Robert Shankman - Head Coach

Coach Robert Shankman, in his 17th year at Rhodes, is one of the most successful coaches in the history of the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference. Under his leadership, the Rhodes Cross Country and Track & Field teams have won a combined 23 Conference Championships since 1990. This includes a winning streak of 10 consecutive men's cross country titles, 6 women's cross country titles, 4 men's track titles, and 3 wo men's track championships.

Since 1995, Shankman has coached 14 individual national qualifiers in cross country, with 2 qualifying in 1997, 1998, and 2000; 3 qualifying in 2001; and the entire women's team and one member of the men's team qualifying in 2002.

In track & field, he has coached 24 individual national qualifiers and 9 NCAA All-Americans. Most recently, Shankman coached middle distance standouts Amy Paine and Marie Brandewiede to 5 All-American titles, with both runners advancing to the national championship 1500 meter finals in ’02 and ’03. Paine finished 2 nd in the 1500 at the ’03 national championships. Her time of 4:26.55 ranks as the 3 rd fastest 1500 in NCAA Division III history. Brandewiede, a three time All-American, ran 4:29.65 during the ’04 season, which ranks her as the 11 th fastest 1500 meter runner in Division III history.

In addition, Shankman has received considerable recognition among his colleagues. He has been voted SCAC Coach-of-the-Year by his peers 16 times in cross country and 7 times in track. In 2002, he was honored by the U.S. Track Coaches Association as the NCAA Division III Southeast Region Women’s Coach of the Year for cross country. In 2003, the Coaches Association again selected Shankman as the Women’s Regional Coach of the Year for outdoor track. Currently he serves as the NCAA South/Southeast regional representative for cross country.

Coach Shankman is a graduate of Rhodes College (formerly Southwestern at Memphis), where he competed in the 400 hurdles from 1977-80. He received his Masters of Education degree from the University of Memphis in 1993. Shankman is a member of the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association. He has also served as the NCAA S/SE Regional Meet Director and has achieved USAT&F Level II certification status.

E-mail: shankman@rhodes.edu

Matt Buchholz - Assistant Coach

Matt Buchholz begins his first year as assistant coach of the cross country and track & field programs at Rhodes. A New England transplant, Buchholz graduated from Connecticut College in 2003, with a degree in history. He is currently completing his M.S. in exercise physiology from Springfield College in Massachusetts.

At Connecticut College, Buchholz helped the men’s cross country team earn its first NCAA championship berth in program history in ’02, and ran on the school record setting 4x800 and Distance Medley relays.

Buchholz holds USAT&F Level I coaching certification and is a member of the U.S. Cross Country and Track & Field Coaches Association. Buchholz has continued to compete as a post collegian, having recently set personal bests on the track in the 1500m and 5000m events.