Union News

Wingate University Athletics issued the following announcement on Sept. 9.

Wingate University Vice-President and Director of Athletics Steve Poston has announced the hiring of Kat Lind as the school's first-ever Field Hockey head coach. Field Hockey was announced as Wingate's 24th NCAA intercollegiate sport in August, with the inaugural season coming in the fall of 2022.

"I want to thank Athletic Director Steve Poston, Deputy Director of Athletics Michelle Caddigan and the entire search committee for giving me the opportunity to start a brand new NCAA Division II field hockey program in the South Atlantic Conference Carolinas," Lind says. "I feel incredibly honored to be leading the first-ever field hockey team at Wingate in the Fall 2022 season. The moment I stepped on campus, I felt how strong the culture and sense of community is and I know that will be a key contributor in developing a competitive team. There are so many historical moments that will take place in our first season, and I'm so excited that we will experience it, together, as a Bulldog family."

Lind joins Wingate after starting the Coker University Field Hockey program. Coker's first-ever season was in 2018, while just three years later, Lind led the Cobras to a conference tournament championship in the 2021 season. The Cobras went 6-2 this past spring, then knocked off Queens in the SAC title game to capture the championship. In Coker's first-ever season in 2018, Lind guided the Cobras to six wins including a 5-5 record in league play. She had a pair of all-conference players and six student-athletes named to the NCAA Division II Zag/NFHCA National Academic Squad. Lind was named the conference and Coker University Coach of the Year in 2018.

In 2019, Lind brought in the conference Freshman of the Year, as the Cobras piled up 10 wins in their second season as a program, leading into the championship season in the spring of 2021. In that championship season, the Cobras had eight student-athletes named to the National Academic Squad, while also having their first-ever NFHCA National Player of the Week.

"We are extremely pleased to welcome Coach Lind to the Bulldog family," Poston says. "Her successful coaching experience together with her enthusiasm for the sport makes her an excellent choice to launch our Field Hockey program. She is a high-energy coach who we believe will attract outstanding student-athletes to the Wingate campus. She has already hit the ground running recruiting the class of 2022. We all look forward to our first competition next fall."

Prior to her impressive launching of the Coker Field Hockey program, Lind was the head coach at Wells College from 2014 through 2017. In her final two seasons at Wells, Lind guided the team to a regular season title and back-to-back NEAC Tournament championships. She had six first team all-conference honorees and the league's Defensive Player of the Year, while being named the 2016 NEAC Coach of the Year.

Lind's first coaching job came at Elmira College, where she was the Field Hockey assistant coach from 2011 through 2013, while also serving one season as the Women's Lacrosse assistant coach. She then took the assistant coach position at fellow South Atlantic Conference Carolinas program Newberry College in 2013, helping the Wolves start their Field Hockey program.

Lind played Field Hockey for four years at American International College, while also spending a year on the Women's Lacrosse team. She earned her degree from American International, majoring in Business Administration and Sports and Recreation Management. Lind earned her master's degree from Elmira College.

During her time as a coach, Lind has also served on several committees, while also helping out around her community. She is currently the NCAA Coaches Connection Representative for the SAC and is on the SAC NCAA Division II Field Hockey Regional Advisory Committee. Lind is currently the SAC Chairperson and is a Title IX Advisor. She served as the NEAC Field Hockey Chairperson from 2015 through 2017, while also helping with the Wells College game day operations, serving as a game manager and serving as a Freshman Experience Instructor. Lind has run All-American Field Hockey Camps dating back to 2016. She has also organized Awareness Games and served on marathon water stations. Lind was an assistant coach on the USAAI Scotland Tour in 2014.

Wingate's inaugural Field Hockey season will begin next fall. The Bulldogs will be a part of the South Atlantic Conference Carolinas. Wingate will be the ninth member of the conference, joining SAC schools Limestone, Queens, Newberry, Lincoln Memorial and Coker, along with Conference Carolinas schools Belmont Abbey, Converse and Mount Olive.

Original source can be found here.