Author: Gordon
Wayne Woodworth
Email: Gordon.Woodworth@uvm.edu
Phone: (802)656-1110 Fax: 802-656-3203
BURLINGTON,
Vt. –
Matt Belfield has been named head coach of cross country and women’s track and
field at the University of Vermont. Director of athletics Bob Corran made the
announcement today.
Belfield, 35,
comes to UVM from Ithaca College, where he was a five-time New York State
Collegiate Track Conference (NYSCTC) Coach of the Year and led the Bombers to
three straight conference outdoor titles. During his three-year head coaching
tenure at Ithaca, Belfield’s student-athletes broke 14 school records and
recorded 11 All-America performances.
“We are very
excited to have Matt join our staff,” Corran said. “He is an experienced and
highly successful coach who will have a tremendously positive impact on our
cross country and women’s track programs.”
Before coming
to Ithaca, Belfield was head coach of men’s and women’s cross country and track
and field at the University of Redlands in Redlands, Cal. At Redlands, Belfield
coached a national champion hammer thrower and a two-time national champion
high jumper. He had spent three years as an assistant track and field coach at
the school before becoming head coach in June of 1996, and also previously
worked on the coaching staffs at Colgate and Catholic.
“I am very
excited about the opportunity to lead the cross country and track and field
programs at UVM,” Belfield said. “I look forward to continuing the tradition of
excellence that Vermont athletes have demonstrated for decades.
“I
experienced extraordinarily positive energy throughout the athletic department
when I visited campus recently, and I am thrilled to be joining such an
enthusiastic staff,” he added. My wife Bonnie and I are also looking forward to
raising our daughter Arianna in a wonderful community like Burlington.”
A graduate of
Catholic University, he was a six-time all-conference high jumper during his
undergraduate career. He earned his master's degree in education, with an
emphasis on counseling, from Redlands in 1994. Belfield is married to the
former Bonnie Yuen, who was an assistant track and field coach at UVM from 1993
to 1997 under former head coach Ed Kusiak. Kusiak retired in June after 34
years of service to the University of Vermont.