In his 18th season as the head men's and women's cross country and track & field coach, Pete Corfeld continues to make his mark as one of the most successful coaches the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee has ever seen. "Pete has done a tremendous job of building his program so that it is at the top of the Horizon League year in and year out," UWM AD Bud Haidet said. "He's our longest-tenured coach and we are fortunate to keep him and see his program continue to succeed." He added the 25th, 26th and 27th league titles to the Panther trophy case last year as the men swept the indoor and outdoor championships for the second-straight season. The women won their indoor meet for the first time since 2003 after second-place finishes the two years prior. Corfeld was also honored with three coach of the year awards, giving him 26 such honors since coming to UWM. The Panthers have established themselves as the premier track and field program in the Horizon League under Corfeld. The Milwaukee men have won eight indoor titles in the last nine years, including five straight from 1997-2001. Outdoors, the Panthers claimed league titles from 1998-2002 before winning each of the last three. Not to be outdone, the women annually finish among the league leaders come championship time. Thay have won titles both indoors and outdoors in 2001 and 2003. They also laid claim to an indoor championship in 2000 and again last season after winning outdoors in 1998 and 2002. UWM's men have also posted a pair of second-place finishes to accompany 16 indoor and outdoor titles. With the exception of the 2003 seasons, Milwaukee has not finished below second since 1995. The Panther women, meanwhile, have finished first or second in all eight seasons of the Horizon League's indoor meet and have finished below second at either meet just once (third at 2002 outdoor) since 1996. In sweeping the 2005 men's championships, the Panthers set league records at both meets for points and margin of victory. Indoors, UWM finished with 197 points, 109 better than second place (88). It then did itself one better at the outdoor meet, scoring 231 points, 120 points over the runner up (111). Meanwhile, the women posted second-place finishes at both meets. The Panther women have finished first or second in all eight seasons of the Horizon League's indoor meet and have finished below second at either meet just once (third at 2002 outdoor) since 1996. In 2001, UWM became the first school in league history to win all four league crowns. Corfeld works primarily with the middle distance and distance groups in addition to the cross country squads. UWM has had one of the nation's top 4x800m relays. In 2005, the quartet was ranked 10th in the nation with its school-record time of 7:26.17. Individually, Angie Huebner was named the 2005 Horizon League Track Newcomer of the Year at the outdoor league meet and won the 2006 league indoor 5000m title. Jeremy Majors has qualified for the NCAA Regionals in the 800m in each of the last two years. Corfeld's cross country program has produced 44 all-league performers since the Panthers entered a conference for the 1992 season. He has also coached two individual champions and two Newcomer of the Year honorees. In the fall, the Milwaukee women had three runners earn all-league honors for the first time in school history. Despite not winning a cross country championship since leaving the Mid-Continent Conference, UWM has continually performed in the upper half of the league standings. After winning a women's crown in 1992 and both the men's and women's championships in 1993, Milwaukee has boasted a pair of men's league individual champions while rarely finishing below fourth. Corfeld, the longest tenured coach currently at UWM, has built well-respected track and field and cross country teams that consistently compete with other schools across the league, region and country. Under his direction, four different student-athletes have qualified for the NCAA Championships, with Tim Kenney, Cory Peterson and Angie Molter all competing at the NCAA Track and Field Championships, while Chad Zehms was a qualifier in the NCAA Cross Country Championships in 1995. Peterson would later make two more appearances in the NCAA Championships, along with qualifying for the U.S. Olympic Trials in the 800m run in 1996 and placing third in the 800m at the USATF Indoor Championships. Molter was the first UWM female to compete in the NCAA Championships, running the 10,000m in 1996. Also, last year Josh Nygren earned the Horizon League's prestigious Coleman Medal of Honor. He is the program's third recipient of the honor after Paul McGinley in 2000 and Jonathon Manke in 2002. Corfeld's coaching career began in 1983, when he was the head track and field coach at Milwaukee Area Technical College. At MATC, he was named Region XIII and conference coach of the year three times. Corfeld graduated from UWM in 1986 with a bachelor's degree in science. He was named assistant coach for sprints, hurdles and relays at the University of Northern Colorado, where he also worked on a master's degree. In 1989, after completing his degree, he was named the head cross country and track and field coach at UWM. Since taking over the Panther track program, Corfeld has helped to elevate UWM to a regional and national program. Corfeld and his wife, Linda, reside in Whitefish Bay, Wis. |
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