Belmont Abbey College Names
Head Coaches For Men’s and Women’s Hoops, Men’s
Lacrosse
Choices Reflect School’s Dual Focus On
Excellence, Virtue In Sport
BELMONT, N.C. (July 26, 2007) – BelmontAbbey
College, whose Crusaders compete in the NCAA Division II Conference Carolinas,
has filled three key coaching positions in men’s and women’s basketball
and men’s lacrosse, Athletic Director Richard M. Dull announced today.
Stephen Miss, Belmont Abbey’s assistant men’s basketball coach
since 2004, was promoted to become head men’s basketball coach. Susan Yow,
most recently an assistant coach with the WNBA Minnesota Lynx, was named head
coach of the women’s basketball team. James Dietsch, previously assistant
men’s lacrosse coach at conference rival Limestone College in Gaffney ,
S.C. , was named head coach of the men’s lacrosse team.
“It is with great personal and professional pleasure that we make these
appointments to our coaching staff today,” said Dull. “Susan Yow,
Jim Dietsch and Stephen Miss possess the finest qualities one could hope for
in collegiate coaching. They are principled, exude integrity and honesty, and
have demonstrated an exemplary history of teaching as well as coaching at various
levels within the NCAA.”
Dull said Yow, Dietsch and Miss share the core values that Belmont Abbey
College president Dr. Bill Thierfelder has asserted in his campaign to re-emphasize
the role of sports in developing character and virtue in students.
“They are respected by their peers, have been fully integrated into
academic life everywhere they have coached, and have a philosophy that will serve
the best interest of their student athletes,” Dull said. “I am pleased
to have all three assume major responsibilities within the Belmont Abbey family.”
Miss has two Masters degrees and NCAA Division I and II coaching experience.
He came to Belmont Abbey in 2004 from Towson University in Maryland where he
was assistant men’s basketball coach. He held previous coaching positions
at the University of Georgia and at Trinity College in Dublin , Ireland . Miss
also brings nearly a decade of experience organizing and running youth basketball
camps and clinics.
“To be named head men’s basketball coach at
Belmont Abbey College is a privilege, especially
considering the college's commitment to virtue and excellence and to a balanced
approach to the education of the whole person,” Miss said. “I look
forward to continuing working with our student-athletes and building a program
worthy of the Abbey's tremendous student body, alumni, faculty, and administration.”
Yow, a North Carolina native and two-time All-American, brings to Belmont
Abbey College five seasons of WNBA coaching experience and 22 years of NCAA Division
I head coaching experience. She also has three seasons of USA Basketball coaching
experience, including 1988, when Yow served as assistant coach for the gold medal-winning
U.S. women’s basketball team at the Seoul Olympics.
"I view this position as a great blessing both personally and professionally,” Yow
said. “Richard Dull and Dr. Thierfelder are two individuals with high aspirations
desiring to see excellence achieved in all that the college undertakes. After
meeting with the Dr.Thierfelder and hearing his vision and mission for the Abbey,
and athletics in particular, I believe the chance to coach at Belmont Abbey is
an extraordinary opportunity."
Dietsch brings three decades of coaching experience to Belmont Abbey College
. He spent 11
years as assistant coach for the NCAA Division I national champion men’s
lacrosse team at the University of Maryland , including several years during
Dull’s tenure as Terrapins athletic director. This year, Dietsch helped
his Limestone College squad advance to the NCAA Division II Final Four.
“The chance to work with Dick Dull again and the direction he and Dr.
Thierfelder are mapping out for the athletics program made this an irresistible
opportunity that I’m deeply grateful for,” Dietsch said. “Throughout
my career I’ve told my kids, ‘I don’t want you to be jocks,
I want you to be student athletes,’ and the administration here at Belmont
Abbey is truly committed to that philosophy.”
Named one of the top 50 “All-American Colleges” by the Intercollegiate
Studies Institute (ISI), Belmont Abbey College finds its center in Jesus Christ
and believes in the development of the whole person – mind, body and spirit. Founded
in 1876, the College celebrates its Catholic Benedictine heritage and welcomes
anyone from any background or tradition committed to its vision of excellence
and virtue. Home to more than 1,100 students from 29 states and 24 countries,
the campus is located on the 650-acre picturesque monastic property of Belmont
Abbey. Located just 10 miles west of Charlotte , N.C. , it is listed on the National
Register of Historic Places. For more information, please visit our Web site
at www.belmontabbeycollege.edu.
|
