Aug. 18, 2007
BETHLEHEM, Pa. - Following a lengthy and thorough national search, Lehigh University has named Liz Meltzer as the Steven J. '69 and Karen A. Lee Head Rowing Coach. Meltzer, who has served as an assistant coach at Lehigh since the start of the 2005-06 season, replaces Paul Savell who left Lehigh in July to become the Director of Rowing at Drexel University. Her duties include overseeing the entire rowing program, coaching the women's teams and directing the recruitment efforts. "I am honored to be appointed to lead the rowing program at Lehigh University and am excited to build on the successful traditions that Paul Savell instilled during his time as the Head Coach," Meltzer explained.
"I know I am inheriting a stable program that enjoys the support of the Lehigh University Athletic Department and is full of stellar student athletes. I plan to build on our successful spring season by promoting a team culture that is deliberate in our acquisition of boat speed and relentless in our pursuit of excellence in all endeavors, be it on the water or in the classroom."
Also on Friday, Meltzer appointed Jason Moorehead as the program's Head Men's Varsity Coach. Moorehead has been an assistant at Lehigh for the past seven years. "It is my pleasure to appoint Jason Moorehead as Head Coach of the men's team," Meltzer explained. "He has demonstrated his commitment to Lehigh and the well being of the student-athletes in every role he has played during the past seven years. During his time with the Lehigh Crew, Jason has been very successful on the freshman level and I am confident that he will be able to produce fast varsity crews consistently."
She added, "I'm excited to see him capitalize on the varsity heavyweight eights petite final win in addition to the junior varsity heavyweight eights second place finish at the Dad Vail this past spring. I know that graduate assistant David Highhill will be an incredible freshman men's coach and assist Jason quite capably with the varsity crews and recruiting as well."
During her time at Lehigh, Meltzer has been responsible for a number of duties, including the planning, organization and oversight of the rowing program's recruitment effort. Through her efforts, the program secured commitments from 28 rowers this past June, making up the first-ever Lehigh rowing recruiting class. On the water, the Washington, D.C. native led the Lehigh freshmen women's crew to a second place finish at the 2006 Navy Day Regatta, as well as first and second place finishes at the 2006 Frostbite Regatta and a top-ten finish at the 2007 Dad Vail Regatta.
"Of all the candidates with whom I spoke, and there were quite a few, none presented anything close to the vision and organizational plan that was presented by Liz Meltzer," Lehigh Goodman Dean of Athletics Joe Sterrett explained. "Her understanding of Lehigh, her strong belief in what is in place and in what can be developed here and her ability to organize and articulate these thoughts was quite impressive. Our staff and our other head coaches who participated in the interviews of finalists were unanimous in their endorsement of Liz."
"Liz has done a great job during her two years at Lehigh as an assistant and she is highly respected by both the women and the men within the program," Savell said on Thursday. "I knew we were lucky to get Liz when she came to Lehigh and she has been nothing short of outstanding." He added, "She did a great job recruiting this past year and through her tireless work, Lehigh has a very strong freshmen class coming in to go with a strong returning crew. The program will have a lot of success under Liz's leadership."
Prior to coming to Lehigh, Meltzer served as the head coach of the American University rowing program in Washington, D.C. for three years. While at American, Meltzer also coached DeMatha High School's freshmen men, Walter Johnson High School's varsity and novice teams and she served as the associate coach for the intermediate masters of the D.C. Strokes Rowing Club. While under Meltzer's leadership, the American University crew won the 2003 Dad Vail Novice Lightweight 8 Championship race, and had crews take first and second at the Head of the Schuylkill Regatta as well as the Head of the Occoquan.
"Liz is an extremely bright, extremely hard working and dedicated young lady who I have the highest regard for," explained Dr. Robert Karch, the Chair of the Department of Health and Fitness at American University. "She did a fantastic job with our rowing program here at American, and I think Lehigh is very fortunate to have such a fine representative for the athletics department and the university as a whole." He added, "The student-athletes at Lehigh will have a very positive experience under her tutelage and I have no doubt that she will be a success in her new role."
Meltzer earned her bachelors degree from The Johns Hopkins University in 2002 where she served as captain of the crew. She later went onto earn her masters degree from American University in Health Promotion Management in the summer of 2005.
Sterrett added, "This search was a very educational one for me, and as a result of the time invested and the conclusions we have reached, I am quite confident and excited about the current state and the future of our rowing program."
