Looking to continue the progress set last season, Iñako Puzo returns for his second year as Miami's head field hockey coach.

Puzo's young team went 7-15 in his first season as a RedHawk. Miami advanced to the semifinals of the MAC Tournament and saw senior Amanda Seeley earn a spot in the NFCHA Senior All-Star game. With a large recruiting class coming in, the program will continue to grow towards becoming a regular contender in the MAC.

"I have enjoyed my time here at Miami," said Puzo. "It is great to be associated with such a prosperous academic institution. This is a great place for my family and I am looking forward to many more successful years in Oxford."

Prior to his time at Miami, Puzo spent the previous two seasons as the associate head coach at Virginia, where he helped lead the Cavaliers to the NCAA Semifinals each year. Virginia had an overall record of 28-8 and was ranked in the top-10 nationally every week during his time there.

"Iñako brings a wealth of successful experience at the collegiate and international levels, a history of maximizing the intellectual development of his students and a focus on servant leadership within the community that will ensure our program continues its trajectory of being one of the premier field hockey programs in the nation," said Bates. "We are very excited to have Iñako lead our program and help realize our lofty visions."

Prior to his time at Virginia, Puzo was the head coach of CD Terrassa, which plays in the Honor Spanish Division, the top division in Spain and one of the top men's field hockey leagues in the world. He also was an assistant coach at Ohio State from 2001-07, helping lead the Buckeyes to two Big Ten Championships (2001 and 2006) and three appearances in the NCAA Tournament (2001, 2005 and 2006). He began his collegiate coaching career at American University, where he was an assistant from 1997-99.

Outside of the college game, Puzo was involved with the United States Field Hockey Association's High-Performance Developmental Program for the past three years. He coordinated the Mid-Atlantic Junior High-Performance team in 2010 and 2011. He led the team to a Futures Elite Championship in 2012.

Puzo was a 21-year member of the Venezuelan National Team (1988-2008). He earned over 150 caps for playing in international competition and served as the team's captain during the 1992 Junior Pan-Am Games, the 2000 World Cup Qualifier and the 2006 Central American Games. He served as the Venezuelan National Federation's technical director of both the men's and women's teams from 1996-97 and again from 1999-01.

Puzo earned his bachelor's degree in international relations from the University Central de Venezuela in 1992. He earned his master's degree in human resources from ESERP in Barcelona, Spain in 2009. Puzo and his wife, Keli, a two-time United States Field Hockey Olympian (2008 and 2012), have two sons, Xavi and Ian.