Peter Steese has served as the head coach of the Colby-Sawyer College men's and women's outdoor track and field teams for all 18 seasons of the program's existence.
Steese's squads have had numerous qualifiers to post-season competitions since 1995, including the Division III New England Championships and the ECAC Championships. Steese, who is a United States Association of Track and Field Level I certified coach, has guided four student-athletes to 10 NCAA Division III Championship appearances. Stephanie Roy (javelin, 2000-02) competed in three consecutive championships, while David Moreton competed in the 2001 triple jump.
In 2004, the program had its first two All-Americans, as Scott Macdonald (decathlon) and Brittni Stewart (javelin) both finished sixth in their respective events. In 2005, the Chargers claimed their highest finish, as Stewart was second at Nationals in the javelin as a sophomore. Macdonald also made his second straight NCAA championship appearance in the decathlon in 2005. Stewart received her third straight All-America award in 2006, earning a third place finish in the javelin at Nationals and finished her senior year as the school's only four-time NCAA All-American, finishing third once again.
The Chargers have also had numerous regional successes under Steese. Colby-Sawyer has sent at least one representative to the New England Championships in 14 of the program's 17 years in men's track and 14 out of 15 years in women's track. The numbers are much the same for the ECAC Championships, as the Charger men have been to the ECACs seven times and the women have had a representative in 12 different seasons.
Steese, who also serves as the head men's soccer coach at Colby-Sawyer, previously was the head girls' track and field coach at Gilford Middle High School, and was also Gilford's assistant coach for sprints and weights prior to becoming the head coach.
Steese graduated from the University of Maryland in 1974, with a B.A. in German, and later earned his master's degree in German Literature from Maryland.
Coach Steese, his wife Cheryl and his three daughters Cameron, Julia and Georgia, reside in Wilmot, N.H.
