Casie Runksmeier
Casie Runksmeier

Bio

Casie Runksmeier is an Associate Athletics Director and Senior Woman Administrator at Mitchell College. Her role can be described as internal operations and student success. Specifically, she executes all financial logistics of the athletic department: annual budget, purchasing, expense and revenue coding, and managing institutional support funds garnered through athletics.

Runksmeier is currently the compliance coordinator for the department, and therefore manages all the policies and procedures that accompany those standards. Other avenues in relation to internal operations include: managing game day operations, coordinating large athletic special events, and scheduling team travel. She successfully wrote a NCAA Coaching Enhancement Grant in the summer of 2019, and Mitchell was one of only 11 institutions to receive that grant opportunity. Additionally, she is in charge of the hiring, evaluation, and separation of all staff members in the department. On the student success side, Runksmeier works with the student-athlete leaders as the Co-Advisor for SAAC. She also works closely with colleagues across campus to support the academic success and retention of student-athletes. In addition to her work within athletics, she teaches a sport management course every semester; these have included: Sport Finance, Athletic Administration, and Fitness and Wellness.

Beyond the day-to-day operations on-campus, her experience with the NCAA is vast. In the spring of 2019 she was certified as a Game Day the DIII Way Facilitator. In 2016 she volunteered as the NCAA Site Representative for a preliminary-round site for the DIII Women’s Soccer Championships at Williams College. And, in 2011, she worked as a NCAA Student-Athlete Leadership Forum Facilitator.

Previous to Mitchell College Runksmeier was the head softball coach at Daniel Webster College. Within that role she was responsible for all aspects of the program and had additional secondary responsibilities. Because of her secondary responsibilities (i.e. remuneration of officials, game management, SAAC Co-Advisor, RAC member) she was considered part of the senior administrative team within the department. She also took part in numerous initiatives that involved the greater campus, as well as having taught Recreational Sport Management.

Prior to Daniel Webster College she was a professional mentor at New England College and completed her second Master of Science degree, Sport and Recreation Management: Coaching. Her initial graduate degree was garnered at the University of Southern Maine and was a Master of Science in Adult and Higher Education. Runksmeier holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from Lewis & Clark College.

 

Meet The Coach
Matt Finlayson

Matt Finlayson was named director of athletics at Mitchell College in June 2021.

Finlayson joins the Mariners after having served as an assistant athletic director at Salve Regina University for the past three years. He will be the department’s sixth full-time director of athletics, and the third since Mitchell became an active member of NCAA Division III. 

“We are delighted to welcome Matt as director of athletics, to lead the exceptional cadre of coaches and staff at Mitchell College,” said Dr. Tracy Espy. “He is a great addition to the team, who will elevate and grow our athletics program while promoting and expanding sponsorships and funding for our outstanding athletes and teams.”

A graduate of Salve Regina, Finlayson returned to his alma mater in 2016 as an adjunct professor and joined the athletic department in 2018. In his role as assistant athletic director he was charged with enhancing community relations, fostering game day atmosphere, increasing department revenue and promoting special events and alumni development. He was also responsible for marketing and promotional efforts, and worked to cultivate sponsorship and branding opportunities.

Prior to his time at Salve Regina, Finlayson served as general manager of the Ocean State Waves in the historic New England Collegiate Baseball League (NECBL). After two years of operations, he purchased the franchise in 2014 and served as both GM and president until 2018. He directed the operational and business functions of the organization—including coordinating scheduling, facility operation and capital improvements—as well as fundraising initiatives, marketing, branding and community relations.

Finlayson’s background also includes a three-year stint as director of baseball operations at the University of Rhode Island, where he worked under head coach Jim Foster from 2009-12. In addition to monitoring budgets and other office functions, his responsibilities included fundraising, marketing and community relations. He was also involved with managing game operations for other athletic programs in the department. 

Finlayson sharpened his business acumen at the Isenberg School of Management at the University of Massachusetts, where he received a Master of Science in sports management. While working toward his degree he held graduate positions as a research assistant, a teaching assistantship and was also a graduate assistant within the athletic department.

As an undergraduate as Salve Regina, Finlayson was a four-year member of the baseball team and a three-time all-conference selection at third base. The Higganum, Conn. native was also a three-time all-academic selection who was named Commonwealth Coast Conference Senior Scholar Athlete in 2008.

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