Cardinal Stritch University Women's Track

Smith enters his first year as an Assistant Track & Field Coach, with emphasis on Jumps (HJ, TJ, LJ), at Cardinal Stritch University. Kendrick started his High School career at Western Branch High School in Chesapeake, VA. While at Western Branch, Kendrick Set the school record in the Triple Jump and competed at the Nike National T&F Championships, where he became an All-American.  Kendrick attended North Carolina A&T on a full Track & Field scholarship, where he completed his Bachelors Degree in Sports Science.  During his career, Kendrick competed in the Long Jump and Triple Jump events, earning personal best in 2311.75 (LJ) and 500.25 (TJ). Kendrick Smith Assistant Coach (Jumps/ Vaults) Kendrick Smith enters his first year as an Assistant Track & Field Coach, with emphasis on Jumps (HJ, TJ, LJ), at Cardinal Stritch University. Kendrick started his High School career at Western Branch High School in Chesapeake, VA. While at Western Branch, Kendrick Set the school record in the Triple Jump and competed at the Nike National T&F Championships, where he became an All-American.  Kendrick attended North Carolina A&T on a full Track & Field scholarship, where he completed his Bachelors Degree in Sports Science.  During his career, Kendrick competed in the Long Jump and Triple Jump events, earning personal best in 2311.75 (LJ) and 500.25 (TJ).

Taraskas expertise is in the throwing events. She earned four letters competing at NCAA Division I Xavier University. Her accolades include three top-10 finishes in the shot put and weight throw at the Big East Conference championships.   Taraska also posted two top-10 finishes in the shot put at the Atlantic 10 Conference championships.   Her coaching resume includes an assistant position (2014-15) at Wickliffe Middle School and volunteer coaching experience (2012-13) at Clark Montessori High School.   During her senior season at Xavier, Taraska was named team captain. She received her bachelors degree in psychology during 2014. Taraska is pursuing her masters in business administration at Stritch.

Pearson has coached distance runners for 47 years, including 34 as the head coach at Ferndale High School and two as associate head coach at Whatcom Community College.   With the Orcas, Pearson coached four All-Americans and one conference champion in cross country. He also served one season as an assistant at Mead High School, helping the Panthers win their 15th state championship. Pearson's athletes have set American records, won USA Championships and high school state titles, and qualified for the Olympic Trials and World Cross Country Championships. Hes coached 55 national qualifiers and 22 All-Americans. As a runner, Pearson won two national championships and qualified for the U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials in 1972 and 1976. He set an American record for the 50-mile run (still fifth all-time), competed in four world championships and placed in the top five at the U.S. Championships in seven of his 25 competitions.   Having run every day for 45 years, he sees no excuse for runners skipping a practice session. Pearson has been inducted into the Lake Stevens High School and Western Washington University Halls of Fame.

Veguilla comes to this position after interning with Lakeshore Chinooks in the Ticket Office. During this position, she assisted with day to day office operations, including phone sales, group sales, and season sales. She also currently works with the Milwaukee Brewers in their phone center attending to customer calls and selling tickets.

Pearson is a nationally certified running coach and instructor through USA Track & Field. Recently, he became a USATF Level 3 / IAAF Level 5 Master Coach (With Distinction) in Endurance at the USA Olympic Training Center, and holds level 2 certifications in Endurance, Sprints / Hurdles / Relays, Combined Events, Jumps, and Youth In his first two years, Pearson lead the Wolves to break numerous school records. Stritch captured two national champions (Phoenix Miller 400i and Daniel Garcia 1,000i), 14 all-American honors, 174 school records, and the NAIA & USTFCCCA National Athlete of the Year in Garcia. Prior to his arrival at Stritch, Pearson was the Head Cross Country and Distance Track & Field Coach at Kennesaw State University (Ga.), an NCAA Division 1 institution. While coaching at KSU, the Owls achieved a national qualifier, two all-region honors, a conference record holder, two conference champions, eight all-conference track & field honorees, three all-conference cross country runners and 16 school records. The mens indoor and outdoor track teams also won the Atlantic Sun Conference Championships. Before coaching at KSU, Pearson was the Head Cross Country and Distance Track & Field Coach at North Carolina A&T State University, where his athletes broke eight school records. He also coached the second-best combined cross country team in the programs history. Before representing the Aggies, Pearson was the Director of Track and Field Operations at the University of Iowa. In Iowa City, the Hawkeyes had two Big 10 champions. In 2007, at age 21, he became one of the youngest collegiate head coaches in history, leading the Whatcom Community College cross country and track & field programs. With the Orcas, he coached his athletes to 33 school records, four cross country All-Americans, two regional champions, eight all-region honorees and one cross country champion. Pearson was twice named Regional Coach of the Year. As a private coach and the founder of Harrier Track Club, an Olympic development program, Pearson has helped many runners meet their potential, ranging from first-time race participants to Olympic Trials qualifiers. The club has seen many athletes qualify for prestigious events under Pearsons tutelage. Among those are qualifiers for the Canadian Olympic Trials, U.S. Olympic Trials, Canadian Track & Field Nationals, World Juniors and USA Junior Nationals. Pearson also coached 24 National Junior Olympic qualifiers in cross country and two 1,600-meter high school state champions. His hard work and success over the years was rewarded by his being named an Emerging Elite coach by USA Track & Field. This distinction gained him a scholarship to a week-long camp at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista, California. Also, in 2012, he was selected as a representative for USA Track & Field at the North American, Central American, Caribbean, Track & Field Athletics Congress in Nassau, Bahamas. There he studied under world-renowned coaches in track & field. A native of Ferndale, Washington, Pearson holds bachelors degrees in history and coaching from Evergreen State College and is finishing his Masters in Sports Management at Stritch. He is the son of former American 50-mile record holder and national champion Jim Pearson.