Bowling Green State University Athletics
BGSU Announces Changes to Gymnastics Coaching Staff
August 31, 2007 | Gymnastics
Aug. 31, 2007
BOWLING GREEN, Ohio - Bowling Green State University has announced several changes within the gymnastics program. Falcon head coach Dan Connelly has announced his retirement, effective November 1, 2007, while Kerrie Beach has been elevated from assistant coach to associate head coach. Additionally, Beach will become the head coach of the program when Connelly's retirement takes effect. Finally, Shannon Welker has been named assistant coach.
Connelly, a three-time Mid-American Conference Coach of the Year, has coached the Falcons for 11 seasons, and guided the 2002 squad to the MAC regular-season title.
"We appreciate the efforts of Dan during the past 11 years and wish him nothing but the best," said BGSU Assistant Vice President/Director of Athletics Greg Christopher. "His gymnasts always have competed at a high level and their success has carried over to the classroom as well.
"We believe that Kerrie is the right person to lead the program. She is a natural leader who will continue to attract the best and brightest student athletes to BGSU."
Connelly, who came to BGSU in 1996, earned the MAC's Coach-of-the-Year honor in 1997, 1999 and 2002. He has seen many of the gymnasts set school records during his tenure while the record for team score has also steadily risen during that time. One of Connelly's recruits, Marny Oestreng, came to BGSU and made an instant impact, winning the NCAA title in the floor exercise in 1999. She remains the only female at BGSU to win a national championship in any sport, and is also the only MAC gymnast in history to capture a national title.
Under Connelly's direction, Oestreng also won nine individual MAC titles from 1999-2002 and Jackie Haft captured the league championship in the vault in 1998.
"I am certainly going to miss the day-to-day interaction with the student-athletes," said Connelly. "I have been so fortunate to have the honor of working with so many outstanding young women during my tenure at BGSU. They have made this a wonderful experience for me."
Under Connelly's guidance, Oestreng was named both MAC Freshman of the Year and MAC Gymnast of the Year in 1999. She also was honored as MAC Senior Gymnast of the Year in her final season, while Melissa Popovich won that same honor in 2004. Connelly has also seen his team cited 57 times for scholastic excellence by the National Association of Collegiate Gymnastics Coaches.
Connelly, a Simi Valley, Calif. native, came to BGSU after serving as an assistant women's coach at Stanford University. He helped the Cardinal to their best season in school history earning a spot in the NCAA Championships for the first time in five years, only the second time in school history, finishing ninth. At Stanford, Connelly assisted in the development of Amy Murakami, a member of the 1995 World University Games team and an eighth-place finisher in the NCAA all-around in 1996.
Prior to accepting the position at Stanford, Connelly coached national level male and female gymnasts at LeClub Gymnastics in Northridge, Calif. Between 1978 and 1989 he was the owner, director, and head coach for both boys and girls at the California Sun Gymnastics Club. During his tenure there, he trained 1976 Olympic team member Tom Beach, 1984 Olympic gold medalist Mitch Gaylord, and 1988 U.S. Olympic Trials champion Charles Lakes.
Connelly has also served as a consultant to the U.S. Junior National Team (1981-91), as the head men's gymnastics coach at Cal State Northridge (1973-78) while serving as an assistant with the women's program, as head men's gymnastics coach at Los Angeles City College (1973), and as assistant men's gymnastics coach at UCLA (1971-72). While at Northridge, he coached 25 Division II All-Americans, one national champion, and led the Matadors to a runner-up NCAA finish in both 1977 and 1978.
Connelly, a 1970 USC graduate, and his wife, Sharon, reside in Rudolph. They have three grown children, Darrin, Lisa and Dan III.
Beach enters her fifth season with the Falcon program in 2007-08. She came to BGSU in August of 2003 after serving as head gymnastics coach at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh since 2000. She was named WIAC Conference Coach of the Year in 2003.
"I am excited about this opportunity, and anxious to build upon what Coach Connelly was able to do with the program the last 11 years," said Beach. "BGSU is a special place. We have an outstanding group of student-athletes to work with, and I look forward to the challenge of putting my signature on this program."
During her tenure at UW-Oshkosh, Beach also served as admission counselor for the university as well as recruiting incoming student-athletes, budgeting for events and fundraising. Prior to heading to Oshkosh, Beach served as assistant gymnastics coach at her alma mater, Ursinus College, from October 1999 through March of 2000.
The Wilton, Conn., native was a gymnast for the UC program from 1996-99 and was elected team captain in both her junior and senior seasons. Beach earned a degree in exercise and sport science from the school in May of 1999.
Beach and her husband, Kurt, reside in Perrysburg with their daughter, Mikayla.
"Kerrie has demonstrated wonderful leadership abilities over the past four years with our gymnastics program," said BGSU Associate A.D./Senior Woman Administrator Janna Blais. "I am confident her ability to relate to our young women, her pure knowledge of the sport of gymnastics and her recruiting philosophy that brings the best and brightest to our program will allow her to continue to grow a successful program here at BGSU."
Welker, 32, has spent the past nine years as the women's head coach/program director at the St. Louis Gymnastic Centre in St. Louis, Mo. Since February of 2004, he also has worked as a sales and marketing associate with Gateway Sports Source, Inc., in St. Louis. Welker was an adjunct faculty member at Webster University from 2001 to 2004.
Welker, a graduate of the University of Illinois at Chicago, was a four-year standout on the men's gymnastics team. He was a three-year team captain, was an NCAA All-American in 1996, and was the school's `Athlete of the Year' in 1997.
Welker also spent a year (1997-98) as an assistant men's gymnastics coach for his alma mater. In 2005, he was inducted into UIC's Athletics Hall of Fame.
Welker earned his undergraduate degree from UIC in 1998, with a Bachelor of Science degree in kinesiology. He has completed coursework toward a master's degree in sport management at Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville.
"I am thrilled to have this opportunity, and I look forward to meeting and working with everyone at BGSU," said Welker. "I can honestly say that I felt right at home when I came to BGSU on my interview. The administrators, coaches and student-athletes I met were all very professional and sincere. I think we can all make a great team, and I look forward to getting started."
Welker and his wife, Molly, have a two-year-old son, Ian.
TRANSACTIONS: Announced the retirement of Dan Connelly, head gymnastics coach, effective November. Promoted Kerrie Beach, assistant gymnastics coach, to associate head coach, and announced the promotion of Beach to head coach, effective November. Named Shannon Welker assistant gymnastics coach.
