Story by: Jeremy Nation
The sounds of heavy weights clinking together mix with the piped in beat of some lost rock ballad. A steady chorus of huffs fills the air as hard working students feel the burn in the Pierce College Fitness Center.
There was a time when the weight lifting program went unexploited by most teams, but in the four years after Strength and Conditioning Coach Matt Hank joined the staff there have been some big changes.
“Since I came here we added a website. There’s volunteer interns, there’s clinics that we run and host,” said Hank. “None of that stuff was done before I got here.”
Now, more teams are working out, and this can mean big wins. The programs that Hank integrates get teams to take turns, and almost everyone is involved. According to Hank, when he first arrived, football and volleyball were the only teams with weight training in their regiments. One of Hank’s biggest challenges was to establish order in the department. “Now we have all 11, 12, sports lifting,” said Hank. “So it’s more like getting it organized. One team comes, then the next team then the next team.”
Before coming to Pierce College, Hank owned his own company out of Santa Clarita for five years where he worked closely with traveling and high school teams. He also worked as strength coach for CSU Northridge and University of San Diego, and for the Los Angeles Angels.
“He’s doing a great job,” said Erik Zavala, 19, a student at Pierce. “Look at how successful all the teams have been.”
Pierce took home two consecutive Women’s Volleyball State Championship wins in 2011 and 2012.
Already getting started on his third year at Pierce, Zavala ins’t sure what his major will be, but he does think that Hank is helping athletes to “better themselves in every sport.”
To find out more about Pierce College athletic programs visit the site below.
