Love Connection: Katie and Keith Beach

Love Connection: Katie and Keith Beach

How two former student-athletes found more than athletic success in College Park.

Brady Ruth, Staff Writer

10/21/2026

It was a seemingly routine day in the football weight room in August of 1998, but one that would change the trajectory of two Terps’ lives forever.

Katie Kauffman-Beach and Keith Beach were getting some summer work in for their respective sports. Katie was a prominent field hockey player with Olympic aspirations, while Keith played for a Maryland men’s soccer team on the rise.

“I remember wondering who the good-looking guy lifting weights was,” Katie said. “We were both here for the summer and saw each other often. We started talking, and he asked me if I wanted to go to a bagel place on the corner.”

It was the start of a beautiful relationship that has spanned decades and grown into a multigenerational legacy of Beach student-athletes in College Park.

Two years separated Katie (1993-96) and Keith (1995-98), but their passion for their sports and academics quickly brought them together. They bonded over the challenges of balancing life as student-athletes, their experiences in the business school and playing for legendary coach...