Beginning her fourth season on the Rams' coaching staff as an assistant coach for the 2024-25 season is Nickeela Austin.

During her first season on staff, she worked with sprinters Kyla Hill and Kathryn Kelly, who both earned All-Atlantic 10 honors, as well as the 4x100 relay, which earned a bronze medal at the 2022 Atlantic 10 Outdoor Championships and set a new school record.  Hill also set individual records in the 100- and 200-meter dashes during the outdoor season.  Hill and Kelly would also both set the school record in the 60-meter dash for indoor track.
 
For the 2022-23 season, Fordham won both the men's and women's Metropolitan Cross Country Championships as team accomplishments.  Individually, the Rams posted eight school records and medaled six times, led by Kyla Hill earning three individual medals and Second Team All-Atlantic 10 honors in the indoor and outdoor 200-meter dash. Other accomplishments included eight CSC Academic All-District selections, one Atlantic 10 All-Rookie Team selection (Ben Borchers - outdoor 800 meters), Steven Zucca capturing Academic All-Atlantic 10 in all three seasons (XC, ITF, OTF), and Nolan Chiles receiving CSC Third Team Academic All-American honors, becoming the Rams' first Academic All-American since 1998.

In 2023-24, the Fordham women won their second Metropolitan Championship for outdoor track.  Individually, the Rams posted six school records and medaled at the Atlantic 10 Championship in the men's indoor 3,000 meters (Rodolfo Sanchez - silver), the women's indoor 200 meters (Kyla Hill - bronze), and the men's outdoor 1,500 meters (Colin Flood - bronze).  Other accomplishments included eight CSC Academic All-District selections, three Atlantic 10 All-Rookie Team selection (Sean Reidy - indoor 1,000 meters, Sarah Zakaykevich - outdoor 10,000 meters, and Lexi Fujita - outdoor high jump), Steven Zucca capturing Academic All-Atlantic 10 in all three seasons (XC, ITF, OTF) with Rodolfo Sanchez earning the same honor for both indoor and outdoor track.

The 2024-25 season saw plenty of success for the Rams, both as a team and individually.  The Fordham men won their first ever indoor track & field Metropolitan Championship title and followed that by winning the outdoor Metropolitan title for the fourth time.  At the Atlantic 10 Championship, the men's team finished fourth at the indoor track & field championship, the team's best finish since 2018, while tying for fifth at the outdoor championship, which was the best finish since 2019.  The women's team had an eighth place finish at the indoor championship, which was their best performance since 2011.

Individually, Katarina Birimac had a superb season, finishing second at the Atlantic 10 Cross Country Championship to earn All-Conference honors, while winning the indoor 5,000 meters and the outdoor 10,000 meters for First Team All-Atlantic 10 honors.  On the men's side, the distance medley relay, Rodolfo Sanchez (mile), and Njam Abdul-Latif (60m & 200m) were all Atlantic 10 champions at the indoor meet with Abdul-Latif receiving the Most Outstanding Rookie Performer Award.  Abdul-Latif then duplicated that feat at the outdoor championship and added to it, capturing both the Most Outstanding Rookie Performer, as well as the Most Outstanding Track Performer Award, after winning the 200-meter dash and taking second in the 100 meters.  It was only the second time in conference history that an athlete took home both accolades.  Sanchez also earned All-Conference honors at the outdoor championship after placing second in the 1,500 meters.  The Rams also saw Abdul-Latif (indoor & outdoor) and Sara Labor (indoor) earn spots on the All-Rookie Team with Birimac (ITF, OTF), Sanchez (ITF, OTF), Ben Borchers (ITF), and Sean Reidy (ITF) garnering Academic All-Conference honors, as well as set 13 school records across the indoor and outdoor seasons.

Additionally, Austin is a two-year WSF VanDerveer fellow after receiving a Tara VanDerveer Fund for the Advancement of Women in Coaching grant from the Women’s Sports Foundation (WSF). Grants were awarded to institutions to support collegiate women coaches on the rise, assisting with living expenses, professional development and mentorship. Fordham is one of 10 universities and colleges to receive the grants, which are designated for women coaching fellows in a wide variety of women’s sports.

Austin finished her track & field career at Indiana University of Pennsylvania, spending her last three seasons there after a year at Cheyney University.  A team captain for the 2020-21 season, she was an eight-time All-Atlantic Region honoree, which included four indoor and four outdoor awards.  This past season, she posted an NCAA Provisional mark in the triple jump, ranking 23^rd in the country.  She finished her career as the second-best triple jumper at IUP and was a two-time PSAC champion in that event, while also winning the long jump once at PSAC Championship.
 
Prior to IUP, Austin was a member of the track & field team at Cheyney University, where she set the school record in the triple jump event.
 
Aside from her track & field accomplishments, Austin is a member of the U.S. National Guard and earned her undergraduate degree in Psychology from IUP in 2020.