Augustana College Athletics

Michael Zapolski is in the midst of his 17th year as the Director of Athletics at Augustana
College. Zapolski began his current assignment in June of 2008 after serving as the Director of
Athletics for five years at Anderson University in Indiana and working 20 years in various
capacities at Pepperdine University in Malibu, California.
 
Zapolski is responsible for the daily management and oversight of the College’s 28-sport
intercollegiate athletics program and the various team venues. Zapolski’s primary duties include
budget and financial planning, compliance, event and facilities management, fund-raising, staff
evaluation and strategic planning. He has focused on improving cross-campus relationships,
hired new head coaches in numerous sports during his tenure and helped successfully launch
seven varsity NCAA programs—men’s and women’s lacrosse, men’s and women’s water polo,
men’s volleyball, women’s bowling and women’s wrestling—plus Esports.
 
Characterized as an energetic and innovative leader, Zapolski has established a sound
professional record that emphasizes a strong commitment to the development of the total
student-athlete. Since the 2008-09 academic year, Augustana teams have captured 37
conference championships, while Viking student-athletes have earned All-America honors 134
times and prestigious Academic All-America distinction 52 times.
During the summer of 2024, construction was completed on a new tennis venue located in
Lincoln Park immediately adjacent to the Augustana campus. The facility features six lighted
tennis courts. In the summer of 2022, a new all-purpose floor was completed at the PepsiCo
Recreation Center, new synthetic turf was installed at Thorson-Lucken Field and a state-of-the-
art Esports venue was completed for the launch of that new program.
Construction was completed at the Peter J. Lindberg, M.D., Center for Health and Human
Performance in October 2021, a $19 million building that houses academic majors in
Kinesiology and Public Health and includes the Anne Greve Lund Natatorium. Augustana also
initiated a partnership with Western Illinois University to start a coaching graduate assistant
program.
 
A new gym floor was installed at the Roy J. Carver Physical Education Center, the Paul V.
Olsen Track was resurfaced and the Fairchild Strength Center benefited from a $300,000
makeover with state-of-the-art Power Lift equipment during the summer of 2018.
 
Other accomplishments during Zapolski’s tenure at Augustana include the implementation of a
new athletics branding program, launching a comprehensive live video streaming portal,
overhaul of the athletics website, construction of Thorson-Lucken Field, completion of the
Knowlton Outdoor Athletic Complex and the creation of an indoor golf practice space.
 
Zapolski is beginning his second year as a member of the NCAA Division III Men’s Soccer
Committee. In 2022, he concluded a five-year stint on the NCAA Division III Men’s Volleyball
Committee, serving as the chair during the 2021 and 2022 seasons. He has also served on
NCAA Division III sports committees for women’s soccer (2014-17, chair in 2017), men’s tennis
(2011-2014, chair 2012-14) and men’s basketball (2007-10). While at Anderson, Zapolski
spearheaded the school’s role as co-host of the 2007 NCAA Division III Men’s Golf
Championship.

Born and raised in nearby Wheaton, Illinois, Zapolski began his collegiate athletics career in
October of 1983 when he was hired as the full-time Sports Information Director at Pepperdine.
Zapolski worked at Pepperdine for 20 years, holding additional titles of Assistant Athletics
Director (1999-2001) and Associate Athletics Director (2001-03).
 
In his role as Associate Athletics Director at Pepperdine, Zapolski aided the Director of Athletics
in the daily operation of the department. He supervised the men’s golf, women’s golf, women’s
soccer and men’s tennis programs and had oversight of the Athletic Training, Facilities,
Marketing and Sports Information staffs. Additionally, Zapolski managed the athletics website,
supervised game management operations and coordinated event contracts and scheduling for
all sports. In October of 2017, he was inducted into the Pepperdine Athletics Hall of Fame.
 
Zapolski earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Pepperdine in 1985, graduating magna
cum laude. While making the transition to more administrative responsibilities, he earned a
master’s of business administration degree from Pepperdine in 2000. He and his wife, Stacey,
reside in Davenport, Iowa and have three children—daughter Haley, a 2018 graduate of the
University of Michigan and sons, Luke, a 2021 graduate of the University of Southern California
and Noah, a 2023 graduate of Valparaiso University.