Queens University of Charlotte Associate Athletic Director for Sports Medicine and Performance Brandon Johnson announced the hiring of Matt Donelson as the Royals' new director of sports performance in May of 2022. Donelson joined the Royals from Marshall University where he served as the head basketball and Olympic sports strength and conditioning coach for the past four seasons.
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The four-season stretch with The Herd was part of Donelson's second stint at Marshall as he also served as a graduate assistant from 2013-2015 and as an assistant strength and conditioning coach for the 2015-16 season. Donelson ran the day-to-day operations for the Olympic sports weight room and oversaw annual training programs for 10 sports teams including the 2020 NCAA Men's Soccer National Champions and the 2019 CIT Men's Basketball Champions. He was directly responsible for training both the men's basketball and women's volleyball teams and implemented a sports nutrition station to fuel the athletes' pre and post workout. Donelson also served on the coronavirus task force at Marshall and led a full redesign of the weight room.
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"I am very excited to be joining the Queens family and working to continue the legacy of success," Donelson commented. "I look forward to getting to work with all of the high-level coaches and student-athletes as Queens moves to the ASUN. What an exciting time to be a Royal!"
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Prior to returning to Marshall, Donelson spent two seasons at Coastal Carolina University as the assistant director of basketball speed, strength, and conditioning. While with the Chanticleers, Donelson was responsible for training the men's and women's basketball and men's golf student-athletes. In 2017, the men's basketball team finished runner-up in the CBI, and men's golf won the Sun Belt Championship in 2018.
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Donelson received his bachelor's degree in exercise science from Ohio Dominican University and his Master's of Sciences in Exercise Science from Marshall. He also holds NSCA and CSCCa certifications.
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