Maine has fired women’s coach Rick Filighera, the only coach the program has known since its inception in 1997-98.
“We have spent a great deal of time this past year evaluating our women’s ice hockey program and considering its potential for further growth,” said Maine athletic director Patrick Nero. “The results of this evaluation have led us to make the decision that it is in the best interest of our quest to improve our program to make a change of leadership to the team by seeking a new head coach.”
According to the school, a search committee is being formed to find a new coach, and will be chaired by University of Maine faculty member Mary Rumpho-Kennedy. The rest of the committee will be named later this week.
“I would like to take this opportunity to thank the University of Maine and Dr. Suzanne Tyler for giving me this opportunity to coach the women’s ice hockey team,” said Filighera in a statement. “I had a wonderful six years and have grown tremendously as a person.
“I would also like to thank the support staff and numerous others that have shown the care and love for me as a person. I also would like to send my appreciation to all the players that have been in our program, especially this year’s team. The time I had from January to March was the best I had here at Maine. I feel extremely satisfied in the competitive state this program is in . This team has a bright future.”
