NEW ORLEANS – Three Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) student-athletes and three coaches are among the 64 recipients of the NCAA Division II Regional Athlete and Coach of the Year honors for the 2009 outdoor track & field season, the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association announced Monday.
Ashland University junior Joe Horn (Waynesfield, Ohio/Waynesfield-Goshen) earned the Midwest Region's "Men's Track Athlete of the Year" award, while AU sophomore Tara Cooper (Circleville, Ohio/Logan Elm) and Grand Valley State University senior Bryant Wilson (Hale, Mich.) were named Midwest Region "Women's and Men's Field Athlete of the Year," respectively.
Additionally, Lou Andreadis of Grand Valley State was tabbed as the region's "Women's Assitant Coach of the Year," while GVSU's Jerry Baltes and AU's Jud Logan earned regional "Women's and Men's Head Coach of the Year," respectively.
Horn is qualified in two events for the Division II Outdoor Championships: 200 meters and 400 meters. He ranks seventh in the 400 meters (46.73) and 21st in the 200 meters (21.25) headed into the NCAA Championships. He was named the GLIAC Track Athlete of the Meet after winning the 200 meters and finishing second in the 400 meters. Horn ran on Ashland’s GLIAC champion 4x100 meter relay squad and on its GLIAC runner-up 4x400 meter relay.
A sophomore from Circleville, Ohio, Cooper has qualified for the NCAA Division II Outdoor Championships in three events: the discus, hammer, and shot put. She scored 24 points at the GLIAC Conference meet and was named the GLIAC Field Event Athlete of the Meet.
Wilson owns the best pole vault mark in NCAA Division II by over a foot at 18’ 0.5”. He was the GLIAC champion in the event, setting a new school and GLIAC conference record. His leap also qualified him for the USATF Championships, becoming the first track athlete in GVSU school history to qualify for the meet. He is tied for eighth on the men’s NCAA Division II all-time list.
Andreadis is the pole vault and multi-events coach for Grand Valley. Outdoors, his vaulters swept the GLIAC women’s pole vault places first through fourth, with Diana Noonan setting a new GLIAC record. His heptathletes finished first, third, and seventh at the conference meet as well. Four of his vaulters are qualified for the national meet, led by Noonan whose jump of 13’ 9” is currently third on the all-time NCAA Division II list.
It’s no coincidence that GVSU’s record of success parallels the tenure of head coach Baltes. Now in his tenth season, Baltes guided his Lakers to their tenth-straight GLIAC Conference Championship, winning by over 100 points. Baltes’ team has 23 entries for the NCAA Division II Outdoor Track & Field Championships.
Logan’s Eagles have 12 individuals and two relays qualified for the NCAA Division II Outdoor Championships. Logan led Ashland to its second-straight men’s GLIAC Championship earlier this outdoor season and also won the GLIAC Men’s Coach of the Year honors for the second consecutive year.