By: Jake Krier, UWEC Sports Information
EAU CLAIRE, Wis. (blugolds.com) - Head coach of the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire wrestling team, Tim Fader, is to be inducted into the National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) Division III Hall of Fame on Thursday, March 9. Fader's induction ceremony will take place in La Crosse and serve as a prelude to the NCAA Division III Wrestling Championships that take place March 10-11 at the La Crosse Center.
Now in his second year with the Blugolds, Fader has vastly increased the roster size, picked up some big wins, and has the overall program on the rise. In his rookie campaign, Fader coached one of the 43 All-Americans and four of the 53 Scholar All-Americans to his name. More recently, he led the Blugolds in defeating Luther College for the first time since 1995 and UW-Stevens Point for the first time since 1986 on way to the program's first winning dual record since the 2008-09 season.
Fader has been successful at two other Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) schools as well, heading UW-La Crosse from 1998-2004 and UW-Whitewater from 2004-14. During that time, he was named WIAC Coach of the Year four times (1999, 2001, 2002, 2014) and NWCA Coach of the Year twice (2001, 2012). He was also chosen as the 2014 Division III Coach of the Year in 2014 when he guided the Warhawks to a second place finish in the NCAA Championships, the highest finish in program history.
Wrestling collegiately at Augustana College (Ill.), Fader amassed a career record of 124-39. His accolades include two-time team MVP, two-time conference champion, two-time All-American, two-time Academic All-American, three-time national qualifier, and graduating Summa Cum Laude with an undergraduate degree in Accounting and Finance-Business Administration.
In addition to his success as a head coach, Fader has served as an assistant at Wheaton College, UW-La Crosse, the University of Minnesota-Morris, Augustana College, and Oregon (Ill.) High School.
"I am very honored to receive this Hall of Fame nomination, especially in the place I started my career -- La Crosse, Wisconsin," said Fader. "I am thankful for being able to share my knowledge and lessons of the sport and call it a job. I certainly share this with all of my wrestlers and staff: past, current, and future. People always say that wrestling is a sport that you get out what you put into it; I continue to receive so much more from this sport."
Fader will be one of five inductees for this year's Hall of Fame ceremony. The top NWCA Academic Scholar Teams for Division III will also be announced at the event.
The NWCA Hall of Fame Awards Social is scheduled to begin with a social at 6 p.m. followed by the program beginning at 6:30 p.m. from the La Crosse Center Ballroom. Tickets will be available for $10 each at the door.