Wesleyan University Men's Wrestling

Drew Black serves as Head Wrestling Coach and  associate professor of physical education. Drew also serves as head strength and conditioning coach, as well as fitness center coordinator at the university. He is certified through both the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA) and USA Weightlifting as a Level I club coach. Coach Black is the winningest wrestling coach in Wesleyan history with 241 wins in 26 seasons on the mat. The 2024-25 season proved to be another successful season with a team dual record of 9-3 and #23 national team ranking. CJ Shea’25 became an All-American placing 7th, while also wining the Region’s Most Outstanding Wrestler Award. The team had eight region placers, recorded a Top 5 team finish at Regionals, and had two national qualifiers, nine Scholar All-Americans, and a combined team GPA of 3.726 which earned the team a 7th place national finish as Scholar All-American Wrestling Team. The Cardinals had a strong 2023-24 season, finishing 8-4 in duals where they defeated the #16, #24, and #26 ranked teams in the country. Freshman Hayden Myers ’27 received the NEWA Conference Rookie of the Year honor for his stellar performance throughout the season. The team finished with three All-Northeast placers, four Scholar All-Americans, and a 10th place finish in the country for Scholar All-American Wrestling Team with a 3.665 Team GPA. The Cardinals added another All-American to the program in Marco Gaita ’23 in 2019-20. Gaita led the Cardinals with a 32-4 overall record and 13-1 team duals record while defeating three returning All-Americans during the regular season, winning a Northeast Regional Title at 174, and earning a First Team All-American selection as the seventh seed at the 2020 NCAA Championships in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. The Cardinals also had four All-Northeast placers, three Scholar All-Americans, and finished eighth in the country in Team GPA with a mark of 3.581 to earn a Scholar All-American Wrestling Team award. Coach Black was also inducted into the NEWA Wrestling Hall of Fame in January of 2020 at the conference duals for his teams’ successes these past 22 seasons. The 2017-18 season proved to be another historic and memorable one in Wesleyan wrestling history. Wesleyan finished 18th in the country at the NCAA Championships led by two All-Americans in third-place finisher Isaiah Bellamy ’18 at 285 and eighth-place finisher Devon Carrillo ’17, G’19 at 197. In addition, Isaiah Bellamy finished as the No. 1 pinner in the country receiving the NCAA “Most Falls” award at the championships with 24 pins of his 38-3 record. Teammate Devon Carrillo finished third in the country in pins with 21 of his 37-5 overall record. This is Wesleyan’s second-ever pins leader in the country as Nick Scotto ‘13 achieved this in 2013. Isaiah Bellamy finished fifth in the NCAA for the “Most Dominant Wrestler Award” as well. The team also placed third at the NCAA Northeast Regional Championships with six regional placers, three NCAA qualifiers, six Scholar All-Americans, and another winning dual season at 12-7 defeating numerous top 20 teams. The 2011-12 and 2012-13 seasons were also two of the most memorable in Wesleyan wrestling history as the Cardinals hosted and won the 2012 New England Wrestling Association (NEWA) Championship, which was Wesleyan's second team championship with the first one attained in 1984. It was also the second time in school history that Wesleyan sent four individuals to the NCAA Championships with Jefferson Ajayi '13 coming home as an All-American, placing seventh at 184 lbs. The team won the NEWA Championship with eight conference placers including five finalists and three champions. In 2012-13, the Cardinals set historic marks by placing sixth at the NCAA Division III National Duals, defeating two top-10 teams in No. 7 Olivet and No. 9 Ithaca. Wesleyan became only the second New England team in the history of the event to place at the National Duals. The national dual victories catapulted Wesleyan to a historic ranking of 10th in the nation for Division III Wrestling. The team