Parts of this release courtesy of Tom Lewis, U.S.
Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association,
Communications Manager
NEW ORLEANS – The U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) announced the organization’s region athletes and coaches of the year for the 2012 NCAA Division II indoor track & field season on Friday. Several of the athletes and coaches will be on hand for the NCAA Division II Indoor Track & Field Championships set for next weekend, March 9-10, in Mankato, Minn. NCAA.com will provide live coverage of the national championships.
Click here for complete USTFCCCA regional award winners
University of Findlay senior John Guagenti (Bluffton, Ohio) and Ashland University senior Ryan Loughney (Grahamsville, N.Y./Tri-Valley) have been chosen as the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Men's Midwest Region Indoor Track & Field "Athletes of the Year."
Guagenti earned GLIAC Running Event Athlete of the Meet honors after winning conference titles in the 200 Meters and 400 Meters and running a leg on the second-place 4×400 Relay. The senior from Bluffton, Ohio, ranks in the top ten nationally in the 400 Meters and as a member of Findlay’s 4×400 Relay.
Loughney leads Division II in the weight throw with a season’s best mark of 75-5¼ (22.99m), making him the second-best performer all-time in the event’s history in DII. The defending national champ in the event, Loughney has been undefeated against collegiate completion this season, which includes a victory at the GLIAC Championship.
In his 24th year at Findlay, Arce led the Oilers to a third-place finish in the GLIAC. Athletes have achieved five auto and seven provisional marks this indoor season. The team is ranked third in the region and ninth in the nation heading into the championship. The Oilers will be represented in six events at the indoor national meet.