Karin Bain Kukral '82 Becomes First Former Women's Varsity Athlete To Name Coaching Position

A brief, but meaningful, encounter between Jenny Graap ’86 and Karin Bain Kukral ’82 created a connection that would help chart a new course for the women’s lacrosse program and the entire athletics department.

Kukral recently made a commitment to name the Big Red’s women’s lacrosse head coaching position - the Karin Bain Kukral '82 Head Coach for Women’s Lacrosse - a title that Graap will now proudly hold. It is meaningful not only for the significant commitment to the program Graap has dedicated so much of her life to, but also because it is the first position named by a varsity women’s athlete at Cornell.

With the celebration of 50 years of women’s varsity athletics right around the corner, Kukral’s gift will make a significant contribution toward the continued, sustained success of the Big Red women’s lacrosse program.

The gift comes on the heels of the naming of the women’s ice hockey position by the Everett family. A conversation with Liz Everett ’97 helped inspire the gift, and Kukral’s longtime friend and classmate Rich Booth ’82 was also involved in the discussion. Kukral and Booth go way back - the two were involved in a Cornell Eating Club that met monthly in New York City in the 1980s to try various Mexican restaurants around the city. The group became so tight-knit that they were part of each other’s weddings, and they reconnected during COVID times by Zoom, spurred on in large part because of Kukral and Booth.

Graap and Kukral met at Hoy Field during reunion weekend more than a decade ago while watching mutual friends at the annual alumni baseball game and instantly hit it off.

“I don't even remember how we met in the stands, but we started a conversation,” Graap said. “The next thing you know, we realized we both played field hockey, and lacrosse. Then we realized we knew people in common. We sat together, maybe for an hour, watching some innings of baseball. And that was it.”

Anyone who knows Graap understands exactly how that conversation started. Every stranger is a friend. Her staff jokes about how she gives directions to everyone who looks confused walking past their building. 

Graap added Kukral to her mailing lists to keep her updated on the lacrosse program and invited her to some clinics held in Connecticut. Kukral, who stayed involved in lacrosse at the youth level and coached past Big Red great Amie Dickson ’17, was often out of town and usually sent her regrets but appreciated the invites. She also appreciated Graap’s coaching philosophies and sensibilities.

“Jenny has high expectations, which is good,” Kukral said. “She embodies the leadership skills she teaches these women. They're learning great things that you don’t always learn in a classroom, and they really need those skills to make it in the world. I may not have made the gift if it wasn’t for Jenny.”

Karin Bain grew up in New Jersey playing sports as the Title IX revolution began. Her family was rather progressive for the times, and she had plenty of opportunity to compete. She never lost a field hockey game in high school while playing with all-state and Olympic-caliber players at Kent Place School. Kukral played in the field growing up before settling in as goalkeeper for the state title runs.

“I was one of those goalies that kind of freaked people out in high school because I was used to going forward. I would come to the top of the circle and people were like, ‘what the heck? Why is she out here?’”

Her assertiveness was well-served at her father’s alma mater. She arrived at Cornell and immediately joined the field hockey team her freshman fall. By spring, she was a member of the lacrosse team as well.

“I chose Cornell for academics, and then to be able to play sports was a bonus. It was just something I did. I mean, it was in my DNA.”

Bain played three seasons of field hockey and two years of lacrosse. She graduated in 1982 with degrees in economics and art history.

After business school, Kukral worked on Wall Street, then moved from New York City to Chicago to Connecticut where she has been for 28 years with a two-year hiatus in London - all while raising three children who are now adults. Kukral is still active in residential and commercial real estate and splits her time with her husband between Connecticut and Colorado.

She’s done everything but sit down. Like any good field hockey or lacrosse player, Kukral is constantly on the move. She’s involved in groups and projects too numerous to count.

In many ways, she’s the model Big Red women’s lacrosse alumna.

Jenny Graap's program has been a model of consistency since she returned to her alma mater after getting the George Mason program off the ground in 1994. Four years later, she returned to East Hill and success quickly followed.

In its first season under Graap, the Big Red won three Ivy games, more than in the previous four seasons combined. By year two, Cornell earned a spot in the ECAC tournament. Year three featured an ECAC title and a school record 13 wins, year four included the program’s first NCAA tournament appearance. A year later, Cornell went 16-2, knocked seven-time defending national champion Maryland out of the NCAA tourney and advanced to the national semifinals - becoming the first Cornell women’s team to reach a Final Four.

Nearly a quarter-century later, Graap is the all-time winningest coach in program history.

Her success can be seen in championships.

The Big Red has won two Ivy League regular season championships, the only ones in school history. In the nine seasons the Ivy tournament has been held, Graap’s teams have qualified eight times and took home the automatic bid to nationals in 2016. Cornell has been invited to the NCAA Tournament five times. The Big Red also won a pair of ECAC titles during her tenure.

Her success can be demonstrated in numbers.

She’s coached 97 All-Ivy selections, 55 IWLCA All-Region picks, 18 IWLCA national All-Americans, three CoSIDA Academic All-Americans, four Ivy League Players of the Year and one national player of the year finalist. Her teams have reached postseason play 11 times and have won at least 10 games in nine of her seasons. The 2002 IWLCA national, 2017 Ivy League and  three-time regional coach of the year has won the second-most games of any women's coach in Cornell history - in any sport.

Her success can also be measured by way of looking at the intangibles.

Graap’s teams annually sport GPA near the top of the department - and the country. Cornell was the IWLCA Merit Squad in 2017, recognizing the top GPA of all Division I women's lacrosse schools. The team’s majors span the gamut and acceptance into graduate or medical school is nearly 100 percent for those that choose to go that route. They play hard, represent Cornell in all the best ways and succeed as they transition to life after graduation. But Graap keeps every student-athlete close to her heart. Name a player - Graap has the unique ability to recall their graduation year, major, chosen field and what their kids’ names are on demand.

It makes being a part of the Big Red family special.

Kukral’s endowment gift has already made an impact on the current players. She has received numerous notes from members of the Big Red thanking her for her support. Each one of them mentioned, in some form, how much they appreciate women supporting women.

“For me, playing sports at Cornell was a total gift,” Kukral said. “To help women with an opportunity to compete is an opportunity to pay it forward.”