finished 11th in the nation for the regular dual season. The program finished 15-7 for the third most wins in Wesleyan history with all seven losses coming at the hands of top-10 teams in the nation. Drew also coached seven wrestlers to 100+ win careers, most recently, Marco Gaita '23 who finished his career as a three-time NCAA Qualifier, 2020 All-American, and a career record of 103-27. Isaiah Bellamy '18, who finished at 105-27, is arguably the best wrestler to graduate at Wesleyan with his highest finish at the NCAA Championships (3rd), his NCAA Falls Award, and his 105 wins. Three other 100+ winners graduated in 2013 -- Howard Tobochnik ‘13 at 149 lb. (119-45); Jefferson Ajayi ‘13 at 184 lb. (106-31); and Kyle Roosa ‘13 at 174 lb. (108-38). The other two 100-win competitors came in 2010 with Dan Bloom at 111-32 and Greg Hurd at 103-29. Howard Tobochnik ’13 is the winningest wrestler in Wesleyan history at 119 wins. In addition, Drew also coached Nick Scotto ’13 at 141 lbs., who led the nation with the most pins in all NCAA Divisions (I, II, and III) in 2012-13 with 21 pins. Scotto had 21 pins out of his 33 wins. During his tenure at Wesleyan, Drew received the NEWA Coach of the Year in 2012 and 2010. In addition, Drew led the team to its winningest finishes in school history with a 17-2 mark in 2001-02, the most wins in a season at the college, and a 16-3-1 record in 2010-11, the second-highest number of victories ever in a season. Included in 2010-11 was a school-record 11-match win streak. No previous squad had captured more than eight in a row. The Cardinals were in the national rankings for four consecutive seasons (2009-13), finishing 11th, 29th, 29th, and 26th for the regular dual season, respectively. In addition, with the 16 dual victories in the 2010-11 season, Drew became the winningest wrestling coach in Wesleyan history and now has 241 career victories 26 seasons on the mat. The Cardinals finished third in the NEWA Championships with seven conference place winners in both 2010 and 2011 before vaulting to the top spot in 2012..  Wesleyan has been represented in the NCAA Division III Tournament 14 of the last 16 years, most recently sending CJ Shea’25 and Hayden Myers ‘’27 in 2025, Marco Gaita ’23 in 2023, 2022, & 2020 (First Team All-American),  Zach Murillo '19 in 2019 and Isaiah Bellamy ’18, Devon Carrillo '17, G‘19 (three-time NCAA Qualifier) and Dominic Pirraglia ‘18 in 2018. Year in and year out, the Wesleyan wrestling team competes nationally for wrestling and academic recognition. The team has earned team scholar All-America status for 25 consecutive years, most recently finishing 7th in the country with a 3.726 team GPA. The team also has 44 Scholar All-Americans receiving the prestigious award a total of 71 times in Black’s coaching tenure. Before coming to Wesleyan, Drew was the head wrestling coach, fitness center coordinator and strength and conditioning coach at Phoenix College (Ariz.) from 1995-1998. There he directed his squad to a No. 6 National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCCA) ranking and an 11-3 dual-match record in 1997-98. One of his grapplers won a national title, while another finished third. A 1992 graduate of Syracuse University who went on to earn his Master's degree at Kent State University in 1994, Drew took over as head wrestling coach and strength and conditioning coach at Wesleyan in 1998-99. A four-year varsity wrestler for the Orangemen and a team co-captain as a senior, Drew was a two-time runner-up at the N.Y. state collegiate wrestling championships, a seventh-place finisher at the 1991 Midlands Tournament and a fifth-place finisher in the E.I.W.A. Tournament in 1992. Prior to enrolling at Syracuse, Drew was a 1987 state champion at 108 pounds while a senior at Mahwah (N.J.) High School. He also placed third in the state his junior year. Drew is looking to have a nationally recognized, consistently winning program by attracting quality student-athletes from around the country who have a strong commitment to both academics and wrestling. Drew and his wife, Jennifer, reside in Cheshire and have two children, Sean and Leah.

