Pankow gets UMPI post

    PRESQUE ISLE, Maine — Following the sudden resignation of Ernie May, who in July had been hired to replace longtime UM-Presque Isle baseball coach Leo Saucier, the search for a new coach ended last week.    Mike Pankow   has been hired for the position, according to UMPI interim athletic director Paul Stone. A native of Hortonville, Wisc., Pankow comes to Presque Isle following a two-year stint as assistant baseball and basketball coach at NCAA Div. III Northland College. Last season, his team finished 16-14 and qualified for the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) championship tournament.
    Pankow brings a wealth of coaching experience to an Owl program that has taken great strides in the past several years. In his time at Northland, five players were All-UMAC first-team selections, six more were named honorable mention All-UMAC and 19 earned all-academic recognition.
    “It is a great honor to be chosen to be the next head coach for the Owls’ baseball program. I cannot thank President Schott, Athletic Director Paul Stone and the entire search committee enough for their tireless effort and due diligence in the process,” said Pankow. “I am excited to be a part of the friendly Presque Isle community and family atmosphere of the staff.”
    Pankow competed on both the baseball and basketball teams at Northland College from 1999-2003 and prior to that, was a member of the Hortonville High School baseball program that won 53 consecutive games and went undefeated, winning the 1997 and 1998 Wisconsin AA state championships.
    Upon completing his playing career, Pankow worked for two years as an assistant coach with the Northland College men’s basketball program while also coaching the varsity baseball team at Washburn (Wisc.) High School. He then spent three years in the White Lake School District, where he served as the athletic director, physical education teacher, baseball coach and girls’ basketball coach. 
    Northland called again and Pankow returned to the collegiate coaching ranks in 2010-11, when he became the assistant women’s basketball coach in addition to serving as assistant baseball coach.
    “Mike is a great person and he is very adept at building positive relationships with players as well as prospective student-athletes. He is dedicated to the coaching profession and although he is knowledgeable, he is still always willing to learn more,” said Bill Wilson, Northland College athletic director and head women’s basketball coach. “UMPI got a good one in Mike.”
    “Coach Pankow was a huge asset for our program at Northland College. His knowledge of the game and his ability to communicate and relate to our players was a valuable key to our success,” said former Northland and current Carroll University head baseball coach Stein Rear. “I am very excited for Mike and am very confident that he will do a tremendous job at UMPI.”