Courtesy of Chestnut Hill College Athletics

PHILADELPHIA, Pa. (January 2, 2020) – Chestnut Hill College Director of Athletics and Recreation Jesse Balcer is pleased to present Maria Stickley as the College's new head cross country/track & field coach. "Maria Stickley's prowess as a runner at Appalachian State (University) coupled with her coaching experience at the D1 (Division I) level was a huge determining factor in our decision. She has a really bright future in the business and I am really excited to watch her grow this program over the years." Formerly an assistant at National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) DI institution Xavier University (August 2017 – May 2019), Stickley began her collegiate coaching career as a volunteer with Temple University in 2016.
 
"Chestnut Hill College felt like the right fit for me. I feel I am truly at home here," offered Coach Stickley. "Not only is the campus beautiful, but the history and people make the College what it is, and that is what really drew me to become part of the community. I am ecstatic to take on the role of head coach for both the cross country and track and field programs, as well as compete at the NCAA Division II level. We have such a great group of student-athletes and I cannot wait to see what these programs can achieve." Coach Stickley takes over the Chestnut Hill College men's and women's track and field programs after a 2019 season that saw All-Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (CACC) performances from – current seniors - Zigmund Fisher (Chadds Ford, Pa.) (2^nd, 15:27.04, 5,000-Meter) and Aaron Morris (Philadelphia, Pa.) (2^nd, 1:56.66, 800-Meter), as well as parting women's team member, Erica Waleski '19 (2^nd, 2:23.75, 800-Meter | 2^nd, 4:56.58, 1,500-Meter). This past fall, the Chestnut Hill College men's cross country season was highlighted by Fisher's first place finishes. The Griffin pace setter won four of the seven races he competed in this fall and earned his third All-CACC laurel with a CACC Runner of the Year performance (1^st, 27:42.2) at the league championship meet on October 27.
 
During her time at Xavier University, Coach Stickley assisted Head Coach Ryan Orner with all aspects of an NCAA DI program. She focused on middle and long distances, while often assisting Coach David Payne with the Musketeers' sprint and hurdle student-athletes. Coach Stickley assisted in the development of student-athletes in various track and field disciplines. Multiple student-athletes gained All-BIG EAST honors over her two years assisting the program. In addition, under Coach Stickley and the other members of the coaching staff, Xavier University's 2018 Athlete of the Year, Maddie Britton (Bay Village, Ohio) qualified in both the NCAA Cross Country (2017) and Track and Field (2018; 10,000-Meter) Championships.

As an assistant coach with Temple University (August 2016 – June 2017), Stickley developed various professional skills, including the generation and implementation of training programs, budget management, and recruiting.
 
Coach Stickley competed collegiately at Appalachian State University, where she helped the Mountaineers to conference championships in 2012 (Southern Conference Women's Outdoor Track and Field, Women's Cross Country) and 2016 (Sun Belt Conference Women's Indoor Track and Field). Her personal record book includes a five-kilometer (5K) time of 18:29.5, a six-kilometer (6K) time of 23:01.50, an outdoor 800-Meter time of 2:18.33, an outdoor 1,500-Meter time of 4:38.03, and an outdoor 3,000-Meter time of 10:35.64.
 
Coach Stickley currently resides in Newtown Square, Pennsylvania.

ABOUT THE CACC
The Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference is an NCAA Division II Conference composed of 14 institutions in Connecticut, Delaware, New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania. The member institutions are Bloomfield College, Caldwell University, Chestnut Hill College, Concordia (N.Y.) College, Dominican (N.Y.) College, Felician University, Georgian Court University, Goldey-Beacom College, Holy Family University, Jefferson (Philadelphia University + Thomas Jefferson University), Nyack College, Post University of Waterbury, University of the Sciences, and Wilmington University.