Wellesley Athletics Announces Assistant Coaching Hires For 2017-18
Wellesley College Athletics will welcome six new assistant coaches across six different sports for the 2017-18 academic year. A pair of familiar names are returning to the Blue, as former All-American Meghan Peterson '15 will begin her first season as an assistant coach with the field hockey program, while former Associate Athletic Director Mindy Mangels has signed as an assistant for the Blue golf team. Kaitlin Lewis (Basketball), Bojan Jovanovic (Fencing), Tanya Roberts (Soccer) and Emily Altier (Swimming & Diving) will also join the department this year. Read more about each below.
Kaitlin Lewis joins Wellesley as Assistant Basketball Coach and Athletics Communications Assistant in 2017-18.
A four-year member of the varsity basketball team, Lewis graduated with a degree in Political Science from Trinity College in Hartford, Conn. in May of 2017. She was team captain for the 2016-17 season, helping the Bantams to a 13-10 record during her senior season. Co-Chair of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, Lewis was active on and off the court during her time at Trinity, serving as the basketball team's SAAC representative, participating annually in the College's annual fundraising efforts and with Team IMPACT.
Lewis also spent four years working in the Athletic Communications office at Trinity, assisting in game day operations, while updating department social media accounts and providing statistical support during contests.
A 2012 Croatian Olympian, Bojan Jovanovic joins Wellesley for his first season as Assistant Fencing Coach in 2017-18. He joins the Blue coaching staff following recent stints as the Head Coach at International Fencers Alliance of Boston and as Assistant Coach at Zeta Fencing Academy in Natick.
A four-time Croatian Men's National Foil Champion, Jovanovic has also won numerous Croatian National Foil Championships at the U-14, Cadet and Junior levels. He has represented Croatia on the national stage as a member of the national foil team in the junior and senior European and World Championships, as well as the Mediterranean, World University and World Military Games. In 2012 he became the first Croatian fencer in history to qualify for the Olympic games, representing his country in men's foil in London.
A competitor at numerous junior and senior world cups and FIE Grand Prix tournaments, Jovanovic was a gold medalist at the 2010 World Cup in Venezuela, finished fifth at the 2010 European Championships in Sheffield and 9th at the World Games in Izmir.
Field Hockey - Meghan Peterson '15
An All-American, all-region and all-conference performer during her time at Wellesley, Meghan Peterson '15 returns for her first year as Assistant Coach with the Blue field hockey program in 2017. Peterson will also work as a Recreation Coordinator in the Department of Physical Education, Recreation, Athletics (PERA).
Peterson rejoins the Blue after spending two years as the Assistant Field Hockey Coach at Amherst College, helping the squad to a record of 23-10 in two seasons. During her time with Amherst, Peterson helped plan and prepare daily practices and game film and was also heavily involved in recruiting, compiling video, evaluating prospects and planning campus visits.
A 2015 graduate of Wellesley with a degree in Psychology, Peterson went on to obtain her masters in Sports Management from the Isenberg School of Management at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. Peterson was a member of two NCAA quarterfinalist and NEWMAC Championship teams (2013, 2014) while at Wellesley, as well as team captain of both the field hockey and lacrosse programs during her senior seasons.
No stranger to Wellesley Athletics, Mindy Mangels returns to the department as Assistant Golf Coach for the 2017-18 season.
Mangels completed her 16th year as the Associate AD and Senior Woman Administrator (SWA) for the Department of Physical Education, Recreation and Athletics (PERA) in 2016-17, where she was responsible for the leadership, planning, management, and oversight of the day-to-day operations for Wellesley's varsity programs.
A graduate of the NCAA/Women Leaders in College Sports Institute for Administrative Advancement and Leadership Enhancement Institute, Mangels earned a Masters of Arts in Sport Management from The Ohio State University and a Bachelor of Science from Nebraska Wesleyan University. While at Ohio State, she worked in both the Department of Recreational Sports and Athletics. She also spent a summer as a Communications Assistant with the Sacramento Monarchs of WNBA. While at Nebraska Wesleyan, she served as the Student Director of Game Management and competed on the varsity golf team.
Tanya Roberts joins the Wellesley soccer program for her first season as Assistant Coach in 2017.
Roberts comes to Wellesley after spending the past five years as Assistant Women's Soccer Coach at the University of Rhode Island. At URI, Roberts facilitated team building and leadership programs and coordinated travel and recruiting for the Division I program, helping the Rams to qualify for the Atlantic 10 tournament in 2014 and 2016.
Prior to arriving at URI, Roberts was the Associate Head Soccer Coach at the Holy Names University in Oakland, Calif., helping to lead the squad to the California Pacific Conference Championship in 2009 and 2012, as well as regional and NAIA playoff appearances. Her coaching experience includes stints at Las Lomas High School, St. Mary's College of California and the University of Nevada, in addition to numerous camps and clinics across the country. She holds an NSCAA Premier Diploma.
An NSCAA All-Region third team selection in 2006, Roberts helped guide the University of Nevada Las Vegas (UNLV) to three-straight NCAA tournament appearances (2004-2006), while earning Mount West All-Conference accolades and guiding the Rebels to conference tournament titles as a junior and senior in 2005 and 2006. Roberts graduated from UNLV with a degree in Physical Education and later received her Masters of Education from Holy Names.
Swimming & Diving - Emily Altier
Emily Altier joins the Wellesley Swimming & Diving program as Assistant Coach and Assistant Aquatic Director for the 2017-18 season.
Altier comes to Wellesley after spending the past year at the NCAA's Postgraduate Internship Program in Indianapolis, Ind. While with the NCAA, Altier was exposed to multiple administrative areas within the national office, working within finance, operations, human resources and other areas. In addition, Altier continued to pursue her passion for swimming as the Head Age Group Swim Coach for Flashes Aquatics in Indianapolis and as the Middle School Head Coach for the Franklin township School District.
A Division I student-athlete at Niagara, Altier was a three-time Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) Academic All-Conference honoree, as well as a member of the Niagara and MAAC Student Athlete Advisory Committees. She received the athletic departments Community Student-Athlete of the Year Award and graduated with a degree in Business Administration in 2016.
Wellesley Athletics strives for excellence at the conference, regional, and national levels, while providing opportunities for students to achieve their potential and learn the values of discipline, leadership, critical thinking, and responsibility to oneself and others.