Kim Williams has brought the Wesleyan women’s lacrosse program into national prominence as she enters her 11th year at the helm in 2026. Williams is a two-time IWLCA Berkshire Region Coach/Coaching Staff of the Year recipient (2017, 2025), recorded her 100th career win with the Cardinals in the 2025 season, and has led the Cardinals to seven straight NCAA Tournament appearances heading into 2026. Williams took over a program that was coming off eight consecutive losing seasons and just four conference wins from 2010-15. In her first season, Wesleyan finished 5-9 overall and 2-8 in the NESCAC, the two conference wins were the most in seven years. One year later, Williams led the Cardinals to what was their best season in program history as Wesleyan set team records in overall wins (11) and NESCAC victories (7) as the Cardinals finished 11-6 and 7-3. Additionally, the Cardinals ranked in the Top 20 in the country for the majority of the season, qualified for the NESCAC Tournament for the first time in eight years, and earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in team history. Williams was named the 2017 NESCAC Coach of the Year and the 2017 IWLCA Berkshire Region Coach of the Year for her efforts in turning the program around. The following season, in 2018, Williams guided the Cardinals to their second consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance. Wesleyan defeated No. 12 Messiah in the First Round for its first postseason victory ever, and the next day, the Cardinals earned an 11-6 win over No. 18 St. John Fisher to reach the Sweet 16. Wesleyan concluded the 2018 campaign with a 12-7 mark, as the 12 wins set a new program record by surpassing the win total from the year before. In 2019, Williams’ program improved once again as she led the team to the Final Four of the NCAA Tournament for the first time ever. The Cardinals had arguably the most difficult road to the semifinals, defeating No. 9 Mary Washington (11-6), No. 2 Washington & Lee (13-7), and No. 1 Gettysburg (10-7), before falling short to the eventual national champions, No. 3 Middlebury. The historic campaign saw Wesleyan set another program record in wins (17) and NESCAC victories (7) as the Cardinals finished 17-4 overall and 8-2 in league play. Wesleyan entered the 2020 campaign ranked No. 5 in the IWLCA Division III Preseason Poll and were off to an incredible start, going 4-0 and outscoring its opponents 60-22 before the COVID-19 pandemic abruptly ended the season. Since COVID, the Cardinals have been consistently one of the top programs in the nation, achieving win totals of 14 (2022), 15 (2023), 16 (2024), and 15 (2025) the last four seasons. Those single-season win totals are four of the five winningest campaigns in team history. Wesleyan has advanced to the Third Round (Sweet 16) of the team's last six NCAA Tournament appearances (2018-19, 2022-25) and won the Little Three Championship four straight years (2021-24) and in five of the past 10 (2018, 2021-24). Prior to her tenure at Wesleyan, Williams served two seasons as head coach at Stockton University in New Jersey, three seasons as an assistant coach at Colby College in Waterville, Maine, and four seasons as a stellar competitor at C.W. Post University in Brookville, N.Y. Bringing the Ospreys at Stockton into their first varsity season in 2014, Williams met with immediate success behind a 16-4 victory over Notre Dame (Md.) in the team's varsity opener. Stockton posted a 10-5 record in 2014 and featured the New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) Rookie of the Year. The Ospreys followed up with a 10-6 mark in 2015 while boasting the NJAC Goaltender of the Year.  Williams began her collegiate coaching career with the Mules of Colby from 2011-13, in which the team qualified for the NCAA Tournament each year and amassed a brilliant 43-13 overall record, including a 22-7 mark against NESCAC rivals. The NESCAC is the top Division III women's lacrosse conference in the nation and had eight teams ranked among the top-20 nationally in the final 2015 Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Association (IWLCA) poll, led by NCAA Tournament runner-up Trinity College. No other conference had more than three teams in the top-20. After a tremendous high school playing career at West Morris (N.J.), where she earned Third Team All-State recognition, Williams played four seasons at C.W. Post, helping Post reach the NCAA Division II Tournament each year with one title and three other appearances in the Final Four. She was recognized as an IWLCA All-American three times along with IWLCA Division II Defender of the Year accolades as a sophomore and Womenslacrosse.com Division II Midfielder of the Year recognition as a senior. She also earned First Team All-Conference accolades three times. In addition to her on-the-field laurels, Williams was lauded by the IWLCA, the East Coast Conference, and the College Sports Information Directors Association (CoSIDA) with academic honors during her college playing days. She also earned a Woman of Achievement Award and Distinguished Graduating Student Leadership Award from C.W. Post before graduating magna cum laude in 2010 with a degree in childhood education.

