For Immediate Release
August 13, 2009
Wellesley Sports Information
Wellesley College Announces the Hiring of Assistant Coaches
WELLESLEY, Mass. - Wellesley College has announced the hiring of five new assistant coaches for the 2009-10 school year. The Blue welcome Amanda Leahy (Basketball) Austin Work (Novice Crew), Regan Bernhard ‘01 (Crew), Lauren Holzberg (Tennis), and Rachael Sushner (Soccer) to Wellesley.
Basketball - Amanda Leahy begins her first season as the assistant basketball coach at Wellesley. A 2008 graduate of Bowdoin College, Leahy served as the assistant coach for the St. Lawrence women’s basketball team for the 2008-09 season, having a hand in player development, practice planning, scouting and game preparation. Leahy also has coaching experience with the New England Crusaders AAU program and several summer camps. A four-year letter winner at Bowdoin, Leahy was a member of three NESCAC Championship teams, with the Polar Bears earning a spot in three consecutive NCAA Elite Eight rounds.
Crew - Austin Work will serve as novice coach for the 2009-10 season. Work, a 2003 graduate of Lewis and Clark College, has spent the last five years coaching the Lincoln Park Junior team in Chicago, Ill. Under his reins, the novice women have compiled three undefeated seasons and have earned three Midwest Junior Regional Championship titles. Work began rowing his junior year in high school where he was a New England Championship Finalist for The Salisbury School. He was also an accomplished rower at Lewis and Clark, being named team captain in 2002.
Crew - Regan Bernhard '01 will return to her Alma Mater as the varsity assistant coach beginning in 2009-10. After a year as the assistant coach for The Winsor School in Boston, Bernhard became the program director for G-ROW Boston, a rowing and relationship-building program designed specifically for girls in the Boston public schools. At Wellesley, Bernhard was a three-time NEWMAC All-Conference rower, a two-time team MVP and was named captain in her senior year. In addition to her collegiate career, Bernhard has competed at Nationals and Sectional regattas, and also at the Royal Canadian Henley.
Soccer - Rachael Sushner enters her first season as assistant soccer coach at Wellesley after graduating with honors from Skidmore College in 2009. During her college career, Sushner was the Liberty League Rookie of the Year and was named to the Liberty league All-Conference First Team, and the All-New York Region First Team. She finished her career with a 49-19-12 record, scoring 17 game-winning goals. Earlier this summer, Sushner signed a semi-professional contact with the Adirondack Lynx of the Women’s Premier Soccer League (WPSL), where she currently serves as co-captain.
Tennis - Lauren Holzberg, a 2009 graduate of Penn State University with a baccalaureate degree in Kinesiology, joins the Wellesley tennis staff. The former All-Big Ten performer played #1 during her four years as a Nittany Lion, helping the team to a national ranking. She received the ITA All-Academic Team Award, the Academic All-Big Ten Award, and the Big Ten Conference Scholar-Athlete Award. Holzberg was a nationally recognized junior player, earning a USTA national ranking in the 14-, 16-, and 18-year old age groups. During her last year of juniors she was ranked No.1 by USTA New England and was also the 2005 recipient of the William Hoblitzelle Award for superior sportsmanship and leadership.
