Kutztown University Athletics

Karen (Messner) Alam (’77), was a standout performer in the early days of women’s intercollegiate athletics at Kutztown.  Alam, then Karen Messner, played women’s basketball, field hockey and volleyball from 1974-77.  Alam garnered several honors in field hockey, earning first-team Lehigh Valley Coaches Association All-Star honors in 1975, ’76 and ’77. She was a key member of defensive backfield on the 1976 team that finished the season 12-1.  She served as co-captain as a junior and senior, sharing the team’s most valuable player award in 1977.  In her four years, the field hockey team posted a record of 30-12-1.  As a basketball player, Alam earned three varsity letters.  She was co-captain and co-MVP, scoring 119 points in 1976-77.  In her three years, the basketball program was 26-18.  Alam was also a founding member of the Golden Bear volleyball program, helping the premiere 1974 team to a perfect 7-0 record.  Last year, she was named one of Kutztown’s top female athletes of the 1970s.  Alam is a graduate of Muhlenberg High School.  She earned a bachelor’s degree in secondary education-mathematics from Kutztown in 1977.