Iona College announced the addition of former La Salle University cross country and track and field assistant coach Christine Eisenberg. 

Eisenberg had a successful career as a student–athlete with Stony Brook University and went on to be a graduate assistant for two seasons at La Salle before being promoted to assistant coach for her last season. 

She helped lead La Salle to the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regionals, coming in first and winning the Atlantic 10 Championships on both the men’s and women’s side in 2019. It was the first championship since 2011 for the women and 2013 for the men. 

Eisenberg started off her career as a coach shortly after her career as a student–athlete ended. Just three months after her graduation from Stony Brook, Eisenberg joined the La Salle family as a graduate assistant. Converting from athlete to coach was one of the biggest hurdles in her career, she said via phone. This didn’t stop her from getting her job done, though. 

“I actually took off a big chunk of time from running just so I could really focus on coaching and kind of filling in that position in the sport,” Eisenberg said. “I just really focused on how I was going to work recruiting, what exactly my coaching philosophy was and what it was going to be.” 

One of Eisenberg’s biggest accomplishments in her career was being promoted to assistant coach and winning the Atlantic 10 conference championship with both the women’s and men’s teams. While the men’s team morale was up since preseason predictions placed them in first, the women’s team had a harder time believing in themselves, as those same predictions placed them fourth. Getting the women’s side to believe in themselves was a great accomplishment for Eisenberg, she said. 

When the news came in that she was joining the Gaels, Eisenberg was excited about the opportunity to work with one of the best programs in cross country and track and field. This included working with Director of Cross Country and Track and Field Joe Pienta and Assistant Coach Erik Jolivette. 

“I’ve known Coach Pienta the past few years and he’s always been a coach that I’ve admired,” Eisenberg said. “I admire his work ethic, he’s definitely an interesting person overall, so getting the chance to work with him and work alongside Eric as well, I was super excited about that.” 

Working to keep the streak alive here at Iona comes with a lot of pressure, but that works best for Eisenberg, she says. With pressure being a big motivator for the former La Salle assistant coach, the work is yet to stop when it comes to the Gaels. 

One of the major goals Eisenberg has put forth for the team is getting the women’s team as much success as the men’s team when it comes to their overall accomplishments. Eisenberg was quick to point out the individual successes of the women’s side, speaking on Egle Morenaite’s success with the Gaels so far in her student-athlete career. Personal goals include learning as much as she can while she’s with the Gaels and helping the team succeed as best as possible. 

When compared to the rest of her time as a coach, Eisenberg says this is the biggest step shehas taken in her career. 

“I really enjoyed my time at La Salle and I wasn’t planning on leaving La Salle but this was a job opportunity that I couldn’t pass down,” Eisenberg said. “It’s something that I’ve always wanted to be at a program like Iona, so it’s definitely the biggest accomplishment so far for me and it’s definitely a place I want to be at for a while.”