CHARLESTON, Ill – The Eastern Illinois Athletic Department welcomes three new faces heading into the 2025 spring seasons - Paige Gardella, Elliott Hansing, and Cristine Shick

Gardella will join the EIU Volleyball staff on April 1st after spending the previous year as a member of the Panther squad. She spent three years of undergrad playing volleyball at Ithaca College and Limestone University before graduating from the University of Dayton in 2024. Gardella spent the 2024 season as part of the Panthers Volleyball squad and would go on to serve the remainder of the 2024-25 season as the team's Graduate Assistant.

Hansing will serve as EIU's Assistant Athletic Director of Marketing & Fan Engagement and arrives in Charleston after spending the previous year as the Assistant Director of Fan Engagement at Sam Houston State University. He spent his undergraduate years at the Xavier University where he was the Lead Marketing Intern for Xavier Athletics.

Shick joins the department after spending her previous years in the EIU payroll office, now taking on the role of Athletics Business Manager. Shick spent her undergraduate years as a Panther where she earned a Bachelor of Arts with a focus in Sociology.