ORLANDO – UCF hired John Guarino as assistant women's track and field coach, ninth-year head coach Marcia Mansur-Wentworth announced on Tuesday.
Guarino joins the successful Golden Knights program after one-year as a graduate assistant coach at Florida State, where he earned his master's degree in sports administration in June. While at FSU, he helped guide the development of the sprinters and watched several of the female athletes qualify for the NCAA Regionals and two of the male athletes earn All-Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) in the 800-meter event. The Seminole men's team also won the ACC indoor and outdoor titles.
Prior to his experience at FSU, Guarino served as head coach at St. Thomas Aquinas High School in Ft. Lauderdale and led the team to six consecutive state titles from 1998-2003. He received the Florida Girl's Track Coach of the Year award four times for his efforts.
One of his athletes at St. Thomas Aquinas was Sanya Richards, the junior American record holder in the 400-meters and a member of the 2004 U.S. Olympic Team. In all, he coached four high school All-Americans, 11 state champions and a national championship relay team.
Guarino also coached the St. Thomas Aquinas boys' and girls' cross country teams and the Ultimate Flyers Track Club each for eight years.
"We are very excited to have John as part of our coaching staff," said Mansur-Wentworth. "We hope that he can continue his success from St. Thomas and FSU at UCF."
The UCF women's track and field team has won the Atlantic Sun Conference title during the last five consecutive years.