Shipley Named Ohio Wesleyan
Women's Golf Coach

June 11, 2010

DELAWARE, OHIO -- Jana Shipley, former women's golf coach at The Ohio State University, has been named head coach of the Ohio Wesleyan University women's golf team, it was announced by athletics director Roger Ingles.

"I've been waiting 10 years for Ohio Wesleyan to start this program, and I'm very excited that they have," Shipley said. "I would not have gotten back into coaching golf unless it was at Ohio Wesleyan. I have strong feelings (for Ohio Wesleyan) from when I was there before."

Shipley served as the Buckeyes' head coach from 1987-91, guiding Ohio State to 9 tournament wins, a Big 10 championship, and a pair of NCAA tournament appearances. She also has experience as a golf professional at The Ohio State University Golf Courses, The Country Club at Muirfield Village, and The Meadows Resort in Sarasota, Fla.

Since leaving coaching, Shipley has remained active in golf, participating in numerous regional and national tournaments, as well as qualifying for the USGA Mid-Amateur and finishing second at the Women's National Club Championship.

Shipley returns for her second stint at Ohio Wesleyan. She was head coach of the Battling Bishops' women's track & field team from 1980-85, leading the Bishops to the first North Coast Athletic Conference indoor track & field championship in 1985 as well as multiple state titles in the Ohio Association of Intercollegiate Sports for Women (OAISW) in the years before Ohio Wesleyan women's teams were affiliated with an athletic conference. She was inducted into the Ohio Wesleyan Athletic Hall of Fame in 1996.

Also an Olympic-caliber athlete during that time, Shipley held the world indoor and outdoor records in the women's pole vault.

"I am absolutely thrilled that we were able to attract someone of Jana's experience in coaching golf to start this program," Ingles said. "We could not have asked for a better person to be our first women's golf coach. She's a Big 10 championship coach, and she has coached at Ohio Wesleyan and is familiar with the University. She has the drive, knowledge, ambition, and skills to make this a premier women's golf program."

The Ohio Wesleyan women's golf team begins competition this fall. The Bishops will have the unique benefit of drawing on the rich tradition of the Ohio Wesleyan men's golf program, which has won 23 conference championships -- including 7 of the last 9 NCAC titles -- and recorded 18 national top-10 finishes, including 6 in the last 9 seasons. Oakhaven Golf Club, Delaware Golf Club, Mill Creek Golf Club, and Glenross Golf Club will serve as home courses for both the Bishop men's and women's golf teams.

"I think it will take a few years to get the team established, but I think we can eventually compete for a national championship in NCAA Division III with the quality of golf courses to which we have access and the great tradition at Ohio Wesleyan," Shipley said.

Shipley is a 1979 graduate of Ohio State, where she competed in track & field, setting a school record in the outdoor pentathlon. She majored in physical education and earned a master's degree in sports management from Ohio State in 1981.

Shipley is a native of Galena, Ohio, and attended Big Walnut High School.

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