Abilene Christian University Men's Track

Cook is in his ninth season on the ACU coaching staff and oversees the mens and womens throwing events in addition to serving as the meet manager for all home events. He has coached twenty-seven all-America athletes throughout his decorated career, including eight national championships in the throwing events and five national championships in the multi events.   Cooks biggest success stories as an ACU assistant coach have been Linda Brivule, Paige Newby and Nick Jones.   Cook coached Brivule to become the most decorated and most successful female javelin thrower in NCAA Division II history. Brivule won three consecutive national titles in the womens javelin from 2008-10, which had never been accomplished by any other female javelin thrower in history. Brivule also holds the NCAA Division II javelin record at 184-6, and also holds the NCAA Division II meet record. As a junior, Newby  won her first NCAA Division II title in the discus throw in Charlotte after earlier taking her first Lone Star Conference title. She threw season best of 162-0 to win at nationals and 156-9 to win at league meet in San Angelo. The year prior, Newby was runner-up in LSC discus at 156-2 and fourth at NCAA DII meet in 153-5.   In May 2012, Cook coached Jones to his NCAA DII-record fourth straight national championship in the discus. He had the three longest throws in the competition and finished with a best of 196-1 inch, to become only the third man in DII outdoor track and field history to win his event four times and the first in the discus.   The only other two men in NCAA DII history with four titles in one event are former Wildcat Freddie Williams in the 800 meters (1984-87) and Central Missouris Vladimir Golias in the steeplechase (1998-01).   Jones also won discus titles in 2008 (187-0) as a freshman in Walnut, Calif., 2009 (182-1) as a sophomore in San Angelo, and 2011 (199-4) in Turlock, Calif., after a redshirt season in 2010.   Cook additionally found success coaching the multi events, helping coach Camille Vandendriessche to three national titles in the decathlon and one national title in the indoor heptathlon, and Jessica Withrow to one national title and two runner-up placements in the heptathlon at the national meet.    In February 2013, Cook was named the NCAA Division II South Central Region Mens Indoor Field Assistant Coach of the Year and soon afterward was named the Wildcats' interim head coach for the outdoor season after former head coach Roosevelt Lofton was relieved of his duties.   Led by senior Baptiste Kerjeans win in the weight throw, Cook's crew scored 24 points at the inaugural Lone Star Conference indoor championship meet in 2013 to help the Wildcat men and women both league titles.     Outdoors, ACUs mens and womens teams each slipped to third place at their finals Lone Star Conference Championship. However, more than a dozen Wildcat throwers scored points there led by event winners Andrew Hudson (discus), Shalania Lakey (hammer) and Kerjean (hammer).   The 2014 season was the Wildcats first as NCAA DI members of the Southland Conference, but little changed for Cooks throwers as Kerjean won his third consecutive conference hammer throw title with a Southland meet record of 210-01 and Hudson again scored in the discus. On the womens side, Lauren (Hartwick) Jones set a personal best to place fifth in the hammer, while Lakey took seventh in the weight throw.    Cook was a seven-time national qualifier in the indoor weight throw and outdoor hammer. In 2003, he was a NCAA Division III all-America selection for his performance indoors in the weight throw. He won five conference titles with the Indians from 2001-04 throwing the hammer and the javelin. His throw of 59-5.00 set the schools record in the weight throw, while his mark of 188-11 is a record for the hammer.   Cook is certified at Level I by the USA Track and Field and also spends time as a personal trainer and helps conduct summer track and field camps throughout the state. Cook graduated from McMurry in 2004 with a B.S. in exercise and sports studies and helped coached three Warhawks to all-America honors.   Cook and his wife, Melinda Renee, have two children - Katelyn and Carter. 

Aguilar returned to the Abilene Christian track and field program as an assistant coach in the summer of 2013 following a four-year absence. The eight-time all-America and only pole vaulter in Lone Star Conference history to win four consecutive titles, Aguilar will coach and train the Wildcats' vaulters and multi athletes. Aguilar last coached at ACU from 2007-09 and during that time his student-athletes collected 15 all-America citations, including three national championships won by Camille Vandendriessche.   Under Aguilar's guidance, Vandendriessche became the first male athlete to win a multi-event competition at an NCAA indoor championship meet as he captured the heptathlon. The native or Paris, France also won three consecutive D-II national championships in the decathlon and captured the 2009 Texas Relays decathlon title against a field made up of all D-I athletes.   In addition to his work with Vandendriessche, Aguilar helped multi-athletes Chris Pounds and Jessica Withrow score runner-up honors at the 2008 outdoor national meet. His pole vaulters also were a constant presence at nationals with Cory Altenberg, Aaron Cantrell, Landon Ehlers, Stephen Toler and Callie Young all achieving all-America status.   At the conference level, Aguilar helped Toler and Young win back-to-back pole vault titles and coached Withrow to a third-straight heptathlon championship in 2008. Andy Henson won ACU's second decathlon title in three years with 6,056 points in 2009.    Before transitioning to coaching, Aguilar was the Wildcats' top vaulter each year from 2003 to 2006 and recorded his personal best height of 17-feet, .25 inches during his sophomore season of 2004. He also registered the 2005 team's fastest mark in the 400-meter hurdles (53.07) as a junior.   Aguilar's success in the vault helped the Wildcats extend their streak of Lone Star Conference championships to a 13th year. He won his first conference title in 2003 with a leap of 16-05.50 and recorded his best championship height of 16-11 two seasons later. Cory won the 2004 title with an effort of 15-4, and in 2006, he became the first Wildcat since Billy Olson to win four LSC pole vault championships after clearing a height of 16-2.75.   An academic all-Lone Star Conference honoree, Aguilar graduated from ACU in 2006 with a Bachelors of Science in exercise and sports science. The Crane, Texas native also is a certified personal trainer and a USA Track and Field certified coach. He and his wife, Angie, the Wildcats' volunteer assistant coach, have two boys, Kylor and Pacer.  After leaving Abilene in 2009 for his wife's hometown of Odessa, Texas, the Aguilars managed and owned several businesses, including a pole vault club, women's-only fitness center and fitness boot camp. Cory also coached numerous district, regional and state champions during his time away from the Key City as well as multiple top-10 nationally ranked high school vaulters.