Shona Kerr enters her 21s season as head coach of both men's and women's squash at Wesleyan in 2025-26. Kerr is the all-time winningest coach in Wesleyan squash history, for both the men's and women's teams, and was named the NESCAC Men’s Squash Coach of the Year twice, in 2011 and 2014. The women's program heads into the 2025-26 season coming off back-to-back Walker Cup (C Division) CSA Team Championships. Prior to 2024, the Cardinals had never won the Walker Cup in 15 prior appearances, and the team has since gone on a pair of title-winning runs. Wesleyan won a pair of matches by a 5-4 scoreline in 2024, including a 5-4 win over Franklin & Marshall in the title match, while the Cardinals rolled in 2025 with 9-0, 8-1, and 8-1 wins on their way to a second straight title.  In 20 seasons at the helm of the men’s program, Kerr has guided Wesleyan to a 192-217 (.469) record. The Cardinals posted seven consecutive winning seasons from 2010 to 2017 and recorded back-to-back 15-win campaigns in 2012-13 and 2013-14. The 15 wins are a program record, while the 2016-17 campaign saw the Cardinals win the Conroy Cup (D Division) at the College Squash Association (CSA) National Team Championships. In 20 seasons guiding the women's program, Kerr has led the team to a 211-230 (.478) mark. From 2007 to 2014, the Cardinals reached double digit win totals each season, highlighted by a 16-9 campaign in 2012-13. The 16 wins are third-most in the 51-year history of Wesleyan women's squash. Kerr also coached the most decorated squash player in Cardinals' history, Laila Samy '18. Samy, a four-time All-American, concluded her career with an 80-1 regular season record. She was also named the NESCAC Women's Squash Player of the Year twice, the 2015 NESCAC Rookie of the Year, and was she named the Betty Richey Award winner by the College Squash Association, which "is given annually to the women's squash player who best exemplifies the ideals of squash in her love of and devotion to the game, her strong sense of fairness, and her excellent of play and leadership." Prior to her arrival at Wesleyan in 2005-06, Kerr was the head squash coach at Wellesley College where she spent four seasons and compiled a 44-40 (.524) overall record. Her 2002-03 squad posted 15 victories, which was the most at the College since 1984. Kerr came to Wellesley from the University of Wales Institute Cardiff (UWIC), where she coached for one year. Prior to UWIC, she coached the Cardiff University Squash club, where she tutored players of all ages and abilities from 1996-98. After graduating, she spent one year as the Athletic Union President, running the 60 sports that the University offered. In addition, she served as an assistant coach for the Sussex Under-19 girls' squad. As a player, Kerr represented England at the U19 and U16 levels and was a national squad member throughout her junior years, ranking as high as No. 4 in England. In Kerr's graduate year at UWIC, she led the squash team to a British University Squash Championship. In the United States, Kerr was a national squash age-group champion for under-35 and at the 5.0 skill level in both 2004 and 2005, and also played for the Boston Ladies "A" Team which won the Howe Cup. In addition to her playing and coaching experience, Kerr holds a Level III advanced coaching certification from the England Squash Association. In the summer of 2003, she traveled to Cairo, Egypt as a presenter at the World Squash Federation Development and Coaching Conference. Kerr has also been active in several camps as a coach including Squashbusters summer camp for which she served as director. She served a two-year term as vice-president of the CSA from 2005-07, of which she has been a member since 2001, and completed a three-year term as CSA president in 2011. Kerr was on the CSA Executive Committee through 2014. She also played an integral role in the creation of the CSA website. Kerr earned a bachelor’s degree in music from Cardiff University in 1998 and received her Master of Arts in Liberal Studies from Wesleyan in 2008, receiving a handshake from two-term President of the United States Barack Obama at graduation. In October 2006, Kerr acted as local coordinator for the College Squash Association's Coaches Conference held at Wesleyan. She also organizes activities around Wesleyan's Rosenbaum Squash Center to foster greater interest in the sport in the area. In her spare time, Kerr still enjoys competing and will play in squash tournaments if and when they can fit outside the college schedule. She is also an avid "Racketlon" competitor. A cousin of triathlon, Racketlon combines the four racket sports of table-tennis, badminton, squash, and tennis. In 2018, Kerr represented the United States of America in the Racketlon World Championship and has been ranked as high as No. 11 in the world. She also teaches the only college-credit Racketlon class in the world.

