Northern Michigan University Women's Track

Ryan also serves as the head coach of the women's cross country team and spent 11 years as a Nordic skiing assistant coach. Since Ryan took over as head track & field coach, three Wildcats have qualified for the NCAA Track & Field Championships: Samanthia Johnson (2015 Outdoor, 2016 Outdoor), Ine Mylle (2016 Outdoor) and Jasmine Williams (2015 Outdoor, 2016 Indoor). Johnson is a two-time first team All-American while Williams made the second team at the 2016 Indoor Championships. In 2015, three Wildcats earned medals at the GLIAC Outdoor Track & Field Championships: Mylle (gold, triple jump), Williams (bronze, discus) and Kameron Burmeister (bronze, 10,000-meter run). At the league's indoor championship meet, Michelle Juergen captured a bronze medal in the high jump. In 2013-14, Ryan coached Christina Toogood to a GLIAC indoor title in the 1,500-meter run and third-place finishes in the 800-meter run at the GLIAC indoor and outdoor championships. Toogood also earned All-American honors during the indoor season. Northern Michigan has been named an All-Academic Team by the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association nine-straight years. To earn this distinction, a team must have recorded a cumulative team GPA of 3.00 or better and posted a team score at their respective NCAA regional championship. As an assistant cross country coach, Ryan helped coach the Wildcats to the NCAA Division II Championships six years in a row. There, the team finished eighth, sixth, fourth, seventh and seventh. Over that stretch, Northern Michigan won two GLIAC titles and a NCAA Great Lakes Regional championship and produced 10 All-American runners. As a Nordic skiing assistant, Ryan helped lead the Wildcats to the NCAA Ski Championships each year. Under Ryan's watch, 48 Wildcats earned All-American accolades and four captured NCAA titles. Ryan also coached the 2006 U.S. Junior World and U-23 team in Slovenia. Ryan spent two years as head coach Sten Fjeldheims graduate assistant and was named a full-time staff member in August 2002. Before joining the Wildcat staff, Ryan held numerous coaching positions. From 1997-2000, she held two coaching positions in Bozeman, Mont., with the Bridger Ski Foundations Junior Ski Program and the Masters Cross-Country Skiing Training and Racing Group. Ryan also served as a volunteer assistant coach for the Montana State womens cross county ski team. She taught math at Chief Joseph Middle School, where she also coached sixth-grade track & field. A native of Burnsville, Minn., Ryan attended Montana State, where she earned her bachelors degree in math education with a minor in physical education and health. Ryan skied for the Bobcats for four years and garnered All-American and Academic All-American honors, placing fourth at the 1988 College Nationals. Ryan continued her skiing career after college, gaining national recognition in cross country skiing (1992, 1994) and biathlon (1998), competing in nine National Championships and three Olympic Trials. She was a member of the United States Olympic Education Center ski program at Northern Michigan from 1990-93. Ryan also competed in the 1999 World Masters Championships in Grindelwald, Switzerland, winning one gold and two silver medals. Ryan later won two gold medals at the 2004 Masters National Championships. Ryan received her masters degree in exercise science from Northern Michigan in 2002 and was named Outstanding Graduating Graduate Student. She is a 2010 graduate of the NCAA Womens Coaches Academy and a level I track & field coach.

Pease as an assistant coach on Dec. 12, 2014. Pease served as a volunteer assistant coach for the Wildcats during the 2013-14 season and as a part-time assistant in the fall of 2014. He is a Level 1 certified coach through USA Track & Field and is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist through the National Strength and Conditioning Association. Pease earned his bachelor of science in exercise science from Lake Superior State in 2012. He was a member of the cross country and track & field teams and was a three-time most valuable runner for the cross country squad. Pease also served as a student-assistant coach at Lake Superior State for one semester. Pease earned his masters of science in exercise science at Northern Michigan.

Sperl worked with the track & field team at Midway College (Ky.). She spent one year as an assistant coach and the other as the head coach. A native of Boyd, Wis., Sperl graduated from Cornell College (Iowa) in 2009 with a B.S. in kinesiology and secondary education. During her time as a Ram, she twice earned all-conference accolades in the triple jump and and was named to the Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference All-Academic Team. She also made Cornell College's 2000-2010 all-decade team in track and field. Upon her graduation, Sperl accepted a job as an assistant coach at her alma mater, working primarily with athletes in the horizontal jumps and sprints event groups. Sperl has a USA Track & Field level I certification and a level II certification in the jump event groups.