The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
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24 ■ THE WOLFPACKER TRACKING THE PACK NC STATE WINS PLAY4KAY AWARD The NC State women's basketball team was named the NCAA Division I Play4Kay fundraising winner among Power Five schools for the 2016-17 season. Teams across the nation dedicated an event from Feb. 10-20 to raise awareness and funds for the Kay Yow Cancer Fund. NC State's 12th annual Play4Kay game Feb. 19 at Reynolds Coliseum was a sellout and marked the highest fundraising total among Power Five schools. NC State and UNC Rex combined to raise and donate $33,805 to the Kay Yow Cancer Fund, and Bojangles added a $70,000 donation to push the total to over $100,000. The Wolfpack also won the award in 2015. "Being named the winner of the 2017 Play4Kay award is a great honor, especially to all of us here at NC State," women's basketball coach Wes Moore said. "This is a place that loves Coach Yow and the legacy she left behind. "Our university, our fans and our community have shown great support, not only for annual Play4Kay games, but also for the Kay Yow Cancer Fund and its work to raise awareness and continue research in the fight against women's cancers." More than $5.38 million has been given in support of women's cancer research and serving the underserved since the fund was created. "We are so grateful to everyone around the country for their continued support of the Kay Yow Cancer Fund's Play4Kay initiative," said former NCSU assistant coach Stephanie Glance, who is the executive director of the Kay Yow Cancer Fund. "These schools exemplify the vision of Coach Kay Yow when she created the Kay Yow Cancer Fund; and that is to unite a nation of coaches, players and communities of women's basket - ball to do something that far exceeds wins and losses on the court. Together, we will continue to make a sig- nificant impact in the fight against all women's cancer." WOLFPACK WOMEN'S BASKETBALL PROGRAM LANDS STAR RECRUIT The NC State women's basketball team landed junior center Elissa Cunane of Greensboro (N.C.) Northern Guilford Jan. 23. ESPN.com ranks the 6-5 Cunane the No. 9 center and the No. 51 overall player in the country in the class of 2018. She picked the Wolfpack over Georgia, South Carolina, Virginia Tech and Wake Forest. Cunane helped lead Northern Guilford to the North Carolina 3A state title, notching 24 points, 10 rebounds and nine blocks in a 66-64 win over Harrisburg (N.C.) Hickory Ridge. Cunane averaged 20 points and nearly 13 rebounds per game, and was a unanimous selection to the As- sociated Press All-State team. She also was named an all-state performer following her sophomore year. The North Carolina Basketball Coaches Association also named her to its All-State squad. NC State senior signees Kai Crutchfield of Raleigh Millbrook and Kayla Jones of Williamston (N.C.) Riverside High joined Cu- nane on the first-team squad. EX-NC STATE WOMEN'S HOOPS PLAYER NAMED ILLINOIS STATE COACH Former NC State point guard Kristin Gillespie was named the women's basketball coach at Illinois State. Gillespie was a three-year team captain from 1996- 99 at NC State, including on the 1998 NCAA Final Four squad. She earned honorable mention Academic All- America accolades her senior year. Gillespie became an assistant coach at both Central Florida (1999-2000) and Cal Santa Barbara (2000-02), before returning to NC State. She earned her master's degree and was a graduate assistant under the legend - ary Kay Yow. Following a two-year stint coaching high school basketball in Tallahassee, Fla., she was named a Wolfpack assistant coach and co-recruiting coordinator in 2007. She departed NC State to become an assistant coach at Illinois-Chicago from 2009-11. Gillespie was named head coach at Benedictine University in Lisle, Ill., in 2011, and then left in 2015 to become head coach at Lewis University in Romeoville, Ill., going 51-12 over the last two seasons. NC STATE MEN'S SOCCER COMPLETES STAFF New NC State men's soccer head coach George Kiefer completed his coaching staff with the hiring of assistant coach Samuel Castellanos March 27. Castellanos played his last two years of college soc- cer at South Florida when Kiefer was the Bulls coach before embarking on a professional career in 2006. Castellanos became an assistant coach at Philadelphia University in 2010-11, and then left to rejoin Kiefer at South Florida in 2011 in the same role. The Philadelphia native left his assistant coaching position at USF in 2013, and served a stint with Or- lando City Soccer Club as the under-16-18 elite devel- opment coach. "Sammy is an excellent addition to our staff," Kiefer said. "I'm very excited that he's going to be working with us. The experience he gained at Orlando City while working for David Longwell, who is very skilled when it comes to player development, will no doubt be a significant asset for our program." Kiefer also hired Lindsey Krakower as director of soccer operations. She served as the assistant direc - tor of student-athlete enhancement and community engagement for South Florida. Krakower, who played for USF from 2007-10, served as the Bulls' women's soccer director of operations from 2011-13. WOLFPACK WOMEN'S SOCCER HIRES TWO STAFF MEMBERS NC State women's soccer hired assistant coach Steve McKenna and director of goalkeeping Kim Kern April 4, with the latter a former Wolfpack player. The duo was added to head coach Tim Santoro's coaching staff. McKenna has served as assistant coach at Loyola of Maryland since 2014. The Northern Ireland native spent 2013 as an assistant coach at Georgetown, where the Hoyas went 16-3-2 and made a second consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance. "Steve is a great fit for this position and for this program," Santoro said. "I was very patient with this search, but after the time spent together and the sharing of ideas, I quickly realized that Steve is the experienced person we need. He will hit the ground running in all facets of our program and make an im - mediate impact at NC State." Kern was a four-year starting goalie for the Wolfpack, making 66 career starts. She graduated from NCSU in May 2012 with a degree in sports management. Kern served both as an assistant coach and director of operations for the program from 2012-15 before stepping down to pursue a professional career with Oulu Nice of the Finnish First Division. Kern's 324 career saves are third most in school history, while her 1.29 goals-against average and 15 shutouts rank fourth and fifth best, respectively. She was a two-time ACC All-Academic Team selection and earned first team-Academic All-District honors during her junior season. "To have Kim back is great for the program and for our goalkeepers," Santoro said. "She achieved her goal of playing professionally. Now that she's back in Raleigh, adding Kim back to my staff was a logical choice." ■ Red And White Notebook NC State raised over $100,000 for the Kay Yow Cancer Fund at its Play4Kay game at Reynolds Coliseum Feb. 19. PHOTO BY KEN MARTIN