Lake Forest College Head Men's and Women's Cross Country and Track Coach Dan Simpson and Director of Athletics Jackie Slaats recently announced the addition of Ciara Kissane as an assistant coach for both programs.
Kissane came to Lake Forest from Coe College, where she was the head men's and women's cross country coach and assistant track and field coach in 2016-17. Her cross country teams combined to post 10 new entries on the Kowawks' all-time performance list and, in the classroom, earned the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association All-Academic Team Award for having a GPA over 3.10.
A 2012 graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh, Kissane spent the 2015 season as an assistant cross country and track and field coach at Canisius College in Buffalo, New York. After receiving a master's degree in sports management from Florida State University in 2013, Kissane has spent time as director of track and field operations at Sacramento State University and in sports administration roles at the University of Buffalo and Wisconsin-Oshkosh.
"We're thrilled to add someone of Coach Kissane's pedigree to our staff," began Simpson. "Her knowledge of the sport, passion, and proven recruiting ability will be a perfect storm of compliments coinciding with the addition of our brand new varsity indoor and outdoor track programs. Her expertise in the middle distance events and Division III head coaching experience made her the ideal candidate to come in and immediately take over her own event groups. As I've already communicated with her, from day one the message to our student-athletes will be that we now have two head coaches on staff - because we do."
The addition of Kissane increases the number of coaches on the cross country and track staffs to three. Simpson is also assisted by Sarah Hansen, who led the track team through the 2016-17 season, its last as a club sport at the College.