Sottung is in his fourth year as the head strength and conditioning coach at Rensselaer. He develops, implements, and supervises comprehensive year-round strength and conditioning programs for all 23 varsity sports programs, including the schools two Division I ice hockey teams.
He designed and outfitted the new 4800 square foot East Campus Athletic Village Strength and Conditioning Center, which opened in the fall of 2009. There he implements testing and goal setting strategies to monitor student athlete progress and develop a culture of accountability. Sottung has created a comprehensive nutrition guide for the enhancement of student-athlete health and performance, provided educational support and guidance for student-athlete nutrition, developed relationship with dining services to offer healthy choices specifically for student-athletes.
Outside the strength and conditioning center, he has set up multimedia support for student-athletes through the use of photographic and video supplementation of training programs. Sottung also maintains the strength and conditioning department's website.
Before joining the Rensselaer Athletics Department, he spent two years at the Lee Taft Speed Academy in Queensbury, N.Y., where he worked as the Assistant Director of Sport Performance. There, he was in charge of designing and implementing training programs for athletes in a wide range of sports, age groups, and experience levels.
Sottung earned his B.S. in Exercise Science from Ithaca College in 2004. He then went on to earn his M.S. in Exercise and Sports Science with a concentration in Exercise Physiology at IC. As an undergrad, he was a four-year starter on the Bombers baseball team, graduating as the all-time leader in wins, inning pitched and strikeouts. A three-sport athlete in high school, he played football, basketball and baseball in his hometown of Pulaski, N.Y.
