Murray named top men's coach
Naimadu honored as region's athlete of the year
ABILENE -- Abilene Christian men's track and field coach Jon Murray was named the NCA Division II Coach of the Year on Wednesday by the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches' Association.
ACU sophomore Nicodemus Naimadu was named the NCAA Division II South Central Region Male Athlete of the Year, while Murray was named the region's Coach of the Year. Murray will direct Naimadu and the rest of his ACU men's and women's teammates this weekend as ACU hosts the NCAA Division II outdoor championship meet at Elmer Gray Stadium.
Murray led the ACU men to their 15th straight Lone Star Conference championship last month in San Angelo where he was named the LSC men's Coach of the Year. Murray has been a part of 88 NCAA national and regional and Lone Star Conference championships since he joined the ACU coaching staff in 1991.
Earlier this year, he directed the ACU men to 13th national indoor championship in the program's history.
Naimadu won the 2004 NCAA Division II individual championship in cross country, and in March he added the indoor national championship in the 5000 meters to his resume. He won the 5000 meters and steeplechase at the Lone Star Conference championship meet on his way to earning the Cap Shelton Award as the top male runner at the meet, an award he shared with teammate Marvin Bien-Aime.
Thrower Chris Figures of Cal State-Bakersfield won the national Male Athlete of the Year award, while another Cal State-Bakersfield thrower, April Burton, won the national Female Athlete of the Year award. Cal-San Diego head coach Tony Salerno was named the national Female Athlete of the Year.
Here are the other award winners, which were all announced Wednesday at the pre-meet banquet at the Teague Special Events Center on the ACU campus:
Male Regional Athletes of the Year
Northeast -- Patrick Morasse, UMass-Lowell
East -- John Somers, Shippensburg
Southeast -- Adrian Findley, St. Augustine's
South -- Cameron Dayne, Morehouse
Great Lakes -- Sanchaze Ross, Findlay
North Central -- Celedonio Rodriquez, Adams State
South Central -- Nicodemus Naimadu, Abilene Christian
West -- Chris Figures, Cal State-Bakersfield
Male Regional Coaches of the Year
Northeast -- Gary Gardner, UMass-Lowell
East -- Steve Spence, Shippensburg
Southeast -- George Williams, St. Augustine's
South -- Willie Laster, Albany State
Great Lakes -- Jerry Baltes, Grand Valley State
North Central -- Damon Martin, Adams State
South Central -- Jon Murray, Abilene Christian
West -- Kirk Freitas, Chico State
Female Regional Athletes of the Year
Northeast -- Nicole Plante, UMass-Lowell
East -- Nicole James, West Chester
Souheast -- Johnsie Liles, St. Augustine's
South -- Lynnsey Dailey, Fort Valley State
Great Lakes -- Heather Cooksey, Southern Indiana
North Central -- Steph Gebhart, South Dakota
South Central -- Alissa Miller, Angelo State
West -- April Burton, Cal State-Bakersfield
Female Regional Coaches of the Year
Northeast -- Gary Gardner, UMass-Lowell
East -- Brian Monshcien, Kutztown
Southeast -- George Williams, St. Augustine's
South -- Tyree Price, Fort Valley State
Great Lakes -- Ben Beyers, Southern Illinois-Edwardsville
North Central -- Lucky Huber, South Dakota
South Central -- Victor Thomas, Lincoln
West -- Tony Salerno, UC-San Diego
National Athletes of the Year
Male -- Chris Figures, Cal State-Bakersfield
Female -- April Burton, Cal State-Bakersfield
National Coaches of the Year
Male -- Jon Murray, Abilene Christian
Female -- Tony Salerno, UC-San Diego
