EMORY, Va. – The Director of Strength & Conditioning at Emory & Henry College, Noah Arni, is pleased to announce the hiring of Sarai Flores as an assistant strength & conditioning coach. Coach Flores is the first female strength & conditioning coach at the College. 

"Coach Flores brings a breadth of experience and knowledge to our team at Emory & Henry," Arni said. "As we transition into Division II, it is critical that we have qualified and passionate coaches in our department. I am excited to see the impact that Coach Flores will have at Emory & Henry and we are grateful to have her joining our team."

Flores, originally from Mexico City, Mexico, began her journey in strength & conditioning at Mississippi State University where she played Division I tennis. Before starting her sophomore year, she transferred to the University of West Florida (UWF) where she continued to play tennis and work as an intern with the strength and conditioning department. Flores graduated with a bachelor's degree in psychology in 2016 and continued her education at UWF as a graduate student studying exercise science. Upon graduation in 2019, she moved to Cincinnati where she interned at Ignition Athletic Performance Group and online with Elon University. In 2022, she graduated with her second master's degree in interdisciplinary studies from Stephen F. Austin State University, located in Nacogdoches, Texas. 

Flores has experience working with various sports including football, volleyball, basketball, tennis, golf, cross-country, softball, bowling, baseball, track and field, soccer and more. 

"I am very thankful to be a part of Emory & Henry Athletics. I am very excited to be able to work with a hard-working and knowledgeable strength & conditioning staff and be able to be a part of the transition to NCAA Division II," said Flores. "I can not wait to get to know and work with all the athletes here and help them reach their goals"

As a student-athlete, Flores was named to the Gulf South Conference All-Academic Team and was a conference champion with the UWF tennis team for three consecutive years. She also was named to the All-Gulf South First Team in 2015. Flores also holds an abundance of academic achievements throughout her college career. 

In addition to these accomplishments, Flores has co-published two academic research articles in two peer-reviewed journals, Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise and the Journal of Science in Sport and Exercise.

Flores will oversee the strength and conditioning program for men's and women's soccer, tennis, and wrestling and assist with men's and women's track & field, football, baseball, and softball.

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