FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE -- April 5, 2005
CONTACT: Jason Mucher, Director of Athletic Communications (585) 567-9648

LEWIS RECEIVES NAIA REGION IX COACH OF CHARACTER AWARD

HOUGHTON, N.Y. – The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) has selected Houghton College women’s soccer coach David Lewis as a regional winner of its first Coach of Character Award.

Lewis has been instrumental in establishing Houghton’s women’s soccer as one of the top small college programs in the Northeast. During his 14 years at the helm, Lewis has led the Highlanders to a 216-50-11 record, 12-straight region final fours, and five NAIA National Tournaments. He is one of only two current NAIA coaches with more than 200 wins and he is just the third all-time to reach that milestone. Lewis’s win percentage of .794 is first among active NAIA coaches and third all-time. He has won 11 coach of the year awards.

Lewis’ coaching philosophy has involved more than just helping his players improve their skills on the field. In addition to the knowledge and appreciation of the sport, the players gain an understanding of how to integrate their Christian faith with soccer. He actively engages in connecting the intercollegiate sport experience with the development of his athletes as young women maturing as students as well as Christians.

Lewis takes advantage of the opportunity to use sports as a platform for ministry and to build strong, lasting relationships among team members. His teams regularly participate in service projects, team devotions, and overseas missions trips, traveling to Ethiopia and Australia in recent years. His teams have also been regularly recognized at conference and national levels for practicing fair and sportsmanslike play.

“Coach Lewis is an outstanding man of God who demonstrates his character through his service to others and his exemplary lifestyle,” said former player and current college coach Andrea Boon. “His passion for the Lord and his genuine compassion for individuals cultivates relationship development and character growth with the students he is in contact with.”

Strong academics have also been a hallmark of Lewis' program. Numerous players have earned NAIA All-America Scholar-Athlete honors, and his squads have been given the NSCAA/Adidas Team Academic Award for their team GPA each year since 1997.

The Coach of Character Award is part of the NAIA’s Champions of Character Initiative, a program that aims to teach the character values of respect, integrity, responsibility, servant leadership, and sportsmanship through athletics. Houghton has been named a Champions of Character Institution for the past four years for its active involvement in the program and the college recently was selected to serve as a Program Center to provide character education training to parents, students, and coaches in the Northeast.

Houghton, a Christian college of 1,300 students in Western New York, is a member of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics and the American Mideast Conference. Houghton has been named a Champions of Character Institution for the past four years for its active involvement in the NAIA’s Champions of Character Initiative, a program that aims to teach the character values of respect, integrity, responsibility, servant leadership, and sportsmanship through athletics.

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