NORTON, MA- Wheaton College Associate Director of Athletics John Sutyak '00 has announced the hiring of Emily Kiablick as head women's lacrosse coach, effective January 5. Kiablick replaces Mary Jacobs, who resigned after three seasons at the helm of the Lyon program.

Kiablick, who has served as the head women's lacrosse and soccer coach at Roger Williams University since fall 2003, enjoyed success with both Hawk programs, including leading the women's soccer team to its first NCAA Tournament appearance in 2008. Building the lacrosse program from its inception in 2004, she led Roger Williams to an Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Tournament championship in just its third year.

"We are very excited to have Emily join the Wheaton athletics family," said Sutyak. "It is not too often we have the opportunity to hire someone with Emily's head coaching experience and success. We are looking forward to watching her continue that success with our women's lacrosse program."

In addition to guiding the Hawks to an ECAC lacrosse title, Kiablick saw steady improvement during her tenure, as her 2008 team went 14-5 while advancing to The Commonwealth Coast Conference (TCCC) Tournament title game and an ECAC semifinal contest. She was twice named TCCC Coach of the Year. In soccer, Kiablick's teams reached three straight league championship games while compiling a winning percentage over .600. She also served as the athletic department's events coordinator.

"I am excited to be coaching at a college with such a strong reputation," said Kiablick. "This is a program with a lot of potential, and I am looking forward to getting right into our regular season. The leaders of this team have displayed a lot of energy and determination. My first goal is to further an environment that channels this energy into hard work, resulting in better players and a better team every time we step on the field."

Prior to being tabbed a head coach, Kiablick attended graduate school at her alma mater and fellow New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) member Springfield College, earning a master's degree in physical education with a concentration in athletic administration in 2003. As a graduate associate, she assisted the lacrosse program for two seasons, helping lead the Pride to league regular season and tournament titles in 2002. She also served as an assistant women's soccer coach at Wesleyan University in the fall of 2001.

Outside of coaching at the collegiate level, Kiablick founded lacrosse and soccer camps at the Bristol, Rhode Island-based school, which she both directed and coached. While at Roger Williams, she was one of four coaches featured in a Rhode Island Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) series called "Rhode Island's Amazing Women: Successful College Coaches" and one of three interviewed as subject material for an instructional book titled "Winning Lacrosse for Girls."

A 2001 Springfield graduate with a bachelor's degree in psychology, Kiablick was a four-year lacrosse and soccer player with the Pride. She was selected to the Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA) All-New England second team as a junior. Twice named to a NEWMAC All-Conference lacrosse team, Kiablick was also tabbed an ECAC All-Star following her senior season. A two-time lacrosse captain, she was a soccer captain for one year while playing in the New England Women's Intercollegiate Soccer Association (NEWISA) Senior Bowl.

Wheaton is a selective national liberal arts college with 1,550 students drawn from virtually every state and more than 69 countries. The college combines a traditional curriculum in the arts and sciences with an innovative emphasis on real-world experience – internships, jobs and volunteer service – to help students make the connection between theory and practice. Its students gain admission to the nation's most prestigious graduate programs and regularly win competitive academic awards such as the Rhodes, Marshall and Fulbright scholarships.