SeattleU promotes assistant coach Jordana LeSavage as head mens and women's track & XC coach...
LeSavage had served as an assistant coach for Seattle University since 2022.
In a release from the school, athletic director Shaney Fink said, "Jordana brings a wealth of technical experience in cross country and track & field, coupled with an unwavering commitment to Redhawk student athletes and ambitious goals for the program. We are thrilled for Jordana to lead us into the next chapter of Seattle U cross country and track & field."
"I am honored to work alongside the exceptional men and women that make up the Seattle U cross country and track & field program," said LeSavage. "I am inspired by the student athletes' commitment to excellence in both the classroom and on the track. I would like to thank Kelly Sullivan for his dedication and contribution the last seven years, and Shaney Fink and (associate athletic director) Eric Guerra for the opportunity to continue to build a competitive program."
Before her time at SeattleU, she spent two seasons at Florida State University, first as a volunteer assistant, then as an operations assistant.
LeSavage graduated with a bachelors degree in Science in Health and Exercise Science from Winona State University where she competed in cross country and track & field. She was an integral part of aiding the team back to the NCAA Division II Cross Country Championships in 2013.
The challenge for her and the SeattleU program are to get out of the basement of the Western Athletic Conference in the team's final season, before it transitions to the West Coast Conference with Grand Canyon.
As the West Coast Conference doesn't sponsor indoor and outdoor track, signs point towards SeattleU becoming a distance-only program, similar to how the University of Portland and Gonzaga operate their teams.
Should that be the case, it remains to be seen what becomes of those returning athletes who don't compete in distance events .
The Redhawks were eleventh in last year's Western Athletic Conference cross country championships on the men's side, and sixth on the women's side.
Since 2012 when the program became a full-fledged NCAA Division I program, SeattleU has yet to qualify a single athlete to the NCAA cross country, indoor or outdoor championships. They remain the only Washington Division I program with that distinction.
According to the team roster posted on SeattleU's TFRRS site, they have nine men and six women on their squad.
All are listed as freshmen, except for New Mexico transfer Osaze Demund, who was fourth in the Mountain West indoor championships last year at 1:50.87, which was the national indoor record in the event for the US Virgin Islands. According to his New Mexico TFRRS profile, he's never raced collegiately in cross country.
The same holds true on the women's side with an all freshman group, with the exception of Saint Martin's transfer Alisha Saucedo, who was eighth in the GNAC cross country championships, and a GNAC scorer indoors and outdoors at 800 meters last season.
The Redhawks are scheduled to open their season on September 3rd at Magnuson Park against the University of Washington, according to the UW schedule.
NOTE: The sports information office of Seattle University contributed to this report.
paulmerca.blogspot.com may receive a commission for any purchases made from links clicked. Please support this site and our sponsors by clicking on the links. You can also support the site by clicking the yellow "Buy Me A Coffee" link below.
Comments