Wednesday, November 11, 2015

PORTLAND, Ore. – After sweeping individual titles at both the GNAC Championships and the NCAA West Regional Championships, Alaska Anchorage has completed another sweep – the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association’s West Region Athletes of the Year.

Sophomore Henry Cheseto was named the USTFCCCA West Region Male Athlete of the Year while junior Joyce Chelimo was named the organization’s West Region Female Athlete of the Year. In addition, Alaska Anchorage head coach Michael Friess was named the region’s Men’s Coach of the Year.

Cheseto repeated as West Region Male Athlete of the Year after repeating as both the GNAC champion and West Region champion. After finishing third at the season-opening Hawaii Big Wave Invitational (to two of his teammates), Cheseto has yet to lose a race again. He claimed first place finishes at the Hawaii Pacific Invitational and Western Washington Invitational before claiming his second GNAC title on Oct. 24 in a time of 24:22.70 for 8,000 meters, leading the Seawolves to their sixth consecutive league championship.

At last week’s West Region Championships, Cheseto was challenged only by teammate Dominik Notz in taking the title, covering the 10,000 meters in 29:29.82. Cheseto led the Seawolves to to an easy win in the team competition as thet scored 55 points, 24 points better than second place Chico State.

After utilizing a redshirt season in 2014, Chelimo returned to claim a trio of second place finishes before cruising to her first GNAC championship. She covered the 6,000-meter course in a time of 21:00.90, eight seconds better than teammate Caroline Kurgat, to lead the Seawolves to the team championship with 39 points. Chelimo repeat the feat at regionals as she put 17 seconds between herself and Kurgat to win in a time of 20:42.34.

Chelimo led the Alaska Anchorage women to a third place finish at the regional meet with a score of 201 points.

Friess, in his 26th season leading the Alaska Anchorage program, earned a regional award for the first time since 2011 and for the 10th time in his career. He will lead the Seawolves back to the NCAA Division II Championships, which take place Nov. 21 in Joplin, Mo. The men finished sixth at last year’s meet, with Cheseto earning All-American honors with a 19th place finish. The women finished ninth last year. Chelimo, formerly Joyce Kipchumba, was an All-American in 2013 with a 13th place finish.