NEW ORLEANS – Regional Athletes and Coaches of the Year for the 2022 NAIA Indoor Track & Field season were announced on Thursday by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA).
Award winners were determined by a vote of USTFCCCA member coaches. Only those individuals from USTFCCCA member programs are eligible for awards. Each of the five regions – Great Lakes, Midwest, South, South Central and West – honored both genders’ top track athletes and field athletes as well as the top men’s and women’s head coaches and assistant coaches.
The Cascade Collegiate Conference was well-represented, sweeping the men’s side and grabbing three of the four West Region honors on the women’s side.
Lewis-Clark State College’s Clayton VanDyke grabbed West Region Men’s Track Athlete of the Year. VanDyke, from Vernal, Utah, is ranked among the nation’s top-5 seasonal performers in three different individual events: 800 (No. 1, 1:50.29), 1000 (No. 3, 2:26.23 OT) and mile (4:07.79). He is also a member of the Warriors’ distance medley relay team that qualified for nationals.
Eastern Oregon University’s TJ Davis was named the West Region Men’s Field Athlete of the Year. Davis, who hails from Sandpoint, Idaho, is ranked first nationally in the heptathlon with 5248 points. He only competed once in the multi this season and finished second in a field composed mainly of NCAA Division I athletes, just 34 points out of first place.
EOU’s head coach Ben Welch was named the West Region Men’s Coach of the Year. Welch, in his 31st year at Eastern Oregon, has the Mountaineers ranked No. 24 in the latest USTFCCCA National Rating Index and No. 1 in the West Region. The Mountaineers have four athletes ranked among the top-15 across three events.
Welch’s assistant Connor Bracken picked up West Region Men’s Assistant Coach of the Year honors. Bracken, in his fourth year as assistant coach at Eastern Oregon, coached the Mountaineers to a No. 4 NAIA #EventSquad ranking in the high jump. Three of his athletes ranked in the top-12 in the heptathlon, including national leader T.J. Davis.
On the women’s side, College of Idaho’s Catylynn Duff was named the West Region Women’s Field Athlete of the Year. Duff, from Culver, Oregon, is ranked first nationally in the weight throw at 18.69m (61-4), a mark that leads the nation by nearly three feet. She is also ranked 22nd nationally in the shot put at 13.08m (42-11).
Coyote head coach Mike Anderson grabbed the West Region Women’s Coach of the Year. Anderson, in his 15th year at College of Idaho, has several athletes qualified for the NAIA Indoor Track & Field Championships in the 1000, mile, 3000 and DMR. The Coyotes have two of the top-3 athletes in both the 1000 and weight throw.
Anderson’s assistant Dominic Bolin was named the West Region Women’s Assistant Coach of the Year. Bolin, in his sixth year as assistant coach at College of Idaho, guided the Coyotes to three top-10 NAIA #EventSquad rankings – 800, mile and 3000. His top athlete, Abbey Shirts, ranks No. 3 in the 1000 and No. 15 in the mile.