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Tuesday, August 26, 2003
New Athletic Staff Members Named at USM
GORHAM, Maine -- Five new members, including three head coaches, have been
named to the Athletic Department staff at the University of Southern Maine for the
upcoming 2003-2004 year. Al Bean, Director of Athletics, made the announcement at
the staff's recent preseason meeting.
Bean announced that John Razsa would become the head women's volleyball
coach, Joe Pistone takes over as head wrestling coach, and Kate Loveless is the
new cheering coach. In addition, Erica Baptiste and Shinichiro Sugiura were
appointed as assistant athletic trainers.
Razsa replaces Annette Caldwell who served as the head volleyball coach the
past four years. Pistone succeeds Ted Reese who began the USM wrestling program
in 1996 as a club team and on to the varsity level in 1997. Loveless follows
Melissa Brenner as cheering coach.
Loveless, a 2002 graduate of the University of Maine, has coached the Old
Town (Maine) High School cheering squad the past two seasons. She guided her
teams to the Eastern Maine championship and state runner-up spots in 2002, and the
Eastern Maine runner-up spot in 2003. She was a member of the cheering squad and
team captain while attending UMaine.
A school teacher in the Lisbon (Maine) school system, Razsa has been the
director and head coach of the Portland North Girls Junior Olympic Program for the
past three years. His previous coaching experiences include stints at St.
Joseph's College (1992-1997) and at Gray-New Gloucester (Maine) High School (1988-
1994). While at St. Joseph's he compiled a 106-90 record, was named the Maine
Athletic Conference Coach of the Year in 1995 after leading St. Joe's to a school
record 27-10 mark, and guided the Monks to the MAC championship and the NAIA
regional tournament in 1996 and 1997.
A 1982 graduate of USM with a B.S. in education, Razsa holds coaching Level I
and II certifications from the United States Volleyball Association.
Pistone, a former NCAA Division II All-American at American International
College, has been the high school coach at Johnston (R.I.) High School for the
past three seasons (2000-2003). He guided his team to a 16-0 record and the
state Division A1 championship last season. Overall, he guided his squads to a
30-14-2 record. He also served as a volunteer coach at Johnson and Wales
University.
A 2000 graduate of A.I.C. with a degree in sociology and criminal justice,
Pistone is a former member of the Team USA Junior National Team and a past
champion in the Empire State and Bay State Games. While at A.I.C., he compiled a
120-29 career record and was the team's most valuable wrestler in 1998. His 120
career wins is just four shy of the school record, and his .805 winning percentage
is a record. He also participated in the 1996 Olympic team trials.
Baptiste, who served as an assistant trainer at USM last year in an interim
capacity, is a 2000 graduate of Hobart and William Smith Colleges (Geneva, N.Y.).
She earned her master's degree in exercise science with an emphasis in athletic
training from Western Michigan University in 2002. She passed her National
Athletic Trainers Association (NATA) certification in 2002.
Sugiura earned a bachelor's degree from Chukyo University in Tokyo before
coming to the United States, He earned an undergraduate degree in athletic
training from Indiana State University in 2001. He completed his master's degree
at Indiana State in 2002. He passed his NATA certification in 2001. He worked at
Back in Motion Physical Therapy, LLC., in Gorham last year. Among his duties were
providing athletic training services for Gorham High School.
TRANSACTIONS:
Southern Maine: Named John Razsa volleyball coach; named Joe Pistone wrestling
coach; named Kate Loveless cheering coach; named Erica Baptiste and Shinichiro
Sugiura assistant athletic trainers.
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