MEADVILLE, Pa. - On Wednesday, the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) announced the USTFCCCA Region Athletes and Coaches of the Year for the NCAA Division III indoor track & field 2011 season. Allegheny staff member Jason Headman was part of the recipient list as he was named Mideast Region Men's Assistant Coach of the Year.
Under the tutelage of Headman, who works primarily with Allegheny's distance group, the Gators finished a surprising third at the NCAC meet. The distance contingent broke four school records during the season and had four NCAA provisional qualifying marks. This weekend, Allegheny heads to the NCAA Division III Championships, where the distance medley relay will compete for a national crown. The DMR is headlined by senior Tony Dipre, who posted the second-fastest mile time in Division III this year (4:06.81).
“Jason has been an extremely valuable asset to both our men's and women's programs,” said head coach Brent Wilkerson. “His personal experience and passion to make our athletes better has made our indoor season a huge success. It has been a way easier transition to becoming a head coach of this program with the help of both Jason and Amy (Mantush).”
Headman makes the trek to Meadville, Pa., after serving for one season as an assistant track & field/cross country coach at Heidelberg University. While at Heidelberg, Headman was part of a staff that was named 2009 Ohio Athletic Conference Men's Cross Country Coaching Staff of the Year. Headman helped guide the Student Prince to the OAC league title, while Heidelberg finished 18th at the NCAA Division III Championships. Coaching 16 all-conference performers, including a school record-holder in the 5,000-meter run, Headman was again honored in the spring as a member of the OAC Outdoor Men's Coaching Staff of the Year.
Prior to his appointment at Heidelberg, Headman was an assistant coach at the University of Akron, where he graduated as one of the Zips' most heralded distance athletes. A captain during his senior season, Headman holds Akron school records for the indoor 5,000-meter run (14:41), outdoor 5,000-meter run (14:31) and outdoor 10,000 meter run. He was the outdoor track champion in the 2009 All-Ohio 10K (30:10) and earned All-Mid American Conference honors in indoor and outdoor track six times during his career. As a red-shirt, Headman posted a career-best 14:22 in the 5k.
As a member of Akron's cross country team, Headman was a two-time first team All-MAC selection and ran a personal record time of 24:40 in the 8K. He holds the best individual cross country finish at the MAC meet in school history (fourth place) and earned All-Ohio honors in 2005 and 2006.
