Dawn Plitzuweit husband Jay Plitzuweit is the former basketball coach at Saline High School. Dawn has two children, a son and a daughter.
Dawn is the women’s basketball head coach at the University of Minnesota. Following Lindsay Whalen’s resignation as head basketball coach, Minnesota hired Plitzuweit.
She has coached South Dakota, led to the NCAA Sweet 16, and was named Kay Yow National Coach of the Year.
Coached for West Virginia, she led the Mountaineers to 19 wins and a place in the NCAA tournaments. She started her coaching career in 1995 at Michigan Tech.
Plitzuweit has won four all-conference Player of the Year Awards, back-to-back Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Player of the Year awards, and three all-defensive team selections.
Dawn Plitzuweit Family Life
Dawn and Jay Plitzuweit got married in 1995 after graduating from college. Jay played basketball for the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh.
The couple dated through college, and Dawn started her coaching career after marrying. She played at Michigan Tech, and Jay was at UWO.
An injury ended Jay’s basketball career, but he stayed at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh to finish his Bachelor’s degree.
Jay Plitzuweit Has His Own Coaching Career
Plitzuweit coached basketball for Saline High School at both middle and high levels for four seasons. Under his coaching at the Saline, the school won basketball district as a class A school and the first district championship since the mid-80s.
For Jay’s achievement, Saline Athletic Director Rob White stated ‘that was a huge accomplishment.’ However, in 2011, he resigned from the position at Saline.
He handed Rob the resignation letter and felt satisfied that he had kept his word. He left his job to spend time with his son and daughter, who were 11 and 8 years old.
On resigning, he said, ‘It was a good time for me to step aside. I think the program is rebuilt, and I’m going to be able to spend some time with my family.’
Jay is a supportive spouse as he attends and cheers up for his wife’s career and has always been there for her.
Dawn Plitzuweit Children
Dawn Plitzuweit has two children, a son A.J. Plitzuweit and a daughter Lexi Plitzuweit.
Growing up in an athletic background, A.J. and Lexi have followed in their parent’s footsteps to become basketball players. They both grew up playing sports.
AJ watches the tapes from his mother’s games, and when his schedule allows, he goes to the Sanford Coyote Sports Center. As Dawn and Jay are involved in basketball, they want their children to find something they are passionate about.
A.J. Plitzuweit
A.J. is a basketball player on the South Dakota men’s basketball. He played 25 games for Augustana University as a true freshman and ranked second on the team with 14.6 points per game.
A.J. was named NSIC freshman of the year and was ranked 11th in the league with a 1.9 assist-to-turnover ratio.
During his 2020-21 season, he started in 22 games and averaged 34.3 minutes per game. He earned Summit League Newcomer of the Year, all summit League First-Team honors, and was a member of the all-Summit League New Comer team.
During A.J.’s 2021-22 season, he contracted mono and was off for over a month. Later, he suffered a back injury and missed four games.
He then played in 29 games during the 2022-23 season. He averaged 27.6 minutes per game and led the team with 2.6 assists.
He registered a season-high 33 points in the win over Lipscomb and was named Summit League Peak Performer.
According to his LinkedIn account, A.J. completed his bachelor’s degree in Business Administration and Management from Augustana University in 2022.
He has shared his professional career life picture on his social media account. His Facebook username is @AJ Plitzuweit, and his Instagram username is @ajplitz_21.
Lexi Plitzuweit Is A Multi Sport Player
Lexi played varsity soccer and cross country in three seasons at her high school. She was competitive since childhood and decided to choose a basketball field like her brother.
Lexi played for Vermillion High School in South Dakota, and after high school, she attended Grand Valley State University. She stated that her family has always enjoyed playing and watching games together.
When she was young, she used to play hoops with her mother. Currently, she plays basketball for Grand Valley State.
She prepared at Vermillion School under Jon Brooks’s coach and received All-Conference Honors as a sophomore and junior. She was also elected as a team captain.
An avid social person, Lexi spent her time in Arizona with her friends on April 25, 2021.
She has also posted pictures of her personal and professional life on her social media account. Her Instagram username is @lexiplitz, and she also has a Facebook account.
Dawn Plitzuweit Parents
Dawn Plitzuweit was born on October 31, 1972, in Wisconsin. She grew up playing basketball on the family farm against her taller brother on the hoop behind the barn.
With the help of Plitzuweit mom and dad she has achieved her dream of playing basketball and has established herself as a renowned coach. Her father-in-law was a professor at Northwestern College in Watertown.
Being a parent herself and in relation to her own children, it will always be different from evaluating the abilities of players with different last names.
Dawn stated that “As a parent you don’t want to see that happen, but as a coach you know that’s very important for their development.”
When her son AJ lost the match it was traumatic for him but Jay and Dawn response was positive. Their family reunions around watching one of them play or their joining team.
When A.J. and Lexi were younger, they used to spend time riding the bus together.