Miami Presents: Getting to know Miami's Head Coaches

Join Steve Baker, voice of the RedHawks, for a unique opportunity to hear from two Miami head coaches. Tune in for a live interview with Men's Ice Hockey coach Chris Bergeron '93 and Women's Softball coach Kirin Kumar on September 28 at 12 p.m. ET. Participants will have the chance to ask questions of both coaches.

Chris Bergeron is entering his second season as the head hockey coach at Miami after becoming the sixth coach in program history in 2019. Bergeron, a 1993 Miami graduate who played on the school’s first conference championship team and NCAA Tournament qualifier that same year, had been the head coach at former Central Collegiate Hockey Association rival Bowling Green for the past nine seasons. Prior to taking the Bowling Green job, Bergeron played a crucial part in Miami’s rise to prominence. His recruiting chops and influence on the bench helped the RedHawks go 226-139-37 in his 10 seasons as an assistant coach. MU went to the NCAA Tournament six times, advanced to the first two Frozen Fours in school history in 2009 and 2010, appearing in the 2009 National Title Game. During that stretch, MU won two conference titles (2005-06 and 2009-10), set a school record with 33 victories in 2007-08, earned a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament twice (2008 and 2010) and was the top overall seed in the 2010 NCAA Tournament. After earning his Bachelor's degree in education from Miami, Bergeron spent 7 seasons playing professional hockey for various minor league teams.

Kirin Kumar is the newest head coach for the RedHawks having just been hired in August to lead Miami Softball. Kumar spent the past two seasons as an assistant coach at Virginia Tech. Her first season in Blacksburg in 2019 was a highly successful one, helping VT earn an ACC regular-season title and Coastal Division crown. Specifically working with the infielders defensively, Kumar tutored two all-conference players and an ACC Freshman of the Year honoree and three NFCA all-region (Mid-Atlantic) selections. Kumar came to Blacksburg following a two-year stint at NC State, helping with hitting with the head coach and being in charge of the team's defense. She previously served as an assistant at Tulsa from 2014-16. She helped lead the Golden Hurricane to their first American Athletic Conference Tournament title in 2016, defeating a pair of ranked opponents to clinch an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. The Santa Ana, California native played collegiately at Georgia Tech and was a four-year letter winner for the Yellow Jackets. Kumar saw action in 251 games, which was the second most in program history when she graduated.

We are excited to announce this new series of Miami Athletics virtual events, presented monthly by the Miami University Alumni Association and Miami Athletics.

Questions? Contact Emily LeFevers at bostiae@MiamiOH.edu