’07-’09 Golf

Ricca said she always knew she was going to attend Iowa Lakes. She had the honor of growing up knowing the players before her and getting to see how much they loved Iowa Lakes. She used to go to all the home basketball games and those were some of the most entertaining games she has ever seen. One of the biggest reasons that she attended Iowa Lakes was because of the community culture that Iowa Lakes provided.

Coach Dan Soper not only helped get Ricca to Iowa Lakes, but he also made the greatest impression on her. Ricca had this to say about Coach Soper, “He was not very hard on me compared to my many other coaches. I think he knew I was hard enough on myself. He took a role as a mentor and someone I could look to for guidance when I needed it. Watching him with many players throughout the years and the bond they shared it was clear how easy it was to respect him and to go to him when they needed help with anything in their life as many of them did. I always wanted to play for my dad and I always wanted to impress him, but knew at the same time I didn’t need to.”

While attending Iowa Lakes for her General Education degree, in her freshman year Ricca was a national qualifier. As a sophomore, she finished in the top four individually in every meet and earned 1st Team All-Region honors with her 2nd place finish at the Region XI Women’s tournament while leading her team to a 1st place finish and a berth in the 2009 Women’s NJCAA National Tournament. Ricca also earned 1st Team Academic All-Region honors as well as Distinguished Academic All-AmeRiccan honors with a cumulative GPA of 3.96.

Although it was hard for Ricca to choose one fond memory while being a Laker, shooting a 77 and beating her brother Andy by 11 strokes in the Council Bluffs tournament in weather conditions such as rain, sleet, snow, and winds between 20-30 mph might be at the top. She also remembers going to Nationals her freshman year, the conversations with teammates on the ride to practice, and qualifying for Nationals as a team. 

There were more than a few people that helped shape Ricca to be the person that she is today. Sarah Stokes was one of these people. Ricca worked with Sarah through the work study program, but had known her for years prior to that. Ricca had these things to say about Sarah, “Sarah was such a positive person to be around and cares so much about the athletes and people of Iowa Lakes.” Some other people include John and Carolyn Walz and Marian Brunsvold. Ricca was also positively affected by both her golf and basketball teammates. These are the people that drove her to be a better person. The memories she has from Iowa Lakes are the memories that she shares with her teammates. 

Being that Ricca grew up in Estherville, there are countless people that had an impact on her within the community. She would like to think of herself as a proud product of the community because they made her into the person that she is today. 

After graduating from Iowa Lakes, Ricca transferred to the University of Nebraska Omaha on a golf scholarship to obtain her Bachelor’s Degree in Accounting. She continued her stellar golf career at UNO by putting herself in the record books. She holds the team 18 hole record of 291 and has the 2nd lowest 18 hole course record of 70. While at UNO, her team was the Conference Champs and she was the MIAA golfer of the week, named to the All-MIAA Women’s golf team, and was a National Qualifier.

Ricca currently lives in Omaha with her husband Matt. She works as a staff accountant in the financial analysis and reporting division at Airlite Plastics. 

Ricca would like to thank her parents, Marilyn and Dan Soper, because they never pushed her into anything. They were always very supportive in what she did, but made sure Ricca did it with class. She would also like to thank her older brother, Jeff. He was someone she always looked up to and has been a great role model in her life. Her brother, Andy, is another person Ricca would like to thank. He by far had the greatest impact on her competitiveness and drive. Finally, Ricca would like to thank her husband, Matt. They have been together since they were 16 and have just hit 10 years together. Matt has been so supportive of Ricca and has helped her become a better wife every day.

Ricca had this to say about Iowa Lakes and her experience here, “Going to Iowa Lakes was one of the best decisions I have ever made. Financially, I am grateful how affordable Iowa Lakes was. I see my friends struggle to pay for student loans after going to an expensive college to get the same education, and the employers really don’t care about. Transitioning after high school is also not an easy thing. I hardly played my junior year at UNO. Our team was tough. I had to shoot a 38 just to qualify as an individual. At first I was struggling, and I had just moved to a place where I didn’t know anyone. By the time I started playing well, I had knee surgery and didn’t get an opportunity to qualify in the spring. Looking back, I think I would have transferred as a freshman, but the confidence and experience I was able to gain at Iowa Lakes, I believe, made me know that I would be alright. I ended up making life-long friends and making huge accomplishments my senior year. I would recommend kids going to Iowa Lakes for their financial and personal investment.”

Congratulations Ricca Watt on being named to the Laker Hall of Fame.