Women's Golf Hosts Ninth Annual Unger-DeBlasio Cup
Oct 08 | Women's Golf
PISCATAWAY, N.J. – Rutgers women's golf hosted another successful Unger-DeBlasio Cup on Friday at the Rutgers University Golf Course.
The ninth annual cup featured the largest field in event history, with over 100 participating golfers.
Former coaches in attendance included Maura Waters Ballard, Jan Unger and Art DeBlasio.
The event celebrated 45 years of Rutgers Women's Golf, while also serving as part of Rutgers Athletics' celebration of 50 years of Title IX.
"Hosting the Unger-DeBlasio is one of our favorite events of the year as we get to share the day with our alumnae and friends of the program," head coach Kari Williams said. "This year was extraordinary having Jan Unger back on campus with us celebrating 45 years of Rutgers Women's Golf and 50 years of Title IX. Through the stories she shared, Jan brought to life the power of what Title IX has done for both educational and athletic opportunities for women. A pioneer at Rutgers in starting and growing the program, Jan passed the torch to Maura who continued developing and improving the team. And now that same program competes on the national stage in the Big Ten Conference with student-athletes from all over the world who continue to set records every year."
Letterwinners in Attendance
Jan Unger was the recepient of the Don and Penny Pray Service Award for her efforts in establishing the women's golf program at Rutgers in 1977 and for coaching the team from 1977-94.
Former players Maura Waters Ballard and Michelle Melia delivered speeches about Jan's impact on their careers and the program at Rutgers. Jan also addressed the crowd and shared memories about her time at the helm
"Jan continues to give back to Rutgers and annually supports scholarships for the program," Williams said. "She has come out to cheer us on at a tournament in Denver and we were thrilled to take this opportunity to honor her legacy. It was one of the highlights of my coaching career at Rutgers to recognize and celebrate Jan and all she has done for women's golf and our Scarlet Knights."
The champions of the 2022 Unger-DeBlasio Cup were Tim Cadigan, Nick Fierro, Sergio Lima and Pete Olsen.
"We always love having the chance to see all the people that support our team," Nicole Ewing said. "We're so grateful to everyone that turned up for our largest Unger-DeBlasio ever! Spending time with Jan was an honor for our team and we appreciated hearing stories from her years at Rutgers. It truly shows just how far our program has come, thanks to Jan."
After the event, Rutgers also honored its academic award winners.
Maeve Rossi (4x), Leigha Devine (2x), Nicole Ewing (1x), Rikke Nordvik (2x) and Lucrezia Rossettin (1x) were all honored as WGCA Academic All-Americans.
Rossi (2x), Devine (2x) and Ewing (2x) were also honored as Big Ten Distinguished Scholars, while Ewing and Devine were also inducted into the Chi Alpha Sigma Honor Society.
All-Time Unger-DeBlasio Cup Champions
2013: Bob Bernabe, Bill Garbarini, Mike Malekoff, Chris Strivieri
2014: Bob Bernabe, Bill Garbarini, Mike Malekoff, George Oram,
Emily Mills
2015: Bob Rosenwasser, Rich Poli, Rick Sinding
2016: Don Pray, Penny Pray, Andy Stotler, Mariclaire Stolter
2017: Bob Torrone, Don Lomurro, Rich Stanzione, Jeff Cusimano
2018: Art DeBlasio, Kenny Fivek, Paul Schoeb, Mike DeBlasio
2019: Jan Unger, Kathleen Shank, Jackie Mullens, Lori Char
2020: Not contested
2021: Christina Paulsen, John Kababick, Brian Quilty, Greg Zohovetz
2022: Tim Cadigan, Nick Fierro, Sergio Lima, Pete Olsen.
Gallery: (10-8-2022) 2022 Unger-DeBlasio Cup
The ninth annual cup featured the largest field in event history, with over 100 participating golfers.
Former coaches in attendance included Maura Waters Ballard, Jan Unger and Art DeBlasio.
