| Wartburg Knights | |
| Conference: | ARC |
| Location: | Waverly, Iowa |
| Coach: | Bob Amsberry |
| Tenure: | 18th |
| Arena: | Levick Arena |
| Capacity: | 2,000 |
| Nickname: | Knights |
| Ncaafinalfour: | 2016, 2018, 2024 |
| Ncaaeliteeight: | 1992, 1993, 2001, 2016, 2018, 2019, 2024 |
| Ncaasweetsixteen: | 1990, 1992, 1993, 2001, 2016, 2018, 2023, 2024 |
| Ncaatourneys: | 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1999, 2001, 2002, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2022, 2023, 2024 |
| Conference Tournament: | 2001, 2002, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2024 |
| Conference Season: | 1990, 1992, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2023, 2024 |
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The Wartburg Knights women's basketball team represents the Wartburg College in Waverly, Iowa, United States. The team is a member of the American Rivers Conference as well as the National Collegiate Athletic Association. The team plays its regular season games in Levick Arena, along with men's basketball, wrestling, and volleyball teams.
Wartburg women's basketball began in 1974, under head coach Doug Johnson. The first Wartburg team finished 12–3 in 1974–75, its first victory coming against the Northern Iowa Panthers. Johnson coached only one season at Wartburg, which marked first winning season.[1] Since Johnson Wartburg has had a total of 7 head coaches, the majority of the seasons coached by Monica Severson and current head coach Bob Amsberry.
The 2015–16 season Wartburg broke through to their first final four in school history.[2] The unranked Knights got an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2002. They would beat 3 ranked teams on their way to a regional championship and finish the season 23–8. Since that year the Knights have made it to 8 straight NCAA tournaments and two other appearances in the NCAA Final Four in 2018 and 2024.[3] [4]
Wartburg has appeared in 17 NCAA Tournaments with a record of 26–17.[5]
| First Round | Augustana (Ill) | L 74−93 | ||
| First Round Sweet Sixteen | Augustana (Ill) Buena Vista | W 72–57 L 63−78 | ||
| First Round | Luther | L 54−78 | ||
| First Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight | UW-Stout St. Benedict (MN) Luther | W 90–72 W 74–64 L 61–70 | ||
| First Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight | Wash U (MO) UW-Whitewater Central (IA) | W 75–60 W 83–77 L 60–62 | ||
| 1994 | First Round | Aurora (IL) | L 57–61 | |
| First Round | St Thomas | L 41–67 | ||
| 13 | First Round Second Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight | Chapman Nebraska Wesleyan Fontbonne Wash U (MO) | W 86–78 W 85–71 W 82–78 L 71–83 | |
| 2002 | First Round | Carleton | L 61–71 | |
| First Round Second Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight Final Four | Wisconsin Lutheran #11 UW-Oshkosh #8 St. Thomas #5 Texas Tyler #7 Tufts | W 65–49 W 66–56 W 70–66 W 80–74 L 50–63 | ||
| 2017 | 9 | First Round | Chicago | L 63–67 |
| 2 | First Round Second Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight Final Four | Webster #12 George Fox #7 Trine East Texas Baptist #5 Bowdoin | W 86–45 W 82–58 W 78–54 W 65–61 L 62–90 | |
| 11 | First Round Second Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight | Bethany Lutheran #9 Hope #13 UW-Oshkosh #2 St. Thomas (MN) | W 91–63 W 76–49 W 70–57 L 56–85 | |
| 5 | First Round Second Round | Monmouth #11 Whitman | W 91–55 L 63–67 | |
| 2022 | First Round | Millikin | L 68–81 | |
| 2023 | 24 | First Round Second Round Sweet Sixteen |
| W 57–43 W 81–67 L 51–60 |
| 2024 | 6 | First Round Second Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight Final Four | Wisconsin Lutheran
| W 72–65 W 62–59 W 54–53 W 68–58 L 54-61 OT |
As of the completion of 2024 season[7]
| Tenure | Coach | Years | Record | Pct. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1974-1975 | Doug Johnson | 1 | 12–3–0 | ||
| 1975–1976 | Marge Schaffer | 1 | 11–11–0 | ||
| 1976–1978 | Cheryl Wren | 2 | 29-14-0 | ||
| 1978-1981 | Nancy Schley | 3 | 32–41–0 | ||
| 1981-1988 | Kathy Meyer Thomas | 7 | 64–86–0 | ||
| 1988-2006 | Monica Severson | 18 | 335–131–0 | ||
| 2006 | Kathy Franken | 1† | 1–7–0 | ||
| 2006–present | 18 | 361–132–0 | |||
| Totals | 7 coaches | 50 seasons | 854-424–0 |
| Year | Player | Type | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1989-90 | Kathy Smith | Most Valuable Player | |
| 1991-92 | Kathy Roberts | Most Valuable Player | |
| 2000-01 | Holly Mohs | Most Valuable Player | |
| 2000-02 | Holly Mohs | Most Valuable Player | |
| 2010-11 | Samantha Harrington | Most Valuable Player | |
| 2011-12 | Leslie Wilson | Defensive Player of the Year | |
| 2016-17 | Katie Sommer | Most Valuable Player | |
| 2017-18 | Katie Sommer | Most Valuable Player | |
| 2018-19 | Emma Gerdes | Most Valuable Player | |
| 2019-20 | Emma Gerdes | Most Valuable Player | |
| 2022-23 | Sara Faber | Most Valuable Player | |
| 2023-24 | Jaedon Murphy | Most Valuable Player |