Matt and Heidi Manfred named co-head coaches of Penn State Altoona cross country programs
2.6.07

Matt and Heidi Manfred of Altoona were named co-head coaches of the Penn State Altoona men's and women's cross country teams last week.  The husband and wife tandem replaced former Lion coach Doug Hoover whom they served under as assistant coaches.  Matt has been with the cross country program since 2004 while Heidi came aboard the following season when the Altoona women captured their first ever Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference Championship.     

"We are delighted to announce the promotion of Matt and Heidi Manfred to co-head coaches of our men's and women's cross country programs," said Penn State Altoona athletic director Fredina Ingold.  "The Manfreds have a wide ranging background that includes competing and coaching at the collegiate level.  In their time as assistants at Penn State Altoona, both displayed the leadership and commitment necessary to be successful."

A 1999 graduate of Hampton High School in Pittsburgh, Matt continued his education at Geneva College, graduating with a BA in history/secondary education in 2003.  Manfred brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to Penn State Altoona both as a coach and as an athlete.  Before serving as head cross country coach and head track and field coach at Blackhawk High School (Beaver Falls, PA), he competed all four years of high school and college.  His athletic resume at Geneva College included a foray into the national level with his competition in the NAIA marathon his senior year. Matt continues to train and race in central Pennsylvania. 

 "We are both very excited to join the team of head coaches at Penn State Altoona and work with a group of exceptional student-athletes," noted Matt.  "It's a unique situation in that Heidi and I are both very dedicated to developing the team and the individual person, and we can work out this vision together.  Doug Hoover has made this program very competitive in the conference and at other invitationals. Heidi and I want to continue building on that success."

Before coaching, Heidi spent four years as a student athlete at Geneva College and Mount Aloysius College.  In the fall of 2002, she became the first and only NCCAA (National Christian College Athletic Association) Cross Country All-American at Geneva by placing thirteenth at the national meet.  In spring of 2003, she broke the school record on the track in the Women's 10,000 meters and became the first Geneva woman to qualify for the NAIA National Track & Field meet.  In the fall of 2003 as she was beginning graduate studies at Mount Aloysius College, she used her final season of eligibility to compete for the Mounties in the same conference as Penn State Altoona and won the inaugural Lion Invitational that fall.  Manfred graduated from Mount Aloysius with a Masters in Health and Human Service Administration in 2005.

 "It was a very proud moment to be sitting next to my husband and to be told that we both would be named head coaches of the cross country program," stated Heidi.  "There is no one else I would rather share this opportunity with than Matt.  Also, as a woman, I am very pleased to be appointed to this leadership position within the department.  I'm confident in my ability to be a role model and mentor for our female student-athletes at Penn State Altoona."

Heidi is employed by Penn State, working as a Research Technologist for the Penn State University Family Life Project.  Matt serves as an Administrative assistant at St. Theresa's Catholic Church in Altoona.  The two have a young daughter, Edith.