Laura Chiriaco Hometown: Gaithersburg, Md. Last College: Maryland Position: Head Coach Experience: 1st Season

Maryland acrobatics & tumbling alum, Laura Chiriaco, was named the head coach of the groundbreaking team on August 24, 2011. Chiriaco was a member of the first recruiting class at Maryland in 2004 and spent the previous three seasons serving as the team's volunteer assistant coach.

In her first season as head coach, she led the Terps to a 9-2 overall record, a second-straight NCATA championship appearance, and four event national championships.

"Laura has been a part of this program from day one and she truly understands where we want it to go," Anderson said. "She has seen it evolve over the last seven years. She has a true passion for Maryland and for this team."

As a member of the team from 2004-08, Chiriaco won three NCA national titles (2006, 2007, 2008) and served as captain in her junior and senior years. After graduation, she stayed on staff as the volunteer assistant and saw first-hand the Terps' transition to the National Collegiate Acrobatics and Tumbling Association.

"I'm extremely honored and grateful for the opportunity to coach this incredibly talented group of athletes. I'm excited to get to work in carrying on the winning tradition set by Jarnell Bonds and Lura Fleece." Chiriaco said.

Prior to taking on the head coach role, she taught middle school language arts in Baltimore as part of the Teach for America program. She graduated from the University of Maryland in 2008 with her degree from the Philip Merrill College of Journalism and earned her Masters' in teaching from Johns Hopkins in 2010.