Black Bears fill 3 coaching vacancies

Tara Morrison, Scott Friedholm and Chris Anderson are the newest members of the University of Maine athletics coaching staff.

Morrison has joined the women’s basketball staff, Friedholm has joined the baseball program and Anderson is a strength and conditioning coach.

Morrison, 23, replaces Natalie Jutras as the third assistant under head coach Sharon Versyp. She played three years of ball at Adams State in Alamosa, Colo., where she earned a B.A. in exercise physiology and leisure science.

She has worked at numerous camps and most recently was the head coach of the Mile Hi Magic Girls Basketball (AAU) Club from 1999-2001. Morrison also completed a 50-hour coaching program that concentrated on player development, supervision of plyometrics and weight training.

Friedholm joins coach Paul Kostacopoulos and the UMaine baseball staff as the team’s pitching coach. He takes over for Mike McRae, who is now the head coach at Niagara University.

The 26-year-old Friedholm is a 1998 grad of Providence College, where he played for Kostacopoulos. He was a four-year letterman for the Friars, captaining the team as a senior when he received American Baseball Coaches Association All-America honors.

Friedholm, a signee of the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, has been the pitching coach at Bryant College (R.I.) the last two years. He also handled recruiting, fundraising and scheduling duties.

Anderson, a certified strength and conditioning specialist, is a certified personal trainer. He replaces Emil Johnson and will be the assistant to UMaine strength and conditioning coach Jim St. Pierre.

The 28-year-old Anderson most recently was an assistant at Idaho State, where he oversaw conditioning programs for five sports. The Freemont, Neb., native did his undergraduate studies at Stanislaus State (Calif.) and is working on a master’s degree from Idaho State.

He has worked as a personal trainer and as a fitness instructor at two other schools.

Hobbs interim compliance man

UMaine also has hired Scott Hobbs as its interim assistant athletic director for compliance.

Hobbs, 36, replaces Tracey Flynn, who took a similar position at Quinnipiac College (Conn.). He was hired on an interim basis because of the need to fill the position immediately, but UMaine athletics spokesman Joe Roberts said the university will conduct a full search next summer.

Hobbs, a 1987 graduate of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (N.Y.) most recently was a compliance intern at Niagara. The Prairie Village, Kansas, native also has worked for the NFL’s Buffalo Bills and the Columbus Clippers.

Hobbs brings a wealth of academic credentials to the position. He earned B.S. and master’s degrees in industrial and management engineering from RPI, got graduate law degree from Capital University Law School (Ohio) and this year complete work on a master’s of sports administration from Canisius College (N.Y.)