Taylor Named Head Men's and Women's Track & Field Coach at Alfred University
ALFRED, NY – Thursday afternoon Athletic Director,
Paul Vecchio, tabbed
Angie Taylor, a candidate with extensive collegiate, national, and international coaching experience, as the full-time head coach of the men's and women's track & field programs at Alfred University, beginning on Monday, January 8.
Taylor has been named the head men's and women's track & field coach following a national search that began in November. She will be taking over the historic program that was founded in 1900 by
Daniel Babcock (1903) and
Walter Greene (1902) and touts two of Alfred University's three NCAA National Champions (
Valerie Thompson '84 and
Glenn Clinton '97).
"Angie brings 18 years of collegiate coaching experience to Alfred University, as well as experience with the United States Track and Field Association and Nigerian Olympic programs," Vecchio stated. "In addition, the search committee felt the relationships that Coach Taylor builds with her student-athletes last well beyond their time competing in collegiate track and field. I am truly excited to welcome her to our Saxon family."
Taylor comes to AU after spending four years in the capital city of Abuja, Nigeria where she served in multiple roles. Most recently, she served as a member of the Ministerial Committee for the Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports Development. In this position, she served as a Project Manager for Team Nigeria in the 2016 Rio Olympics and Paralympics where 12 teams qualified and competed. She was also a part of the 2015 All-Africa Games held in Brazzaville, Republic of Congo where Team Nigeria finished second overall with 47 gold medals – the best team finish in the country's history. Also, while in Abuja, Taylor was a member of the National High Performance Task Team and the Director of National High Performance.
"As a coach, I have always strived to inspire my student-athletes to achieve success on and off the field of play," Taylor said. "The goal for our student-athletes is to win with integrity and try their very best."
Prior to Nigeria, Taylor was Head Coach of the George Mason women's track & field team. While at the helm of the Patriots, she coached multiple student-athletes to the NCAA Division I Championships, U.S. Olympic Trials, Junior Pan American Games and Pan American Games. Most notably, Taylor coached world-class sprinter, Murielle Ahoure of the Ivory Coast, who has since won silver medals in the 2012 IAAF World Championships in Istanbul, Turkey and 2013 World Championships in Athletics in Moscow, Russia.
From 1995 to 1999, Taylor served as a women's track & field assistant coach at Princeton University where in addition to her coaching responsibilities, she managed scheduling and coordination of events. During her tenure, the Tigers finished first in the Ivy League Indoor Heptagonal Championships twice and Outdoor Heptagonal Championships once.
Since 1992, Taylor has been a USA National Coach including various roles with Olympic Team, IAAF World Championships, Pan American Games, World Junior Championships in Athletics, World Cup, Goodwill Games and Junior Pan American Games. She also served an eight-year stint as a member of the Board of Directors.
Taylor has also served on the coaching staffs at Louisiana State University and the University of Minnesota.
Taylor graduated from Illinois State University in 1987 with a Bachelor of Arts in Speech Communications. She went on to earn a Masters of Public Administration from George Mason University and her Ph.D. in Leadership in Higher Education from Capella University.
As a student-athlete, she was a nine-time Gateway Conference Champion and member of the Valley All-Centennial Track & Field Team. In 1992, the Gateway Conference recognized Taylor on the All-Decade Team.
William Sortore, who has served as the team's head coach in a part-time role, will remain on the AU track & field coaching staff and will continue as the head coach of the men's and women's cross country teams.
"I want to sincerely thank Coach Sortore for all he has done to keep our track and field program progressing in a part-time role," Vecchio said. "His loyalty and dedication to the program have been without peer. I am truly excited to hire a full-time coach of Angie's caliber and to watch our track & field and cross country programs continue to flourish, building on the incredibly rich tradition and history that both programs enjoy."
The Saxons are in action on January 13
th at the Rochester Institute of Technology.