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REMEMBERING
DOUG’S VOICE
In my ten years here at Moravian, I worked closely
with Coach P to publicize the many accomplishments
of his men’s and women’s track and field
teams. I could usually judge how a meet went,
especially at the NCAA Championships, just by
the sound of his voice: the sheer joy as he talked
about his national champions, or the pain when
someone was injured and missed out on an opportunity
to succeed at the highest level.
But my fondest memory of Coach P has nothing
to do with track and field. From time to time,
he’d fill in for me as a public address announcer at
Moravian’s football games. Three years
ago, the Greyhounds were trailing in
the fourth quarter and trying to rally for
the win. Coach P got on the microphone
several times to tell the crowd to
make noise, or suggest it was a time
to be quiet. I later asked the coach not
to do that again, since the game announcer
is supposed to remain neutral.
Unfortunately, the executive director of
the conference happened to be at the
game that day. We received a letter of
reprimand, and the entire conference
received a reminder about press box
and announcer etiquette. I have to smile
when I remember it, because I think
Coach Pollard’s irrepressible enthusiasm helped
the football team respond in the fourth quarter that
day: Moravian won with 29 seconds remaining.
–Mark Fleming, Sports Editor
Doug Pollard’s Death
Stuns Campus
With the October 22 death of head
men’s and women’s track and field coach
Douglas L. Pollard from a sudden cardiacrelated
incident, the Moravian College
Department of Athletics and the entire
College community mourned the loss of
one of their own.
“Doug Pollard was a pillar of the
Moravian community,” said Christopher
M. Thomforde, Moravian College
president. “He touched the lives of many
students throughout his career as a coach
and faculty member. He was a mentor,
teacher and friend whose presence will
be sorely missed.” Coach Pollard, who was
also a full professor at Moravian, was hired
in 1982. He helped the College reinstitute
its indoor and outdoor track and field programs,
beginning with the outdoor season
in 1984. During his tenure here, Coach
Pollard guided more than
150 student-athletes to
appearances at NCAA Division
III indoor and outdoor
national championships,
with sixty-nine students
earning All-American accolades.
His teams won fourteen
Middle Atlantic Conference
indoor team titles,
and sixteen MAC outdoor
titles. Of those championships,
the women won 11
of the last 12 indoor MAC
Championships and 13 of
the last 15 outdoor MAC
Championships.
Coach Pollard’s track
and field teams had three
top-ten finishes at the NCAA national
meet, two by the men’s program and
one by the women’s squad. Eight of the
nine individual national champions in
Moravian’s history have been won by six
Pollard-coached track and field athletes.
One of those national champions, Christina
Scherwin ’05, competed at the 2004 Summer
Olympics in Sydney, Australia for her
native country, Denmark.
Coach Pollard was named the 2007
United States Track and Field and Cross
Country Coaches Association Division III
Mideast Region Women’s Coach of the Year.
He was honored six times as the Middle
Atlantic Conference Coach of the Year, most
recently during the 2007 women’s indoor
season. “Doug’s passing is a tremendous
loss for Moravian College and the track and
field community that extends well beyond
our campus,” said Paul Moyer, director of
athletics. He added: “Doug embodied the
word ‘coach.’ He was an educator, mentor,
teacher, and leader of the highest order.
For us at Moravian, the student-athletes,
and others whose lives he’s touched, it’s
Doug’s sense of humor, compassion, and insight
that will endure and be remembered.”
On November 4, over 700 of Coach P’s
family members, friends, student-athletes,
and colleagues gathered for a memorial
service at First Presbyterian Church in
Bethlehem. The service included a sharing
of memories from his family and friends.
Afterwards, a reception was held at Johnston
Hall, where the attendees enjoyed
more stories and reminiscences, including
a slide show put together by Coach
Pollard’s eldest daughter Kate.
18 MORAVIAN COLLEGE MAGAZINE FALL 2007