DIII Wisconsin-Whitewater Pulls Off Unprecedented NCAA Triple Crown

Before California Chrome could attempt to win the Triple Crown at Belmont, the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater beat the thoroughbred to it.

And Wisconsin-Whitewater's accomplishment may even be more impressive.

With a 7-0 victory over Emory in the championship game of the Division III World Series, the Warhawks became the first school in NCAA history to win national titles in football, men's basketball and baseball in the same year.

At the Division I level, the Florida Gators won the national championships in football and basketball during the 2006-07 academic year, but the baseball team did not qualify for the NCAA tournament.

Of Wisconsin-Whitewater's three squads, the football program was the most dominant. Those Warhawks went 15-0 and dismantled Mount Union, 52-14, in the championship game on Dec. 20, 2013. No Division III players were selected in the NFL draft this year, but Whitewater's best defender, linebacker Cole Klotz, was among 28 free agents that the Green Bay Packers invited to tryouts.

In March, the men's basketball team pulled out a nailbiter over Williams College, winning the game on a layup with less than one second left in regulation.

And now, the baseball squad has finished off a streak in which it won 19 of its final 20 games to make the trifecta complete.

But that's not it. As Dan Treadway of Extra Mustard points out, the school's men's and women's wheelchair basketball teams also won national championships.

"It's something this school has come to expect -- national championships," said senior right-hander Scott Plaza, who went 2-0 in the tournament and was named the most outstanding player. "And that's what we're going to give them."

Whitewater won all four of its games in the NCAA regionals to advance to the World Series. The Warhawks then defeated University of Southern Maine, SUNY-Courtland, University of St. Thomas and Emory to win the national title.

According to Baseball-Reference.com, only one Wisconsin-Whitewater baseball alum has gone on to play in the majors. Pitcher Bob Wickman lasted 15 MLB seasons with five teams including the Yankees, Indians and Brewers.