Aug. 23, 2010
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Head women's golf coach Denise St. Pierre recently announced the hiring of assistant coach Fred Jefferson. Jefferson comes to Penn State after a 25-year run as the head coach of the Wright State men's golf team. His time at Wright State ended after the 2008-09 season with a long list of coaching accolades.
During his time, Jefferson led the Wright State Raiders to five NCAA appearances and six conference titles. He was named coach of the year four times.
His time with Wright State started before the Raiders went to Division I when, in 1987, the team qualified for the Division II Nationals and finished in 11th place.
The Raider's golf program continued to rise after Wright State made the leap to Division I. In 1989 Jefferson helped current PGA tour member Frank Lickliter become the first individual to make an appearance for the Raiders in a NCAA Division I tournament. The following year, Jefferson led the Raiders, as a team, to their first Division I NCAA tournament appearance.
Wright State made three more appearances at NCAA regional tournaments with Jefferson as coach--2000 in Fresno, California; 2003 in Manhattan, Kansas; and 2004 in Sunriver, Oregon. The Raiders won six conference championships under Jefferson, beginning with the Mid-Continent Conference in 1993 before moving to the Horizon League (formerly the Midwestern Collegiate Conference) and winning the title five times in 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003 and 2004.
Coach Jefferson was named the WSU Coach of the Year four times (1987, 1988, 1997 and 2003). He also coached five players who have made PGA Tour appearances: Sam Arnold, Jimmy Henderson, Frank Lickliter, Matt Sharkey and Heath Wassen.
Jefferson graduated from Wright State University in 1984 where he earned his B.S. in Liberal Arts and graduated Cum Laude. In his spare time, Jefferson is a self-taught amateur golfer.
The Penn State women's golf team opens its 2010-11 season at the Cougar Classic in Charleston, S.C., on Monday, Sep. 13.