The event celebrated 45 years of Rutgers Women's Golf, while also serving as part of Rutgers Athletics' celebration of 50 years of Title IX.
"Hosting the Unger-DeBlasio is one of our favorite events of the year as we get to share the day with our alumnae and friends of the program," head coach Kari Williams said. "This year was extraordinary having Jan Unger back on campus with us celebrating 45 years of Rutgers Women's Golf and 50 years of Title IX. Through the stories she shared, Jan brought to life the power of what Title IX has done for both educational and athletic opportunities for women. A pioneer at Rutgers in starting and growing the program, Jan passed the torch to Maura who continued developing and improving the team. And now that same program competes on the national stage in the Big Ten Conference with student-athletes from all over the world who continue to set records every year."
Letterwinners in Attendance
| Letterwinner | Grad Year |
| Ballard, Maura | 1988 |
| Fradkin, Liz | 2012 |
| Greenham, Ash | 2019 |
| Henson, Jill | 2002 |
| Lennox, Amanda | 2004 |
| McCarty, Joanne | 1980 |
| Melia, Michelle | 1996 |
| Ness, Stephanie | 2009 |
| Nowitzke, Jen | 2008 |
| O'Brien, Amanda | 2002 |
| Olsen, Danaka | 2001 |
| Paulsen, Christina | 2016 |
| Young, Donna | 1979 |
Jan Unger was the recepient of the Don and Penny Pray Service Award for her efforts in establishing the women's golf program at Rutgers in 1977 and for coaching the team from 1977-94.
Former players Maura Waters Ballard and Michelle Melia delivered speeches about Jan's impact on their careers and the program at Rutgers. Jan also addressed the crowd and shared memories about her time at the helm
"Jan continues to give back to Rutgers and annually supports scholarships for the program," Williams said. "She has come out to cheer us on at a tournament in Denver and we were thrilled to take this opportunity to honor her legacy. It was one of the highlights of my coaching career at Rutgers to recognize and celebrate Jan and all she has done for women's golf and our Scarlet Knights."
The champions of the 2022 Unger-DeBlasio Cup were Tim Cadigan, Nick Fierro, Sergio Lima and Pete Olsen.
"We always love having the chance to see all the people that support our team," Nicole Ewing said. "We're so grateful to everyone that turned up for our largest Unger-DeBlasio ever! Spending time with Jan was an honor for our team and we appreciated hearing stories from her years at Rutgers. It truly shows just how far our program has come, thanks to Jan."
After the event, Rutgers also honored its academic award winners.
Maeve Rossi (4x), Leigha Devine (2x), Nicole Ewing (1x), Rikke Nordvik (2x) and Lucrezia Rossettin (1x) were all honored as WGCA Academic All-Americans.
Rossi (2x), Devine (2x) and Ewing (2x) were also honored as Big Ten Distinguished Scholars, while Ewing and Devine were also inducted into the Chi Alpha Sigma Honor Society.
All-Time Unger-DeBlasio Cup Champions
2013: Bob Bernabe, Bill Garbarini, Mike Malekoff, Chris Strivieri
2014: Bob Bernabe, Bill Garbarini, Mike Malekoff, George Oram,
Emily Mills
2015: Bob Rosenwasser, Rich Poli, Rick Sinding
2016: Don Pray, Penny Pray, Andy Stotler, Mariclaire Stolter
2017: Bob Torrone, Don Lomurro, Rich Stanzione, Jeff Cusimano
2018: Art DeBlasio, Kenny Fivek, Paul Schoeb, Mike DeBlasio
2019: Jan Unger, Kathleen Shank, Jackie Mullens, Lori Char
2020: Not contested
2021: Christina Paulsen, John Kababick, Brian Quilty, Greg Zohovetz
2022: Tim Cadigan, Nick Fierro, Sergio Lima, Pete Olsen.
Players Mentioned
/ Women's Golf
/ Women's Golf
/ Women's Golf
/ Women's Golf
/ Women's Golf
/ Women's Golf
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