Oney will succeed Jimmy May, who announced his resignation last month.
Oney brings valuable, winning coaching experience at both the college and high school levels to the KWU Coyotes.
In the past two years as an assistant coach at Wayland Baptist, Oney helped guide both the men's and women's mat programs. During his tenure at the Plainview, Texas school, Oney mentored the Pioneer women to finish eighth in the WCWA (Women's College Wrestling Association) championships with four All-Americans and one scholar-athlete ... while the Wayland men finished 11th at the NAIA (National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics) National Championships with five NAIA All-Americans and one scholar-athlete.
Before Wayland Baptist, Oney taught math and coached wrestling for 21 years at Punahou School in Honolulu, Hawaii. During his time there he coached nine state championship teams, including six consecutive team titles for the boys and a three-year consecutive run for the girls.
"Matt stood out to us because of his coaching experience," Kansas Wesleyan Director of Athletics Mike Hermann said. "But even more so because of his passion for the sport of wrestling. He had a long, successful history coaching wrestling at the high school level in Hawaii and had developed an impressive network of coaching contacts from his national and international experiences."
"Matt jumped into college coaching two years ago and has made an impact at Wayland Baptist, a relatively new program that has enhanced its national reputation in wrestling during Matt's few years on the staff," Hermann continued. "I'm confident that Matt will contribute to our campus quickly and will insure that our wrestlers have an outstanding student-athlete experience. He is an ideal choice to lead our program into its first full competitive season."
"Matt is a terrific hire for Kansas Wesleyan," National Wrestling Coaches Association Executive Director Mike Moyer said. "He is one of the bright, shining up-and-coming coaches in the profession. He represents the gold standard in educational athletics. He is a graduate of our CEO Leadership Academy, and was even selected by his peers to receive a scholarship to the program. I am really happy for Matt and Kansas Wesleyan has a great coach on board in him."
Oney, who was a four-year letter-winning wrestler and two-time NCAA Division III Scholar All-American at Worchester Polytechnic Institute in Massachusetts, has high goals as he takes the helm of the Coyote wrestling program.
"My goals for this program are to create an environment where the development of the student-athletes, in all facets of life, is accomplished at the highest level possible for each athlete," Oney said. "Guiding them to perform to the best of which they are capable of in every situation will allow them to reach their full potential as individuals and as a team. When they are able to accomplish that, being a witness to what their collective greatness leads them to will be a very rewarding experience for us all."
Founded in 1886, Kansas Wesleyan University is a private four-year college located in Salina, Kansas. Affiliated with the United Methodist Church, Kansas Wesleyan has an enrollment of approximately 850 students. The Coyote wrestling team competes in the NAIA (National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics).
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