Women's Rowing Adds Wortman as Assistant Coach
10/2/2015 12:00:00 AM | Women's Rowing
SPOKANE, Wash. -- Gonzaga women's rowing head coach Glenn Putyrae announced the addition of Marisa Wortman as an assistant coach to his staff on Friday.
"We were really impressed with the quality of the candidates with this position, but Marisa stood out as the most qualified and best fit for our program right now," Putyrae said. "She's brings some really exciting and unique perspective having been in the league. We are excited to see how we can integrate that into the culture that we currently have."
Wortman comes to Gonzaga after five years at fellow West Coast Conference member San Diego, where she served as a graduate assistant, novice coach and then assistant coach. She also served as the recruiting coordinator at USD.
"After meeting and speaking with Glenn [Putyrae] and getting know more of the athletic department's vision, it was easy to see that our goals and vision align perfectly," Wortman said. "I'm excited about where Gonzaga is headed. Glenn [Putyrae] and Kari [Durgan, assistant coach] have already started a very strong tradition of winning with integrity and I look forward to contributing to that. I'll be able to bring experience from working in this conference and help the team create even more speed."
During her time with the Toreros, Wortman helped the squad win three WCC Championships (2011, '12, '14) and earn a bid to the 2014 NCAA Championships. She assisted in the development of two All-Americans in Michelle Campbell and Nneka Anyanwu, one WCC Rower of the Year, three WCC Coxswains of the Year, two WCC Newcomers of the Year, 16 All-WCC honorees and five all-region selections.
A native of San Diego, Calif., Wortman had a successful start at the San Diego Rowing Club and parlayed that into a scholarship spot on the University of Tennessee rowing team. At UT, she helped the Lady Vols reach the highest USRowing/CRCA ranking in program history at No. 4 and competed on UT's only boat to reach the grand finals at the 2008 NCAA Championships, finishing fifth. Wortman also helped her squad take the title at the 2007 Head of the Charles and was named UT's Howard Adlmon Lady Volunteer of the Year.
While at UT, Wortman also excelled in both the classroom and community. She was a constant member of the Lady Vols Honor Roll and SEC Honor Roll, and earned Thornton Center All-Academic Team honors. In the community, she helped organize projects including work at Habitat for Humanity, Special Spaces and Big Brothers and Big Sisters, among others. She was named a Coca-Cola Community All-American from 2006-2008.