Kate Mullen enters her 34th year at the helm of the women’s basketball program in 2025-26, while also serving as an adjunct professor of physical education and senior woman administrator at Wesleyan. Mullen guided the team to nine consecutive winning seasons from 2000-2009 with a 153-69 (.689) record during that span. The Cardinals have appeared in 16 of the last 23 NESCAC Tournaments and made two trips to the NCAA Tournament during that stretch. In the spring of 2024, Mullen was chosen as one of the 2024 Gold Key Award recipients, one of the most-prestigious awards in Connecticut sports, as announced by the Connecticut Sports Media Alliance. She coached at Westfield State (1981-85) and Elms College (1985-92) before taking over the program at Wesleyan in 1992. Mullen has amassed 487 victories (375 at Wesleyan) as a college head coach, earning NESCAC Coach of the Year honors in 2002-03. The Cardinals advanced to back-to-back NCAA Tournaments in 2004 and 2005, reaching the Sweet 16 in 2005.  In 2017-18, Mullen’s squad recorded a 17-8 overall record and a 5-5 mark in the NESCAC. The Cardinals earned the No. 5 seed in the NESCAC Championships and defeated No. 4 Middlebury on the road, 63-62, to advance to the semifinals. Maddie Bledsoe ’18 was named a Second Team All-NESCAC recipient after a breakout senior campaign. Mullen was voted the NESCAC Coach of the Year by her peers during the 2002-03 season, in which the Cardinals posted a 21-4 record - a team-best winning percentage (.840) - en route to the No. 2 seed in the NESCAC Tournament. Two years later, in 2004-05, Mullen led Wesleyan to a 22-5 record - the winningest team in program history - while securing an NCAA bid and advancing to the Sweet 16. The Cardinals returned to the national postseason tournament the following year and finished the 2005-06 campaign with an 18-8 overall mark. Mullen was the head coach at Elms for seven seasons prior to her arrival at Wesleyan, while also serving as associate director of athletics. Prior to her time with the Blazers, she was the head coach at Westfield State from 1981-85, while teaching in the Enfield, Conn., school system. In April 2011, Mullen was inducted into the Connecticut Women's Basketball Hall of Fame as one of seven inductees and was the only individual inducted as a college coach. Mullen is a veteran of numerous summer basketball camps as a coach and lecturer. She is co-owner and director of the Fundamental Basketball Camp held at Wesleyan University. A graduate of Central Connecticut State University, where she was an outstanding three-sport athlete (field hockey, basketball, softball), Mullen was inducted into her alma mater's Athletics Hall of Fame in April 2010. She earned her master's degree in physical education from Springfield College. As an associate director of athletics at Wesleyan, Mullen also teaches physical education activity classes and was appointed the department's Senior Woman Administrator.

Dia Fortenberry was appointed as the Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Engagements and Initiatives NCAA Intern in the summer of 2022 and was promoted to Assistant Athletic Director for Diversity Equity, Inclusion, and Engagements heading into the 2024-25 season.  In a newly-established position at Wesleyan, Fortenberry is tasked with creating programming and providing resources to enhance the University and athletic department's understanding of diversity, equity and inclusion. She will also hold a major role within Wesleyan's student-athlete driven Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Committee. Fortenberry comes to Wesleyan after having most-recently served as an elementary school teacher for the James Singleton Charter in Louisiana. She was responsible for teaching third and fourth grade classes in english language arts, science and social students with accordance with LEAP cirriculum and state school standards.  While an undergrad at Millsaps College, Fortenberry was a panelist on ethnic diversity in sport for the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) in 2020. She was selected as one of three students to speak to athletic directors across the nation about her personal experiences and provide direction on proper DEI practices.  She founded the Black Athlete Empowerment (BAE) and served as President during her senior year at Millsaps. The student association was created to unite black athletes, affirming experiences, uplifting and uniting all athletes and providing resources like mental health, self-image and story-telling workshops.  A highly-distinguished student at Millsaps, Fortenberry was named Millsaps' Most Distinguished Woman in 2021 as well as a Hall of Fame inductee for the College that same year. She was invited to the NCAA Women's and Ethnic Minorities DEI orientation in 2022 as well as the NCAA Div. III Student Immersion convention in 2021 and the NCAA DIv. III Leadership Conference in 2018. Fortenberry was also a resident assistant her senior year, spent her junior and senior years as a member of the sociology and anthropology club and was a four-year member of the Muslim Student's Association (MSA). A standout on the basketball court, Fortenberry was a four-time All-Southern Athletic Association (SAA) performer for Millsaps. She earned SAA Defensive Player of the Year honors and was an All-South Region Second Team honoree her senior year in 2020-21. 

