Director of Rugby / Women's Rugby Head Coach - Alex Artus
Phone - 603-526-3459
E-Mail -
alex.artus@colby-sawyer.edu
Alex Artus joins Colby-Sawyer for the 2022-23 season.
Artus joins the Chargers after being the women's rugby head coach at Kutztown University of Pennsylvania for the past four years. At Kutztown, Artus finished with an overall record of 18-17 including a 5-7 record in 2021-22 finishing the year sixth overall at the national Collegiate Rugby Championships.
Prior to Kutztown, Artus served as the head coach of Millersville University men's club team for one season. Alex has played rugby since high school, playing on multiple high school select sides before attending Kutztown University. At KU, Alex played for the Golden Bears for three years before being sidelined by surgery his senior year.
Assistant Coach - Katie Baughman
Katie Baughman joined the Colby-Sawyer College community in December of 2021 as the Assistant Director of Campus Safety. Baughman joined the Chargers after having played for Paul Smith's College's Women's Rugby. She was one of the founding members of the Women's Rugby Club at Paul Smith's, became Vice President for the club, helped to get the club up to standards to qualify as a collegiate team, and was named a team captain for the entirety of her time there. One of Baughman's favorite holidays is Rugby Christmas, also known as the Can-Am Rugby Tournament, held at the end of July every year in the Saranac Lake/Lake Placid area of New York. Baughman looks forward to the new role she will have as assistant coach in the sport she has come to admire and the learning opportunities it will bring from the team and Rugby Director/Head Coach Ed Mckenna.
When she isn't hitting the pitch, Baughman can be found hiking with her dog, fishing the many waterways, and enjoying the local attractions with her family. Baughman comes with a background in emergency medical services and law enforcement. She remains part-time with her affiliated services and loves the work that she does within her communities and the opportunities she has to create a positive impact.
Assistant Coach - Rob Spaulding
Rob Spaulding was hired as an Assistant Coach for the CSC Women's and Men's Rugby teams in the Spring of 2021 and was promoted to the Men's Head Coach during January of 2022.
Spaulding's rugby resume spans 25 years from 1975 thru 2000. He was Captain of the United States Merchant Marine Academy (USMMA) rugby team for two years from 1977 thru 1979. He also played for Long Island Rugby, Danbury (CT) Mad Hatters as well as the Connecticut Old Greys. Spaulding played every back position during that span. Additionally, he began coaching (various sports) in 1981 before going on to coach his sons and daughters during the 1990's and early 2000's in Connecticut.
Spaulding graduated from the USMMA at Kings Point, NY in 1979, and sailed as an officer on Texaco U.S. flag tanker fleet from 1979 thru 1985. He was hired by Stolt-Nielsen chemicals in 1985 prior to serving as a shipbroker with Quincannon Associates and SPI Marine from 1989 thru 2021. Spaulding recently retired in December 2021, and currently resides with his wife Nora in Sunapee, NH.
