NORTH NEWTON, Kan. - The Bethel College athletic department has announced the appointment of Angela Rowe as head coach of Thresher women's flag football. Rowe will be the first head coach in program history and will be tasked with building the program.
 
Bethel Athletic Director Tony Hoops stated, "It's with great excitement and anticipation that we announce the hiring of Coach Rowe to lead our inaugural women's flag football program," Bethel Athletic Director Tony Hoops stated. "The mission and vision of our athletic department and her coaching philosophy aligned from the very beginning. She is an elite leader of young people that will dynamically impact our campus."
 
Rowe, a native of Atlanta, Ga., comes to Bethel after a long coaching career spread out between flag, flex and tackle football. Most recently she was a defensive coordinator for the Atlanta Phoenix, a contact football program in Atlanta where she crafted and implemented game plans. 
 
"It is an absolute privilege to be named the Head Coach for the inaugural Women's Flag Football Team at Bethel College," Rowe said. "I am ecstatic at the opportunity to build a program with the assistance of a sound support system and aligned philosophies."
 
Rowe has experience coaching and playing flag, flex and tackle football. She also has experience coaching at a variety of different levels from middle school all the way up to professional flag and tackle teams.
 
"We are fortunate to hire a coach with the expertise Angela brings.  She has an incredibly strong background of experience in women's football that spans over two decades," Hoops said.  
 
Rowe has spent time as a player/coach where she was in charge of both coaching and implementing game plans along with calling plays while she was on the field playing.
 
"I felt an overwhelming sense of family and community from the moment I stepped onto the campus of Bethel College," Rowe continued. "This is an immeasurable honor to be a part of the Bethel community."
 
Rowe is a graduate of Western Carolina University where she was a two-sport athlete playing basketball and running track. While at WCU, Angela earned All-American honors in track and field while being an All-Conference basketball player. She currently holds the 400-meter Western Carolina school record. Angela also earned the MVP at the Naval Academy Basketball Tournament.
 
Her football honors include the Atlanta Xplosion Women's Full Contact Football Iron Women Award, Independent Women's Football League World Champion in 2006 and 2001, USA Football Alternate, and the defensive MVP for the United States Flag and Touch Football League.
 
"Women's flag football is one of the fastest growing female sports in the country," AD Hoops concluded. "I'm excited to see Coach Rowe build this program as we compete for the first time in the spring of 2023 at Thresher Stadium!"
 
For the last 22 years, along with playing and coaching football, Rowe has been involved in law enforcement in the Atlanta area.
 
In athletics, Bethel competes within the 13-school Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference, and the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics. For more information, see www.bethelthreshers.com.

Bethel College does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, creed, age, gender, sexual orientation, parental or marital status, gender identity, gender expression, medical or genetic information, ethnic or national origins, citizenship status, veteran or military status or disability. E-mail questions to [email protected].