Lake Forest College Handball
Coaching Staff

Career Highlights Guided the Foresters to 30 United States Handball Association Collegiate National Championships Lake Forest has won six men's, women's and combined titles in the last 10 years Won seven straight titles from 1978-84, four consecutive men's titles from 1998-2001, and five women's championships in a row from 2001-05 Member of Lake Forest College and United States Handball Association Halls of Fame  Currently serves as chairman of the USHA and secretary of the Illinois Handball Association

Coach Dau is set to begin his 40th year (1968-present) as head coach of the Forester handball program. Dau, a member of both the Lake Forest College Athletic and U.S. Handball Association (USHA) Hall of Fames, has led the Foresters to 30 total national championships. The Foresters title run began in 1971 and included a streak of seven straight national championships from 1978 to 1984. Lake Forest has claimed men's, women's, and combined championships six times each in the last ten years. The 2001 and 2005 squads are the only two in team history to claim all three titles.

Five Foresters earned a total of six Handball All-America honors in 2007. They combined to capture both the men's and women's Open Doubles titles and claim a spot in both the men's and women's Open Seingles semifinals. Under Dau's direction, 58 players have been named All-America a total of 132 times with a combined 40 Open Singles and Open Doubles collegiate national championships.

While an undergraduate at Lake Forest, Dau earned varsity letters in track and football, was selected team Most Valuable Player of the 1957 College Conference of Illinois Championship squad, and received First Team Collegiate All-State (Peoria Journal Star) recognition and All-America honors. After graduating from Lake Forest in 1958, Dau entered the Marine Corps Officer Candidate program, played football again in 1959, earning All-Marine honors and served as an assistant coach for the 1960 and '61 seasons. He returned to Lake Forest College as an assistant football coach in 1962, coached at Carmel High School (IL) in 1963 and returned to Lake Forest in 1964, assisting in football and basketball. Dau was named head football coach in 1966 and served in that capacity until 1991.  He has also served as baseball coach and athletic director. 

With the completion of the Sports Center in 1968, handball was added to the athletic program and Dau was appointed the school's first head coach. A tournament player himself, Dau has won numerous local singles championships, advanced to the national Masters Doubles finals in 1980 and, at the age of 56, won the United States Marian Corps Open Doubles championship with his son, Perry. He currently serves as chairman of the USHA Hall of Fame committee and secretary of the Illinois Handball Association. 

Coach Dau and his wife, Paula, also a 1958 graduate of Lake Forest College, reside in Lake Forest, Illinois.


Dau's Year-by-Year Finish at USHA Collegiate National Championships

YEAR	COMBINED	MEN	WOMEN
1969		Second
1970		Second
1971		First (t)
1972		Second
1973		Third
1974		First
1975		First
1976		First
1977		Third
1978		First
1979		First
1980		First
1981	First
1982	First
1983	First
1984	First
1985	First
1986	Fourth
1987		Seventh	Third
1988	First	Second	Second
1989		Second	Second
1990	Second	Second	Second
1991	Third	Third	Third
1992	Third	Third	Fourth
1993		Second	Sixth
1994	Fifth	Fourth	Seventh
1995	Fifth	Third	Fifth
1996	Third	Second	Fourth
1997	Second	Second	Second
1998	Second	First	Third
1999	Second	First	Second
2000	First	First	Second
2001	First	First	First
2002	First	Second	First
2003	First	Third	First
2004	Second	Third	First
2005	First	First	First
2006	Second	First	Second
2007	First	Second	First
39 Years	30 National Championships

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