Josh Funk has been named the first women’s hockey head coach at Hood College.
The NCAA Division III Blazers will take the ice for the first time in the 2024-25 academic year.
“I am extremely honored and excited to be named the first head coach of women’s ice hockey at Hood College,” said Funk in a news release. “Throughout the interview process, it was very clear the passion and dedication Hood has regarding starting and growing women’s ice hockey, and how invested they are in developing a competitive identity. The energy on campus is exhilarating. I want to thank Dr. Susan Kolb, director of athletics, and Dr. Andrea Chapdelaine, Hood College president, for this incredible opportunity. I look forward to getting out right away to start the recruiting process throughout the U.S. and internationally.”
Funk arrives in Frederick, Md., after a stint as the director of women’s hockey at the Minnesota Advancement Program.
“We had a large, experienced candidate pool in our search for our first women’s ice hockey coach, which supports our excitement from the campus and community,” said Kolb. “Knowing the intricacies of starting a program, it was important that we selected a candidate who had the connections for recruiting, the experience as a head coach and the passion to develop our women’s ice hockey program. Josh exhibited those characteristics we were looking for, and I am excited about the impact he will make on our hockey program, as well as our athletic department.”
Funk served as the head coach at Plymouth State from 2020 to 2022.
Prior to Plymouth State, Funk was an assistant coach for the women’s program at Robert Morris. His career also includes stops at Albert Lea (Minn.) High School, St. Catherine (Minn.) University, Sugar Land (Tex.) Imperials (NA3HL) and Miami (Ohio) University while he also filled numerous roles with Minnesota Hockey CCM High Performance programs. He is a USA Hockey Level 4 coach.
He got his start in coaching as a student assistant for the Gustavus Adolphus men’s hockey program as a senior.
Funk graduated from Gustavus Adolphus in 2012 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology with a minor in Coaching.
