MEN'S GOLF

Head Coach Tom Koehle

Tom Koehle is entering his fifth season as the head men's and women's golf coach at Penn State Altoona. Along with his coaching duties at Ivyside, Koehle also serves as the Head Golf Professional at Iron Masters Country Club, the new home course of the Lions.

Under Koehle's guidance, the Lions reached the top of the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference in 2006, 2007, and 2008. The Lions have three-peated as AMCC Champions, becoming the only Lion program to qualify for multiple NCAA Division III Tournaments. In total, Koehle's teams have combined to win 12 team tournament championships in five years. He has coached 17 AMCC all-conference selections and two AMCC Individual Tournament champions, along with being named AMCC Coach of the Year in 2006.

In May 2009, the Lions will head to PGA National Golf Club in Port St. Lucie, Florida to compete in the NCAA Division III National Championship. Featured on the roster will be four AMCC All Conference Performers including 2008 AMCC Player of the Year, Jake Biltz and 2008 AMCC Newcomer of the Year, Josh Swires. Brad Behling was named to the second team All Conference along with Steve Moritz who was tagged as AMCC Honorable Mention.

In 2007, the Lions claimed their second AMCC crown led by All Conference Performers, Quintin Dziabo Biltz, Sean Jackson, and MJ Worsham. In 2006, the Lions won their second Eastern College Athletic Conference Southern Region Championship on their previous home course of Sinking Valley Country Club. The 2005 campaign featured a fourth place finish at the AMCC Championships, two second place finishes at Penn State Behrend and La Roche, and a first place victory at the Mount Aloysius Invitational. In 2004, the Lions won the Penn State Altoona Invitational and finished second at the AMCC Championship, falling just one stroke short of repeating as conference champions. Also in 2004, Kevin Lazzaro won his second consecutive AMCC individual title, and the Lions produced two AMCC first team all-conference golfers in Lazzaro and Troy Monahan.

On the women’s side, Koehle has a strong desire to initiate a women’s golf program at Ivyside. Over the past four years, the Lions have boasted the AMCC Women’s Invitational Champions including: Ashley Piper (2007-2008), Jenna Rothermel (2006), and Leslie Pavetto (2005).

The Altoona native is no stranger to NCAA golf or the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference, having participated in both as a player at Penn State Altoona from 1999-2001. Koehle enjoyed success as a player, earning team Most Valuable Player and AMCC All Conference honors during the 2001 seasons. He also won the Mount Aloysius Invitational and took second at the La Roche Invitational in 2001.

Aside from his coaching duties at Ivyside, Koehle served as the assistant golf professional and tournament coordinator at Sinking Valley Country Club until May of 2006 when he accepted the head golf professional position at Huntingdon Country Club in Huntingdon, PA. Koehle currently serves as head professional at Iron Masters Country Club in Roaring Spring, Pennsylvania. Koehle also was the assistant golf pro at Toftrees Golf Club in State College where he specialized in junior, group, and individual instruction.

Along with teaching and coaching, Koehle still finds time to compete in various local pro-am tournaments within the PGA Tri-State Section, United States Open Qualifiers, and Western Pennsylvania and Pennsylvania Golf Association tournaments.

Assistant Coach Rob Murphy

Rob Murphy enters his first season as a men's golf assistant coach at Penn State Altoona.

Murphy has been a PGA professional since 1986, and recently held that position at Scotch Country Club in Hollidaysburg, PA from 2000-2007. He has also coached locally in the Altoona area. As head coach of the Hollidaysburg Area High School boys golf team from 2000-2007, Murphy compiled an impressive 100-9 record over that span, including a PIAA AAAA state championship in 2007.

The 1986 graduate of Westminster currently resides in Hollidaysburg with his wife, Amanda, and their seven children.