MONTCLAIR STATE'S KUBICKA TO BE HONORED BY THE NEW JERSEY SPORTSWRITERS ASSOCIATION
1/21/2009 2:17:16 PM
MONTCLAIR--Montclair State head softball coach Anita Kubicka will be among the honored guests as the New Jersey Sports Writers Association holds its 73rd Anniversary Banquet on January 25 at the Pines Manor in Edison, NJ.
Kubicka will be presented with the College Softball Coach of the Year award and will be part of a star-studded group of honorees that include New York Mets All-Star third baseman David Wright, Rutgers quarterback Mike Teel and New York Giants Super Bowl Most Valuable Player O.J. Anderson.
Kubicka is being honored for her outstanding career at Montclair State. Over the past two seasons, no team in the New Jersey Athletic Conference has been better than Kubicka’s Red Hawks which have gone an impressive 34-2 in conference during that time. In 2008, MSU put together its best conference season in program history. Montclair did not lose a single conference game during the regular season posting an 18-0 mark making just the second NJAC squad in league annals to accomplish that feat. In addition to its second straight regular-season crown, Montclair also captured the NJAC Tournament winning twice on the final day to earn its first conference championship since 1997 and its third overall. Montclair State completed 2008 with a 43-6 record, setting the school record for victories and Kubicka and her staff were rewarded as they captured Coaching Staff of the Year honors from both the NJAC and the National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA).
Entering her 19th season at the Red Hawk helm in 2009, Kubicka has far and away won more games than any other coach in Montclair State softball history. In fact, she trails only baseball Norm Schoenig (611 wins) in total victories by an MSU mentor. In 18 seasons Kubicka has posted 587 victories and a .739 winning percentage – both which rank in the Top 15 among active coaches in Division III. Thirteen times her teams have won 30-plus games, including nine of the last 10 campaigns, and she has led the Red Hawks to 10 NCAA Tournaments and two trips to the national championship tournament where in 1997, MSU finished as the runner-up. Montclair has also won seven ECAC championships under Kubicka’s watch and she has earned several NJAC and Regional Coach of the Year honors.