Student-Athlete Advisory Committee Advisors

Following a fantastic first season at the helm of the St. Lawrence University women's soccer program, Franco Bari, a 1998 graduate of St. Lawrence University and a National All-American for the men’s soccer team, is looking forward to even more success in the upcoming 2009 campaign.

In his inaugural season with the Saints, Bari led his team to their first postseason appearance and their first 10-game winning season since 2003, finishing the year with a 10-5-3 record and a 3-3-1 mark in Liberty League play. St. Lawrence found themselves ranked among the best both in the region and country at various points throughout 2008, earning a regional ranking as high as fourth while also breaking onto the national stage, earning a No. 25 ranking in mid-October. Five student-athletes were named All-Conference players, one earned All-Region honors, while eight earned a spot on the Liberty League All-Academic Team in his first season.

Deshaya Williams, a three-time All America thrower and the 2003 NCAA Division I women's discus champion while a student at Penn State, has joined the St. Lawrence University athletic staff as assistant track and field coach for men and women and assistant coordinator of student athlete development.

Williams, who spent last season as a track and field assistant at SUNY Fredonia, will coach the throws for the Saint men and women. A native of Saratoga Springs, she earned her bachelor's and master's degrees at Penn State in 2002 and 2004 and earned a second master's degree from the Erskine Theological Seminary in 2009. She served as a graduate assistant for the Penn State women's program and was a volunteer assistant at Clemson University from 2004-2006.

As an athlete, she participated in the US Olympic Trials in 2000 and 2004. She was a three-time Big Ten Champion, a member of the USA National Team and both USA Junior National Champion and Junior Pan American Champion in 1999. She was the first women's national champion in Penn State history when she won the discus title in 2003.