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UCSD ALUMNI ATHLETES - REGISTER HERE!
UCSD ALUMNI ATHLETES
The network of UCSD alumni athletes continues to expand and former Tritons are doing new and exciting things around the world. On an ongoing basis, we will keep you informed as to the whereabouts and activities of the men and women who once wore the blue and gold. To get an update of some of the former UCSD student-athletes that have worn the Triton uniforms proudly, please click on their names below to find out what they have been up to since graduation.
MADELYN RIPKEN
Volleyball
1997 - Roosevelt College - History
A four-year letter winner on the Triton Women's Volleyball team,
Madelyn Ripken was team captain as a junior and senior and won second
team All-American honors in 1996. A leader at the department level as
well, Ripken was a three-year member of Triton Athletes' Council and
was the winner of the Husar Family-TAA Award in 1996-97 for her campus
and community service. RECORD OF TEAMS...NCAA...ALL-TIME LIST and STATS.
After
graduation, she spent two years at Dartmouth College where she was an
assistant coach and recruiting coordinator for the women's volleyball
squad. Ripken then moved into the business world, spending one year
with Victoria's Secret at the company's Columbus, OH headquarters and
then two years in visual merchandising at Gap headquarters in San
Francisco.
She then returned to her hometown of Lodi, CA where
she is currently the winemaker for the family business--Ripken
Videyards and Winery. One of 70 wineries in the Lodi area (south of
Sacramento), Riken features estate bottled wines, handcrafted from
lesser know and more exotic Rhone and Spanish varietals, including
Petite Sirah, Graciano, Viognier, Marsanne and Tempranillo. Currently,
the tasting room has over 20 wines on the release list with most lots
under 100 cases. The Ripken motto is "No Boring Wines!" and its wines
have won numerous awards. The winery has an active wine club and a
VARIETY of unique marketing events.
On the personal side,
Ripken was married in May of 2006 to Benjamin Kolber and the couple has
a son, Simon, who will be one in October. Still an athlete, Ripken now
trains for distance swims, having recently competed in the La Jolla
Rough Water and the Tiburon One Mile.
RICK NOWAK
Baseball
1990 – Marshall College – Visual Arts
One
of the best pitchers in school history, right hander Rick Nowak was a
two-time first team All-American and still holds numerous UCSD records
including most career strikeouts (283) and complete games (17). He
threw a pair of no-hitters and once struck out 19 batters in a game.
Twice
drafted by the Toronto Blue Jays, Nowak’s professional career was cut
short by arm injuries when he was 24. During his minor league stint, he
graduated from UCSD with a visual arts degree and a minor in history
and also got a jump start on his professional career.
Three days
after getting his diploma, Nowak was working in Hollywood as a
production assistant for Cimarron/Bacon/O’Brien (CBO), a motion picture
advertising company. In 1991 he moved up into the firm’s
post-production department and worked on trailers and TV spots for some
of the mega-hits of the early ‘90’s including Home Alone and Terminator
2: Judgment Day.
After four years at CBO, Nowak was hired by
20th Century Fox to work in its creative advertising department. In his
two and a half years there, he worked on every movie the company
released, doing trailers and TV spots for films like Independence Day
and Star Wars Special Edition Re-release.
Nowak left Fox for a
position at his current company, New Wave Entertainment. Beginning as
Post Production Supervisor, then Vice President of Post-Production,
today he supervise over 175 employees as New Wave’s Chief Operating
Officer, working with clients that include Fox, Disney, Warner Bros.,
New Line Cinema and Sony Pictures.
Residents of Altadena, Nowak and his wife, Sheri, have been married 15 years and have a five-year-old son, Derek.
MOLLY MCCORKLE
Swimming 2002 - Roosevelt College - Human Development
 A backstroke specialist and four-year NCAA Division II All-American, Molly McCorkle lettered on four teams that all finished in the top four at the NCAA Division II Championships (1999-2002). She is still listed in the UCSD top ten in both the 100 and 200 backstroke events.
After graduating in 2002, McCorkle began pursuing her teaching career, teaching kindergarten at nearby La Jolla Country Day School while concurrently earning a credential and Masters in Education at National University. At the same time she also coached boys and girls water polo and swimming.
During the summer of 2005, she taught journalism, SAT preparation and ESL to high school students from around the world at the Leysin American School in Switzerland. Upon her return to the States, she started teaching second grade at The Rhoades School, a private, accelerated school focusing on gifted children, in Encinitas. She is in her fourth year there.
A native of San Francisco, McCorkle has continued to live in La Jolla and athletic activities are still a central part of her life. She enjoys a variety of outdoor activities including surfing and ocean swimming and for the last three years has become increasingly (and successfully) involved in triathlon.
She races on World Champion Michellie Jones’ triathlon team, competing in events around the United States. This summer, McCorkle finished second in the Lake Stevens Half Ironman, her favorite distance, in Washington. In each of the past three years, she has qualified for the Half Ironman World Championships in Clearwater, FL.
McCorkle also incorporates sports into her teaching, organizing kids’ races and annually taking a group of students to the Legoland Magic Mile.
Previous UCSD Alumni Athlete Updates:
Christina (Galdos) Bernstein - '95 - Swimming (10/16/2003)
Jaymie Bradford - '94 - Soccer (05/23/2007)
Dana Chaiken - '91 - Softball (08/13/2004)
Jody Cook-Fisher - '99 - Volleyball (08/13/2004)
John Cross - 94- Tennis (08/18/2006)
Maggie Dwire - '00 - Cross Country/Track &Field (8/18/2006)
Craig Gruber - '95 - Water Polo (10/16/2003)
Steve Hartsock - '97 - Swimming (05/23/2007)
Erik Judson - '91 - Baseball (10/16/2003)
Mike Kappes - '90 - Soccer (05/23/2007)
Sam Nicols - '98 - Crew (10/16/2003)
Brandon Nixon - '85 - Basketball (08/13/2004)
Kevin Prindville - '00 - Cross Country/Track & Field (08/13/2004)
Stacie Sasaki - '92 - Volleyball (08/13/2004)
Julie Swail - '95 - Water Polo (10/15/2003)
Ping Yeh - '99 - Tennis (10/16/2003)
***UCSD ALUMNI ATHLETES - REGISTER HERE!***
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