CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa - Coe College announces the hirings of Mat Littleton as head coach of the men's cross country and track and field programs and Krista Littleton as head coach of the women's cross country and track and field programs. They replace Matthew Barreau who resigned to take a head cross country coaching position at Lewis and Clark College in his home state of Oregon.
 
Mat Littleton comes from Virginia Wesleyan University where he started the men's and women's indoor and outdoor track and field programs from scratch and inherited a fledgling cross country program. Despite not having a track facility for most of his 15-year tenure with the Marlins, Littleton developed programs that competed yearly in the upper echelon in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC). He stayed as head coach of the men's programs throughout his time at VWU before Krista, his wife, took over as head coach of the women's programs in 2011. His cross country runners combined for 23 All-ODAC performances and five appearances at nationals. His track and field athletes achieved 82 All-ODAC nods which includes 28 conference championships and seven national championship appearances. A 2001 graduate of North Central College, Littleton was named 2008 ODAC Men's Cross Country Coach of the Year.
 
"I could not be more excited to come to Coe," said Littleton. (Director of Athletics and Recreation) Sonny Travis and Vice President of Facilities and Operations Larry Lee impressed (me and Krista) with their commitment, not only to us as coaches, but to the entire cross country and track and field programs at Coe. We are excited to build on the rich tradition that Coe College has in both cross country and track and field."
 
Krista Littleton will take the reigns of the women's cross country and track and field programs. A 2002 graduate of North Central College, Littleton began her coaching career at Virginia Wesleyan as an assistant men's and women's cross country and track and field coach in 2004. She was promoted to associate head coach of the programs in 2009 and promoted again to head coach in 2011 taking over the women's programs. During her time with the Marlins, Littleton coached 114 all-conference performances, 15 conference champions, eight national championship qualifying performances and four all-american honors. Two of her athletes received ODAC Athlete of the Year honors and her track and field squads ranked in the top ten of the region on a regular basis.
 
"I am extremely excited and grateful for the opportunity to coach at Coe College," said Littleton. "I am extremely appreciative of their confidence in me as a head coach and their commitment to women's cross country and track and field by becoming the only school in the American Rivers Conference to have a female head coach in both cross country and track and field. We are looking forward to building a long-term, student-centered and family-oriented program at Coe College."
 
"Our athletic department welcomes Mat and Krista to the Kohawk staff," said Travis. "Mat in men's cross country and track and field and Krista in women's cross country and track field, built programs from scratch to being highly respected and very competitive at Virginia Wesleyan University in their 15-year tenure. We are excited to have two experienced and successful head coaches leading our cross country and track and field programs."