2016 USTFCCCA Indoor Regional Athletes of the YearNEW ORLEANS -- Leading up to the
NCAA Division II Indoor Track & Field National Championships this weekend, head coach Kevin LaSure and freshman Mobolade Ajomale were honored by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA). LaSure was named West Region Head Coach of the Year and Ajomale earned the title of West Region Track Athlete of the Year in Tuesday's announcement.
"I am truly grateful for this honor," said LaSure. "It's a testament to all of the hard work the student-athletes and my coaching staff have put in to accomplish what we have so far."
Each of the regions, which are the same as those used during the Division II cross country season, honored both genders' top track athletes and field athletes and the top men's and women's head coaches and assistant coaches. Award winners were determined by a vote of USTFCCCA member coaches.
In his first year at the helm of ART U, LaSure guided the Urban Knights to 10 entries into the NCAA Championships, including four that rank in the top four in seeding. Those individuals include Ajomale (60m, 200m),
Jordan Edwards (400m), and the men's 4x400m relay (
Roman Skovronski, Edwards,
Alexander McNally, and Ajomale). Highlighting the season thus far were three new school records with Ajomale running a 6.63 in the 60m at the Husky Classic (
Feb. 13), a 21.04 at the Boston University Last Chance Meet (
Feb. 28) where the 4x400m relay team combined for a 3:12.16 as well. The men's squad, which is ranked No. 2 in the region and No. 6 nationally, also produced a program-record
12 USTFCCCA All-Region individuals.
After redshirting with Academy of Art last year, Ajomale made a huge impact in his first official season of collegiate competition. And he did so right away, earning
USTFCCCA National DII Athlete of the Week for his automatic qualifier in the 60m (6.65) at the University of Washington Invitational on
Jan. 30. The Richmond Hill, Canada native would go on to better that mark with a 6.63 at the
Husky Classic, making him as the sixth individual ever to run such a time at the Division II level and first in the West Region (second in DII) by the regular season's end.
The redshirt freshman later added another school record with his 21.04 in the 200m, the eighth-best time in DII history, at the BU Last Chance Meet and once again first in the West Region (second in DII). That same meet, Ajomale would contribute to the men's 4x400m record-breaking performance as well and their 3:12.16 mark is currently atop those from the West Region while sitting at fourth in the country.
"I'm very honored to receive the award and to see that my hard work is paying off," said Ajomale. "The goal still remains to come home with a national title."
Many of the honored athletes and coaches will be in competition at the NCAA Division II Indoor Track & Field Championships coming up this weekend, March 11-12, in Pittsburg, Kansas at the Robert W. Plaster Center. Portions of the meet will be streamed online live at NCAA.org and more information can be found at the USTFCCCA's
National Championships Central page.