Lund is in his first year as an assistant coach with the Abilene Christian men's and women's track and field program. He was named to his current position by head coach Keith Barnier in August of 2015 and will help coach the Wildcats' sprinters, hurdlers and jumpers. Lund comes to Abilene following two successful seasons (2013-15) assisting the University of St. Thomas' track and field teams. During his short tenure there Lund coached two NCAA DIII national champions in the 100 hurdles and distance medley relay, plus 16 All-Americans and 24 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Championss. In 2014 he was nominated for the Central Region's Assistant Coach of the Year. A three-time USTFCCCA Academic All-America, Lund served as Moorhead's track and field team captain for multiple seasons and twice earned All-America citations at indoor nationals as part of the 4x400m relay in 2011 and 2012. He also posted Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference records in the 4x400m relay and 600m and won the league's 600m indoor title in 2010. Altogether he earned nine all-conference awards and left the school as its record holder in five events: indoor 600m, 4x200m and 4x400m and outdoor 4x200m and 4x400m Lund earned a Master of Science degree in educational leadership in May 2013 and graduated Summa Cum Laude from Moorhead with his B.A. in communication studies in May 2011. He received a NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship in 2012.  

Walker is at the start of his second year as a graduate assistant coach for the Wildcats' cross country and distance programs. He was hired by ACU head coach Keith Barnier in the summer of 2013. Walker came to ACU from Notre Dame College in South Euclid, Ohio, where he was a two-year team captain and 800m national qualifier. He left the college holding six school records and graduated from there with a Bachelor of Arts degree in psychology. Walker is currently a graduate student in ACU's Ministry of Divinity program.

Abston is in his first year as assistant director of athletics for recruiting. Abston was named to the new role in July 2016 after two years as outside sales manager for Industrial Outfitters. He will organize the logistics of campus visits of potential student-athletes, collaborating with each coaching staff to ensure a first-class experience while visiting ACU. Hell also maintain communication with the coaching staffs and develop integrated communication plans promoting engagement with Athletics, academics and the Office of Admissions. He also will transfer the recruitment of prospective students who are interested in learning more about athletics opportunities at ACU, but who are not being actively recruited by athletics. Prior to going to work for Industrial Outfitters in Midland, Abston worked at ACU from September 2011 through Spring 2014 in several different admissions roles. He was an admissions counselor before becoming a transfer admissions counselor and, finally, associate director of recruiting. He graduated from ACU in 2009 with a Bachelor of Arts in journalism before earning his Master of Arts degree in journalism from The University of Texas at Austin in 2011. While at UT, Abston worked in the athletics media relations office, writing news and feature stories for texassports.com and assisting in the coverage of several sports, among other duties. He is married to Shealynn (Davis) Abston.

Rasor had two third-place finishes in the 110-meter hurdles at the conference meet and qualified for the NCAA DII National Championships in the event in 2011. Rasor was named the Lone Star Conferences Scholar-Athlete for ACU during the 2011-12 school year. In high school, Rasor was a four-time Texas state qualifier in the 110 and 300-meter hurdles. He placed third at the state meet in the 300-meter distance during his senior season of 2008. At Baylor, Rasor assisted with the 400m and 400m intermediate hurdling group as well as the mens and womens steeplechase. He also helped coach Baylor's freshman 400m hurdler to a fourth-place finish at nationals as well as an all-America on the 4x400m men's relay team. Rasor's additional duties with the Bears included organizing meet travel, recruiting research, scouting and working the 2013 Big XII Championship. During his time with the Baylor track and field team, Rasor was the program coordinator and coach for the city of Waco's 2013 and 2014 summer track program. In that role, he coached community youth alongside many current BU athletes. The Dimmitt, Texas, native earned a master's degree in sport management in May of 2014 from Baylor. He received his bachelor's degree in secondary math education from Abilene Christian University in 2012. Rasor is the author of , which was presented in April 2013 at the College Sport Research Institute Conference. Track & Field Facility Trends between NCAA Divisional Institutions

