BEMIDJI, Minn. – Having served as the interim head coach of the Women's Golf program since March 2022, Erica Gartner was recently promoted to the permanent head coaching role entering the 2023 spring season.
"I'm very thankful and excited for the opportunity to give back to this same program I was a part of as a student-athlete, as well as the opportunity to help grow and build a program of continued success," Gartner said. "I can't wait to see what's in store for these women and hope to just have a small part in bettering their student-athlete experience!"
In her first tournament as head coach for the Beaver Women's Golf program, the team ended in a season-high third place at the Jimmie Spring Swing. Gartner coached the Beavers through three tournaments to close out the 2021-22 season. They competed in the Spring Swing, Wildcat Classic, and the NSIC Championships. The team averaged a score of 357.7 per four-player round with an average of 71 strokes over par across the whole season.
"Erica is a tremendous asset to our department. She's a BSU alum, she's bought in to our core values, and she finds ways to build great relationships with her student-athletes," Director of Athletics Britt Lauritsen said. "Her dedication is evident, and I'm so stoked to continue watching her growth as a professional and the growth of this program moving forward."
This past season, the Beavers tallied a pair of fourth-place finishes in the fall, along with placing sixth at BSU's Tracy Lane Memorial. Mollie Albrecht capped the 2022-23 campaign placing 15th at the NSIC Championships.
Gartner played both women's basketball and women's golf as a student-athlete at Bemidji State. During her time with the BSU women's golf team, Gartner played in four events during each of the 2017-18 and 2018-19 seasons, and one as a senior in 2019-20. She holds a career-low round of 79, a two-round low of 164 (set twice) and three-round low of 278 set at the NSIC Women's Golf Championship to end the 2018-19 season. Gartner was a three-time letter winner with the Beaver Women's Golf team and four-time letter winner with the Beaver Women's Basketball team.
In addition to being the Head Coach of the Women's Golf program, Gartner is also an Assistant Coach for the Women's Basketball team.
Gartner graduated from Bemidji State in 2020 with a bachelor's degree in chemistry. She will pursue a master's degree in environmental science while coaching.
For more information on the Bemidji State Women's Golf program, follow the Beavers on Twitter (@BSUBeaversWGOLF). Like them on Facebook (facebook.com/BSUBeavers) and follow them on Instagram (@BSUBeaversWGOLF).
Nestled in Northern Minnesota's wooden region and located on the shore of Lake Bemidji, BSU sponsors 15 varsity athletic programs with NCAA Division I men's hockey membership in the Central Collegiate Hockey Association and women's hockey membership in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association, while its 13 NCAA Division II programs hold membership in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC).
