Mandy Kaempf, who led UAA's skiing and women's cross country teams to unprecedented accomplishments, was a unanimous choice as the 2004-05 Athlete of the Year Award. The native of Steinbach-Hallenberg, Germany, became the first Seawolf skier ever to capture two national titles when she swept the 5-K classical and the 15-K freestyle at the NCAA Ski Championships. Kaempf's efforts led UAA to its 21st consecutive top-10 finish at Nationals as the Seawolves scored the most Nordic points in the meet. She also became just the third Seawolf skier to capture five career All-America certificates. As a senior on the ski trails, she won eight of her 10 races, including the NCAA West Regional title in the 15K classical for the second straight season. Kaempf won all five of her freestyle races, posting four victories by over 30 seconds. As a sophomore on the running trails, Kaempf earned All-West Region and All-Great Northwest Athletic Conference finishes to lead the women's cross country team to its first-ever trip to NCAAs. With three top-10 placings in four races, she was UAA's top runner each time. Her all-conference honor was her second in as many seasons, and she also earned All-GNAC Academic recognition for her team-high 3.85 cumulative GPA in sociology.
