Ermelinda Spies, Assistant Coach
Pittsburg State Track & Field

    Ermelinda Spies is in her fourth year as a full-time assistant coach in the Pittsburg State University track & field program. She came to Pitt State after spending three seasons as a full-time assistant coach at Virginia Military Institute.
    Spies plays an integral role in all aspects of the track & field program, with an emphasis on fall training, recruiting and evaluation of student-athletes. During indoor and outdoor competition seasons, Spies works closely with athletes competing in the sprints and jumps.
    Spies, a native of Albania, competed collegiately at Western State (Colo.) College where she was a four-time NCAA Division II National Champion in the triple jump and a nine-time All-American in the long jump and triple jump. Additionally, she was named the 1999 NCAA Division II Athlete of the Year.
    Spies earned a bachelor’s degree in history from Western State College in 1999. She earned a master’s degree in exercise science in 2001 from Fort Hays State University, where she served as a graduate assistant in the track & field program for two seasons prior to taking the full-time position at VMI.
    Ermelinda and her husband Robert, the head track & field coach at Fort Scott Community College, reside in Pittsburg. The couple have a son Davian Jacob, who turns two on July 9.