USA Today Network Top 250 Athletes from Michigan (PetoskeyNews.com)
BRIDGEPORT, Pa — Collegiate Water Polo Association (CWPA) Hall of Fame member/Olympic Gold Medalist/University of Michigan alumna Betsey Armstrong adds another award to her list of accomplishments by earning a spot on the USA Today Network Top 250 athletes from Michigan.
A compilation by the Petoskey News-Review in celebration of the United States’ 250th birthday, the list does not include athletes from the Detroit and Lansing areas (whose papers will do their own list). It is also not a direct ranking of the top 250, but a top 10 from all other regions of the state for the most part, giving it a balance across Michigan.
The athletes are broken down by region (Holland, Grand Rapids/Muskegon, Battle Creek/Kalamazoo/Benton Harbor, Livingston, Flint, Ann Arbor-Jackson, Adrian, Monroe, Sturgis, Mid-Michigan, Northern Michigan and the Upper Peninsula) with Armstrong among the Ann Arbor selections..
A 2008 inductee to the league’s Hall of Fame, Armstrong spent four seasons tending the cage for the University of Michigan Wolverines, leading the team to four CWPA division titles and two NCAA (NCAA) tournament appearances, including a sixth-place finish at the 2005 NCAA Championship. The program’s first in-state recruit and a graduate of Ann Arbor (Mich.) High School, she wrapped up her U-M career as the program leader in blocks (1,267), minutes (3,329), goals against average (5.64) and save percentage (.654).
During her career with the Maize and Blue, Armstrong racked up a pair of divisional Most Valuable Player accolades (2003-04) and four CWPA All-Division First Team honors (2002-05). Armstrong excelled at the Eastern Championship, earning two MVP honors (2003, ’05) as part of three All-Eastern Championship first team nominations (2002, 2004-05). On the national level, she earned All-America recognition in each season, making the second team in 2004, third team in 2005 and honorable mention in her first two campaigns at Michigan.
In May 2006, she earned a spot on the USA National Team following an open tryout. In just under two years with the squad, Armstrong led Team USA to a gold medal at the XV Pan American Games — securing the country’s spot at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China — and gold medal victories in both the FINA World League and FINA World Championships. At the World Championships, Armstrong was recognized as the tournament’s Most Outstanding Goalkeeper.
She was a member of the U.S. women’s national team from 2006-12 and competed in two Olympic Games, earning a gold medal in London in 2012 and a silver medal in Beijing in 2008.
In addition, she competed in men’s collegiate club water polo with Arizona State University during the 2008 season helping the Sun Devils to the Men’s National Collegiate Club Championship tournament.
A 2019 inductee to the USA Water Polo Hall of Fame, Armstrong retired from the National Team in 2014 and served as an assistant coach at Michigan and Marist College since the conclusion of her playing career.