Ryan Luth is entering his second year as a full-time assistant coach for Wesleyan University. Prior to arriving at Wesleyan, he coached as an assistant for one year at Washington & Lee University, his alma mater. Ryan graduated from W&L in 2023 with a B.A. in English. During his time there, he was a three-time All American at the 157lb weight class, taking 5th place in 2023, 4th place in 2022, and received first-team All-American honors in 2020. Ryan also claimed gold in the Southeast Regional Championships in 2022 and 2020 and third place in 2023. Ryan won the ODAC Conference Championships in 2023, and the Centennial Conference Championships in 2022 and 2020. Ryan was presented the Washington and Lee Athlete of the Year Awarded 2022. The following year, he was again presented the Athlete of the Year Award and additionally received the Pres Brown Most Valuable Male Senior Athlete award. Ryan graduated with the most program wins in W&L history, with a final record of 101-11. He also received NWCA Scholar All-American honors in 2023, 2022, and 2020. Prior to college, Ryan graduated from Joseph A. Foran High School in 2018, ranked 10th in his graduating class. He set the CT high school record for wins, with a record of 220-19. He was a three-time NHSCA All-American, placing 2nd in 2015, 5th in 2017, and 5th in 2018. Ryan was a two-time New England Champion (2017, 2018), two-time State Open Champion (2017, 2018) and State Open Most Outstanding Wrestler (2017), a two-time Class M Champion (2014, 2018) and Class M Most Outstanding Wrestler (2018), and a four-time Southern Connecticut Conference Champion. Ryan also placed second at the New England Championships in 2016 and fourth in 2015. He placed third at the State Open Championships in 2016 and fourth in 2015. Ryan was voted CT State Wrestler of the Year (2018), New Haven Register Wrestler of the Year (2018), and was a four-time Academic All-American.

Jodi McKenna enters her 18th season at the helm of the Wesleyan women’s ice hockey program in 2025-26. From 2016-19, she guided the Cardinals to the NESCAC Tournament for three straight seasons, while coaching the program's first All-American in 2018-19, goaltender Allegra Grant. In 2021-22, McKenna lead the Cardinals to their best start in program history at 6-0, defeating two NESCAC opponents in the process. That same year she would lead the Cardinals back to the NESCAC Tournament for the 4th time in the past five seasons. Wesleyan earned a national ranking for the first time in team history in 2022-23, achieving the No. 15 ranking in the USCHO poll in December as the Cardinals started the season 8-1-1 and rattled off a nine-game unbeaten streak (8-0-1) to earn the national ranking.  Before coming to Wesleyan, McKenna spent nine years as an assistant coach at St. Lawrence University, and then stepped into her first head-coaching role during the 2007-08 year. In her nine seasons with the Saints, she helped the unit qualify for the NCAA Division I Championships five times, making it to the Frozen Four on each occasion and reaching the title game in 2001. A certified strength and conditioning coach, McKenna developed and monitored the year-round training program at St. Lawrence. During the offseason, she was active as a USA Hockey coach, working with the 18-19 Junior Olympic Festival and the 15-16 Festival in 2004, in addition to the Atlantic, Mid-Atlantic and Rocky Mountain District Player Development programs. McKenna was a coach and evaluator for the USA Hockey Rocky Mountain District Camp in May 2008 and an assistant coach for the U.S. U22 National Team camp in June 2008. She was also an assistant coach at the U.S. National Team holiday camp in December 2008. After coaching the Cardinals for two seasons, McKenna went on a leave of absence from the team during the 2009-10 season, helping Team USA land a silver medal as an assistant coach at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, British Columbia. In April 2009, she was on board as an assistant coach when Team USA won a gold medal during the International Ice Hockey Federation World Women's Championship in Hameenlinna, Finland. She was given a head-coaching assignment in August 2010, directing the National U18 squad during the USA Hockey Women's National Festival in Lake Placid, N.Y., as Team USA took on Canada for a three-game series. McKenna also directed the U18 squad to a gold medal at the World Championships in Stockholm, Sweden, in January 2011. Her most recent activity with the National Team came in August 2014, as she was on the coaching staff for the National Festival in Lake Placid once again, helping to select the members of the U18 and U22 squads for competition against Canada.  A 1998 graduate of Brown University, she was an outstanding defender on the Bears’ women's ice hockey squad. During her four seasons, the final one as a team captain, she saw her Brown team capture an ECAC Regular Season or tournament title three times. In her senior year, Brown played in the first-ever women's ice hockey national championship contest, falling to the University of New Hampshire. After receiving a bachelor’s degree from Brown in 1998, she added a master’s at St. Lawrence in 2000. An adjunct professor at Wesleyan, McKenna acts as a strength and conditioning coach for the athletic department, in addition to her coaching duties. She lives in Middletown, Conn., with her husband, Kevin, and their son, Brayden.

