they played hard and he always had players from all different background under one roof. They came together and played Muskie basketball.

"And many of those guys are still pretty darn close, despite having graduated, in some cases, more than 40 years ago. It was a family. He was a pretty impressive fellow-we miss him."