Joe Cranston begins his 11th season as women's hockey coach at UW-River Falls.

Cranston led the 2009 Falcons to the NCAA Finals and the NCHA regular season and playoff championships. The team finished with a 20-7-3 overall record and were a near perfect 15-2-1 in NCHA play. He was named the NCHA Coach of the Year for the third time and was the runner up for the American Hockey Coaches Association Coach of the Year award. The 20 wins ties a school record.

The Falcons won the 2009 playoff championship with a 6-2 semifinal win over Lake Forest and a 5-3 win over Stevens Point in the finals. UWRF advanced to the NCAA playoffs and went on the road to beat the No. 1 team in the country, Gustavus Adolphus, 2-1, to advance to the finals. UWRF lost a semifinal game to Elmira, 3-0, and a third place game to Middlebury, 3-2, in overtime. The series was played in Middlebury, Vt.

Cranston has a 150-96-20 career record at UWRF. In all of women's Div. III college hockey he is third in winning percentage (.602) amoung those who have a minimum of 10 years as a head coach. His 150 wins is fourth among Div. III active coaches. Of all coaches at the Div. I and III levels, Cranston is seventh in winning percentage among active coaches. His 150 wins ranks him 15th of all Div. I and III active coaches.

The popular coach reached a career milestone early in the 2007 season. When the Falcons defeated Bethel, 2-1, on Nov. 10 it was Cranston's 100th career win. He has a 91-38-11 record in NCHA regular season games.

Cranston's masterful coaching last year helped him win the 2007 NCHA Coach of the Year award. He was also recognized by the league coaches with the same award after the 2003 season. He was a finalist for the AHCA Div. III Coach of the Year award in 2003 and 2007.

Cranston has been the leader of the Falcon program since its inception in 1999. He has led the Falcons to national and regional prominence. His teams have finished no lower than third place in the highly competitive Northern Collegiate Hockey Association.

Cranston has led the Falcons to more overall and NCHA wins than any other current coach in the league. His teams have won more NCHA playoff games than any other active NCHA coach.

He has coached the Falcons to nine straight winning seasons. Seven times players he has coached have been named All-Americans. Forty-six of his players have earned All-NCHA recognition and 34 players have earned NCHA All-Academic honors.

In 2008 the Falcons defeated UW-Stevens Point, 2-1, in the of the O'Brien Cup semifinal playoffs. The Falcons advanced to the championship game only to lose, 2-1 in overtime, to UW-Superior.

The 2007 Falcons surprised most observers with their second place finish in the NCHA regular season. UWRF finished 9-4-2 in league play and finished just one point out of first place. The Falcons were second in goals for and third in goals against in the NCHA.

In 2005 the Falcons reached the NCHA playoff championship game for the fourth time in the league's six-year history. UWRF beat Superior, 5-4, in overtime to reach the finals.

The Falcons had another banner year in 2004 finishing 17-9-1 overall and 11-4-1 in the NCHA. The Falcons advanced to the NCHA playoffs and won the third place game.

UWRF had its best season ever in the school's seven-year history in 2003. They finished 20-6-4 overall and won the NCHA regular season title with a 12-1-3 record. They went on to win the NCHA playoff championship for the second time. The Falcons then got the team's first ever berth into the NCAA Div. III playoffs. In a first round game the Falcons beat St. Thomas, 5-1, and advanced to the NCAA Frozen Four. In Elmira, N.Y., the Falcons lost to the eventual national champions, Elmira, 2-1 in the semifinals.

In 2002 the Falcons finished 13-11-3 overall and 8-6-2 and finished third in the NCHA. UWRF won a first-round NCHA playoff game to reach the league playoff championship game for the second straight year. UWRF lost a close 2-1 decision to UW-Stevens Point in the title game in Stevens Point. In 2001 the Falcons finished 19-7-1 and finished second in the NCHA regular-season standings. Cranston then led the Falcons to the NCHA Playoff Championship. UWRF beat UW-Stevens Point, 4-1, in the playoff semifinals and then the Falcons topped regular-season champions, UW-Superior, 2-1 in the title game.

Cranston was the head coach of the Somerset boy's varsity high school team from 1990-1998. He was an assistant coach there from 1988-1990. He has coached the Wisconsin Amateur Hockey Association camps, clinics and select teams for over 14 years. Cranston has conducted several hockey clinics and served on the WIAA All-State selection committee for two years. He is also a coaching instructor for USA Hockey.

A native of Fergus Falls, Minn., he played youth and high school hockey there. He played for the high school team from 1979-1983 and was the team captain as a senior. He played, and was the captain, of the 1983-84 North Iowa Huskies of the USHL. Cranston then returned to Fergus Falls to attend the community college where he played with that team in 1985-86. He was the team's captain, MVP and was ranked in the Top 10 in the nation in scoring.

He earned an AA degree from Fergus Falls Community College in 1986 and his undergraduate degree in elementary education from UW-River Falls in 1990. He taught third grade in the Somerset School District from 1990-97.

Cranston resides in River Falls with his wife, Sue, and three children; Roy, 13; Walter, 11 and Irene, 8.

Joe Cranston