Jonathan DeAndrade enters his 6th year at Wesleyan in 2025-26 and his second since being promoted to Associate Athletic Director for Business Operations in April of 2024. DeAndrade started his tenure at Wesleyan as the Assistant Athletic Director for Business Operations in the Fall of 2019. As part of his role at Wesleyan, DeAndrade provides leadership and strategic direction for all short-term and long-term financial goals of the department. Additionally, he works directly with the Athletic Advancement office to manage & establish the annual fundraising goal as well as team endowments within Athletics. DeAndrade currently serves as the sport supervisor for Men’s Basketball, Men’s & Women’s Track & Field, and Men’s & Women’s Swimming & Diving.    DeAndrade currently represents Wesleyan as the NCAA Division III Coaching Enhancement Grant Selection Committee where he will serve on this committee through 2028. Additionally, he is a member of NACDA, NADIIIAA and CABMA where he was awarded the 2024 CABMA Emerging Leader Award at the NACDA Convention in June of 2024 at Las Vegas.    Prior to Wesleyan, DeAndrade was the Assistant Athletic Director for Business/Internal Operations at American International College (AIC) from 2015-2019. At AIC he was the sport supervisor for Men’s & Women’s Lacrosse, Men’s & Women’s Cross Country/Track & Field, Men’s & Women’s Golf and Wrestling. During his tenure at AIC he oversaw all NCAA reporting, auditing and budget controls for 25 varsity sports. He also was the Co-Advisor for SAAC from 2017-2019, where he represented AIC at the 2017 Division II SAAC Super Region Convention in Washington DC. Additionally, he managed the contract negotiations with the MassMutual Center in downtown Springfield, MA to make the venue the new home for their Division I Men’s Ice Hockey program and create an immediate recruiting impact for the program. In his last year at AIC, the Men’s Ice Hockey program won the 2018-2019 Atlantic Hockey Championship for the 1st time in program history and then beat the #1 ranked St. Cloud State in the 1st Round of the 2019 NCAA Men’s Ice Hockey Tournament.    DeAndrade graduated with a Bachelors of Science in Sport Management from the University of Massachusetts Amherst in 2013. He then earned his Master of Business Administration (MBA) from Springfield College in 2015.  

With three decades in collegiate athletics, spanning Division I and III roles at Lafayette, Colgate, and Williams, Karen, alongside husband Mike Whalen, joined Wesleyan in 2010 as Associate Director of Alumni and Parent Relations in University Relations. In that capacity, she elevated communications and financial operations, strengthening Wesleyan’s connection with its alumni and family community.   In 2015, Karen was appointed the University’s first Director of Athletic Fundraising and has since led the department’s entire philanthropic strategy in supplementing team budgets in support of staffing, facilities, and the overall student-athlete experience across all 30 varsity programs. In 2017, she launched Wesleyan Athletics Giving Day (WAGD) and has driven the campaign to historic heights—exceeding $1 million in 2024, marking the first time that milestone was achieved.   Under Karen’s leadership, the Athletics fundraising team has expanded—from a one-person shop to adding an Assistant Director to now supervising a full-time Development Officer—building a strong structure to meet departmental priorities. She plays a pivotal role in bridging Athletics and the Advancement Office, ensuring donor investments are aligned with Wesleyan’s competitive rise and associated fiscal needs.   While celebrating these milestones, Karen remains focused on long-term financial resilience—working to diversify revenue, grow endowment support, and ensure sustained fiscal sustainability for Cardinal Athletics.   A Temple University graduate with credentials in athletic training and administration, she brings an athlete-first perspective and disciplined operational insight to her donor-centric work. Karen’s strategic leadership in engagement, philanthropy, and athletics administration has been fundamental to Wesleyan’s sustained competitive athletic excellence during the Mike Whalen era.