USTFCCCA Full Release

NEW ORLEANS – Mines track and field head coach Matt Sparks was named the South Central Region Men's Coach of the Year Monday by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association while Jocelyn Sparks earned South Central Men's Assistant Coach of the Year.
 
In his fifth year as head coach, Matt Sparks earns the first regional award of his career after being named RMAC Men's Indoor Track and Field Coach of the Year for the second time. He led Mines' men to the 2018 RMAC Indoor title, the Orediggers' second title in the last three years. Under Sparks, the Oredigger men were ranked No. 1 in the country in the USTFCCCA National Poll for five weeks and first in the South Central Region for six straight weeks. A total of 14 men (plus alternates) qualified for the NCAA Division II Indoor Track and Field Championships with six automatic qualifying marks including two automatic times in the distance medley relay.
 
Jocelyn Sparks earned the first regional award of her career as she oversaw the top-ranked pole vault group and top-ranked heptathlon group in the country. Under Sparks' guidance, Connor McLean earned RMAC Indoor Field Athlete of the year honors after setting the program record in the pole vault and heptathlon on his way to the national meet. In total, Sparks tutored nine different national qualifiers for the Orediggers.
 
Colorado School of Mines Track and Field is no stranger to USTFCCCA regional and national awards. Assistant coach Chris Siemers has earned multiple Coach of the Year honors on the cross country side and was named USTFCCCA NCAA Division II Assistant Coach of the Year in 2015-16 for both the indoor and outdoor season.
 
Matt Sparks, Jocelyn Sparks and the Oredigger track and field teams head to the NCAA Division II Indoor Championships Friday and Saturday with 17 qualifiers between the men and women. The national meet will be held in Pittsburg, Kan. on the campus of Pittsburg State University.
 
Keep up with Colorado School of Mines Athletics all season long on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram using the handle @MinesAthletics.