Delia to Head Swimming Program, Turnage to Direct Golf Team

ASHLAND, Va. --- Randolph-Macon College Director of Athletics Denis Kanach announced a pair of hiring over the past week in the Yellow Jacket athletics department.  Ben Delia was named the new head coach of RMC's defending Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) championship women's swimming team.  Ed Turnage will assume the reins of the school's golf program.

Delia comes to the Yellow Jackets program after a stint as an assistant coach at Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut and a successful four-year career at Hamilton College in Clinton, New York.

"We are pleased to have Ben Delia leading our defending ODAC championship swim program." said Kanach. "Ben has experience as a swimmer and a coach at the DIII level in programs that are our academic peers. He understands the balance of academic and athletic commitment needed to be successful."

During his time at Trinity, Delia assisted in all phases of the Bantams swimming and diving program, including on deck coaching, recruiting, team travel, fundraising and other administrative duties.  Delia helped Trinity to six dual meet wins in 2006-07 and guided swimmers to a host of school and freshmen records while assisting four swimmers to USA Sectional qualifying times.

As a student-athlete, Delia was a member of the New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) all-league team and was a championship finalist on several occasions.

Delia is a native of Oswego, New York and graduated from Hamilton in May of 2005 with a Bachelor of Arts degree and a concentration in economics.

Turnage, who is a graduate of R-MC, returns to the Yellow Jacket family following a successful 30 year stint in the golfing industry.  During his three decades a sales representative for a number of world rounded golf manufactures, Turnage earned countless honors and awards including the 2007 PGA Mid-Atlantic Sales Person of the Year.

We are very pleased to have Ed on staff," said Kanach.  "He is a Yellow Jacket through and through and brings a great deal of experience to the post."

Turnage graduated in 1964 with degrees in sociology and education.  He played football and track for the Yellow Jackets during his four years in Ashland and has been a member of the Yellow Jacket Club and has been on the planning committee for the Ted Keller Invitational Golf Tournament since its inception.

Turnage replaces Jeff Burns who relinquished his role in July after being promoted to Associate Athletic Director and Director of Development for Athletics.

He will inherit an R-MC squad that has six players back from a 2006-07 team that finished fifth at the ODAC Tournament in April.  Junior Ralston King is back in the fold for the Jackets this season after earning First-Team All-ODAC honors last year.