Where are they now? - Erin Iwaskiewicz '05
9/19/2008 12:00:00 AM | Athletics, Women's Soccer
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On June 4, 2008, Erin Iwaskiewicz ’05 returned to the place where she made her mark in the classroom and on the soccer pitch. Iwaskiewicz joined the Lehigh Women’s Soccer coaching staff as the top assistant, following two years at Bucknell University where she earned her master’s degree. “I’m excited to be back here,” Iwaskiewicz said at the time of her hiring. “I think it has been good for me to be away and to be able to develop in some different environments, but now I’m ready to be back at Lehigh and to take on the new challenges in this position.”
As a graduate student and an assistant coach for the Bucknell University women’s soccer program, Iwaskiewicz was very busy as she prepared to graduate in May of 2008 with an M.S. in education. After graduation, Iwaskiewicz is now certified to teach kindergarten through 12th grade.
Before moving to Lewisburg and joining the Bison coaching staff, Iwaskiewicz was a star goalkeeper for the Mountain Hawks. A four-year starter, she was named Patriot League Defensive Player of the Year in 2003, and Goalkeeper of the Year in 2004, after helping the Mountain Hawks end the season with a school-record 12 wins. In addition, during the 2004 season, in which Iwaskiewicz recorded seven shutouts, is also when she experienced some of her fondest memories of her entire soccer career. “My favorite memory is when we beat Colgate in a big 1-0 upset my senior year,” she said. Iwaskiewicz graduated as Lehigh’s all-time career leader in GAA (goals against average), wins and shut outs.
On top of athletic achievements, Iwaskiewicz excelled scholastically as well. As an undergraduate at Lehigh, she was named Patriot League Scholar-Athlete of the Year in 2004 and was also named to the CoSIDA Academic All-America First Team. Her passion for academics as well as her strong interest in helping others drove her to study education in graduate school and pursue a teaching career. “I love helping people – students and athletes – to realize their potential and maximize their skills," Iwaskiewicz said, “It’s amazing to watch people grow and to be part of that growth.”
Iwaskiewicz attributes her ability to manage her rigorous work in addition to coaching for the past two years at Bucknell with the time management skills she learned as a student-athlete at Lehigh. "Time management was the most important thing I learned,” she said. “Classes were demanding, soccer was demanding, but going through that taught me how to be successful at juggling things."
When she’s not busy with coaching, Iwaskiewicz likes to travel. Over the 2007-08 winter break she enjoyed a trip to Europe to visit former Mountain Hawk teammate Gina Lewandowski ’07 who plays for a pro team in Germany. “I don’t have much free time,” she said, “but when I do get some, I would really like to do more traveling.”
Story written by Sarah McClutchy ‘08
