Kiki Chesterton

SPRINGFIELD - After a nationwide search, Wittenberg University Director of Athletics and Recreation Garnett Purnell has announced the hiring of Kiki Chesterton as the new head coach of the Tiger field hockey program. She replaces Marianne Beshara, who held the position for four years before resigning in February to pursue other job opportunities.

Chesterton comes to Wittenberg from Montclair State University in New Jersey, where she is in her first year as an assistant women's lacrosse coach while she completes her post baccalaureate teacher certification program in physical education. At Wittenberg, Chesterton will serve as an assistant coach for women's lacrosse, in addition to her field hockey responsibilities.

Chesterton was a standout lacrosse and field hockey goalkeeper at Roanoke College before graduating in 1991 with a degree in sociology. She was an all-conference and all-region selection in field hockey in 1990 following a season in which she was the Maroons' co-captain and team Most Valuable Player. She was also a four-time all-conference, all-region and All-America honoree in lacrosse while helping the Maroons to three Old Dominion Athletic Conference championships during her career. Chesterton still owns every lacrosse goalkeeping school and conference record, and she ranks among the top all-time goalkeepers in NCAA Division III history. She also lettered on the Roanoke women's soccer team that won the ODAC championship in 1987.

Chesterton, a native of Massachusetts who was inducted into Roanoke's Hall of Fame in 2001 and Pingree High School's Hall of Fame in 2003, began her coaching career at Kenyon College, a member of the North Coast Athletic Conference with Wittenberg. She led the Ladies to a 9-10 record in field hockey in 1995 and a 5-9-1 record in women's lacrosse in 1996.

She followed that with coaching stints at Fairleigh Dickinson University, Kean University and Montclair State. As a head field hockey coach at Kenyon and Kean, Chesterton had a career record of 26-28 in three seasons. At Kean, the Cougars were 5-13 the season before Chesterton took over the program. In her second season at the helm, Kean went 10-9 and defeated the ninth-ranked team in the nation while playing in the challenging New Jersey Athletic Conference. As an assistant at Fairleigh Dickinson, Chesterton put together a corner unit that ranked third in NCAA Division III for corner efficiency.

As a head women's lacrosse coach at Kenyon and Kean, Chesterton's career record stands at 21-53-1 in five seasons. She also founded the women's lacrosse program at Fairleigh Dickinson in 1997 but never coached the team in a varsity game.

"I'm inheriting a talented team with great potential and a program that is built on a solid winning foundation," Chesterton said. "I am proud to be a new Tiger, and I look forward to bringing a dynamic, fast-paced style of field hockey to the turf at Edwards-Maurer Field."

Wittenberg has won at least a share of three of the last four North Coast Athletic Conference regular season field hockey championships and the only two NCAC Tournaments in the conference's history. Under Beshara, the Tigers put together the last four of 22 straight non-losing seasons and advanced to the NCAA Division III Tournament each of the last two years.