University of Wisconsin, Eau Claire

At the time of her induction, Sandy Schumacher had been a teacher, coach and pioneer of women's athletics at UWEC since 1968. She was one of the founding members of the Wisconsin Women's Intercollegiate Athletic Conference in 1971. Schumacher was a pioneer for young girls and women in athletics. She conducted the first volleyball camps for girls at UWEC and was the school's first volleyball coach from 1970 to 1975. Schumacher was also the first Blugold women's basketball coach, directing that program from 1969 to 1987. When she began coaching basketball, the women's game was played with three offensive and three defensive players and then only two players from each team were allowed to run full court in a rover style of play. Schumacher coached women's softball when it was a club sport from 1980 to 1984 and produced five winning seasons before it became a varsity sport in 1985. She served as varsity coach for one season in 1993-94. Schumacher was also instrumental in organizing synchronized swimming and field hockey for women at UWEC. Schumacher retired from UWEC in 1994, but continued to work with the athletics program as assistant coach for the Blugold women's golf team which became a varsity sport in 1995. She also worked as a statistician at women's basketball and volleyball games. As an avid athlete, Schumacher played AAU basketball in the Chicago area while teaching in Rockford, IL, in the late 1960s and continues to compete in golf and bowling. An Eau Claire native, Schumacher graduated from Eau Claire Senior High School. She received her bachelor's degree from UW-La Crosse and her master's from the University of Northern Colorado-Greeley.