Miami Ohio University Athletics
Miami University RedHawks
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Aug. 26, 2002
OXFORD, Ohio - The Miami University athletic department has added nine personnel to its staff and promoted one as it enters the 2002-03 school year. All hires and promotions have taken place since the beginning of the new fiscal year.
The following is a list of the new personnel, their personal information and the position they will hold this academic year.
David Agbunag * Assistant Athletic Trainer: David Agbunag is Miami's newest addition to the athletic training staff. He also is serving as a teaching assistant and is working part-time through academics. He comes to Miami after finishing his master's of science in education at Old Dominion University in 2002. Agbunag did his undergraduate work at Charleston Southern University where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in physical education in 2000.
As a graduate assistant trainer at Hampton University Agbunag worked primarily with the men's basketball team from 2000-02. His daily responsibilities in the training room involved injury evaluations, administering treatments, and constructing rehabilitation protocols for the athletes.
Erica Blashill * Assistant Director of Marketing: A 1997 graduate of Ferris State University, Erica Blashill assumes the position of assistant director of marketing at Miami after spending several years in corporate marketing. She holds bachelor's of science degree in business-marketing from Ferris State.
Blashill worked for one year with J.W. Messner, Inc. as an account coordinator after her graduation from Ferris State. She then spent two years working as a project manager at Alternate Marketing Networks/Valassis. Her most recent stint before arriving in Oxford was working as a client service manager at FlexiPak, LLC. At FlexiPak, she was responsible for the establishment of the Client Service Department.
Chris Bostwick * Assistant Women's Cross Country and Track & Field Coach: Chris Bostwick arrives at Miami after spending the past two years at Binghamton University as the assistant men's and women's track coach. Bostwick coached the sprinters, jumpers and the multi-event athletes. While at Binghamton, he helped produce six conference champions, 18 all-conference selections, and five All-East selections.
Bostwick earned his bachelor's of science degree in physical education and master's degree in exercise science from Cortland State. His duties at Miami are primarily with coaching the short sprints, pole vault, high jump, long jump, triple jump and heptathalon.
James Carsey * Assistant Strength & Conditioning Coach: James Carsey has been promoted to assistant strength and conditioning coach after spending his first year at Miami as an intern. Carsey came to Miami from Ashland University, his alma mater, where he was a graduate assistant for football as well as an assistant weight room coordinator and strength coach.
Joe Cobbs * Director of Marketing: Assuming the position of director of marketing is Joe Cobbs, who returns to his alma mater after working as a strategic consultant and coordinator of the General Sports Academy in Rochester, Mich. A 1999 graduate of Miami, Cobbs earned a master's degree in Sport Management from Ohio State in 2000.
Cobbs served as an athletic department intern at Miami during 1998-99. He worked game-day operations, promotions, and group sales assistance for football, ice hockey and men's and women's basketball.
Josh Fenton * Hockey Video Coordinator: Josh Fenton enters his first season with the Miami hockey family as its video coordinator. Fenton's primary duties include breaking down game film, putting together scouting tapes and organizing scouting reports.
Prior to assuming his position at Miami, Fenton was employed by Accenture, a world-wide management consulting firm. While at Accenture, he was a technology analyst working on projects to develop and manage a company's human resource system infrastructure. Fenton is a 2001 graduate of Iowa State and also is working toward his graduate degree in sport behavior and performance through Miami's PHS department.
Holly Mierzejewski * Strength & Conditioning Intern: Holly Mierzejewski returns to her alma mater after a stint at Oakland University where she was an assistant women's basketball coach for two seasons. She was heavily involved in Oakland's 2001 Mid-Continent Conference crown, serving as the team's recruiting coordinator.
A 1995 graduate of Miami, she was a four-year letterwinner for the basketball team. After graduating from Miami with her bachelor of science degree in education Mierzejewski was a junior high girl's basketball coach at Wilson Junior High School in Hamilton, Ohio. She then returned to Miami in 1998 to serve as an assistant basketball coach for two seasons.
Sam Pittera * Assistant Athletic Trainer: In early February, the Miami athletic training staff added Sam Pittera to its ranks as an assistant. Pittera worked for five years as the head athletic trainer at Walsh University. He was responsible for the rehabilitation and treatment of athletes for 18 NAIA intercollegiate sports. Pittera also was the head athletic trainer for the Canton Crocodiles Professional Baseball team during the summer months.
Pittera earned his bachelor of science degree in education from the University of Akron in 1994. He spent another two years at Akron studying towards his master's degree in Exercise Physiology, and serving as a graduate assistant athletic trainer working primarily with the football team.
Matt Toy * Athletic Media Relations Intern: After working as a student assistant in Miami's athletic media relations office, Matt Toy was named the office's intern after graduating in May with his degree in sport organization. Toy will serve as the primary media contact for women's soccer, men's and women's cross country and track & field, men's and women's swimming & diving, softball and assistant for men's basketball.
In addition to his work with the Miami athletic media relations office, Toy worked with ABC Sports, where he has worked at such events as the Kentucky Derby and the Indianapolis 500. Toy also has worked with Total Sports and Athletes in Action.
Cynthia Veraldo * Academic Coordinator: Cynthia Veraldo is Miami's new academic coordinator for the 2002-03 academic year, joining Ben Carignan and David Graham. Veraldo earned her psychology degree from Miami in 1993, and a master's degree in sport studies in 1995.
After her graduation from Miami, Veraldo was an athletic administrative assistant at Kings High School for a year. Veraldo then spent three years as the head athletic administrator at McAuley High School in Cincinnati, Ohio. While serving as an athletic administrator at area high schools, Veraldo also was an instructor of sports studies in the PHS department.