Bingham was announced as the head coach of the Wildcats' track and field program in May of 2016.   Bingham who recently completed his 18th season at Liberty in the spring of 2016 before taking over the Wildcats' program on June 1 will be the 19th head coach of a program that has won more team national championships (54 at the NCAA level) than any other single track and field program in intercollegiate athletics history. ACU is fifth in NCAA history in total number of team national championships won (57), trailing only UCLA (114), Stanford (109), USC  (100) and NCAA Division III swimming and diving powerhouse Kenyon College (58).   Bingham is no stranger to West Texas having grown up in Meadow (southwest of Lubbock) and competed at South Plains College before graduating from Texas Tech where he participated in football as well as track and field. He was a junior college all-America decathlete at South Plains, finishing second at nationals in 1982 and 1983 with a personal best of 7,510 points. Bingham, in fact, will be inducted into the National Junior Collegiate Athletics Association and South Plains College halls of fame on May 19 in Levelland.   Bingham has served two stints on the Liberty staff (assistant coach from 1995-2001 and associate head coach from 2004-2016), leaving only for three seasons from 2001-04 when he returned to Levelland as the head coach at South Plains College.   In the last five seasons, he has helped guide the Liberty men's and women's track and field teams to a combined 14 conference titles.   Last season, Bingham helped coach senior decathlete Daniel Newell to the NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships. It marked the fifth consecutive year Liberty has been represented in the decathlon at the NCAA national meet.   Bingham, who primarily works with the field event and multi-event athletes, saw three of his athletes qualify for the 2008 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships. As a result, Bingham was recognized as the 2008 U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Southeast Regional Men's Assistant Coach of the Year.   At South Plains, Bingham's athletes won 13 individual national championships and earned 33 all-America honors in track and cross country, while the 2002 women's marathon squad won the national championship. On two separate occasions, his men's teams earned a third-place finish at the national championship meet. In 2004, he was named the 2004 National Junior College Outdoor Coach of the Year.   Prior to his tenure at South Plains, he served as an assistant coach at Liberty for six seasons, where he was primarily responsible for assisting with multi-event athletes and field events. As an assistant coach for the Flames, he coached seven NCAA Division I all-America athletes.   During his competitive days, Bingham was an all-America decathlete at South Plains, finishing second at nationals in 1982 and 1983 with a personal best of 7,510 points.   Bingham graduated cum laude from Texas Tech (1985) with a bachelor's degree in physical education and earned his masters of education from Sul Ross State University in Alpine.

Jelen is at the start of his first season as an assistant coach with the track and field program. He is responsible for the recruitment and training of the Wildcats' cross country and long-distance runners.   A collegiate and high school head coach with a decades worth of experience, Jelen joined Lance Bingam's staff at ACU during the summer of 2016 following two succesful seasons as the assistant cross country/track and field coach at King University a NCAA DII school based in Bristol, Tenn.   In his tenure with the Tornado men and women, Jelen directly coached three all-region award winners 10 all-conference student-athletes. Two track records were broken during his tenure and his student-athletes earned a combined eight academic honors at the conference and national level.   Prior to his arrival at King, Jelen was the women's head cross country coach at NCAA DIII Cedar Crest in Allentown, Pa., for the 2014-15 season, and served as a graduate assistant coach in 2013-14 for South Dakota State. Five of his competitors at Cedar Crest achieved personal records in the 6K as the team earned All-Academic recognition from the USTFCCCA.   While at South Dakota State, Jelen coached three all-conference competitors in the steeplechase while the men's cross country team won the Summit League championship led by All-America Trent Lusignan. The women's team finished as the conference runner-up, and overall the distance program collected 21 all-conference awards between cross country and track and field.   Jelen's additional coaching stops include two assistant coaching stints with Sioux Falls Lincoln High School in South Dakota and one season at Liberty Christian Academy.   As a student-athlete, Jelen made the Big South's All-Decade Cross Country Team for the 2000's as he was a six-time all-conference honoree and an all-region selection for Liberty XC in 2007. He also made the league's Presidential Honor Roll on three occasions.   Jelen began his collegiate career at Augustana College, where he was a DII Academic All-America following the 2004-05 season.   At the high school level, Jelen was a three-time XC/Track state champion for Lincoln High School.   Jelens cross country PRs include an 8K mark of 24:00 (recorded at NCAA pre-nationals) and 10K time of 30:32 (at NCAA Regionals). On the track, Jelen clocked a 3:53.43 in the 1500m, 8:25.21 in the indoor 3K, 9:03.69 in the steeplechase and 14:22.15 in the indoor 5K.   Jelen earned his Bachelor of Science degree in kinesiology: fitness specialist from Liberty University in 2009. He is a certified USATF Level I coach, who also is trained in Red Cross First Aid / CPR. Jelen and his wife, Emily, have two sons: Judah (2) and Shepherd (newborn).