Davidson College Women's Track

Wilson, who comes to Davidson from Central Michigan, will work specifically with the throwers, pole vaulters and combined-event athletes.  Over the course of Wilson's 14-year coaching career, he has mentored seven NCAA qualifiers, two ECAC Champions, nine scorers, 14 conference champions, one Patriot League record holder, eight school record holders, one men's team championship and five women's team championships.   Over the previous two seasons at Central Michigan, Wilson served as assistant head coach and mentored the jumpers, pole vaulters and multi-event athletes.   During his time at CMU, Wilson made a big impact on the Chippewa's multi-athletes, coaching Josh Kettlewell to one of the most decorated careers in program history. Kettlewell won the heptathlon at the Penn State National Invitational to shatter a 14-year-old school record by 300 points. Kettlewell went on to win the Mid-American Conference Championship and finished 17th in the country.   Prior to his time at Central, Wilson served as the head coach for cross country and track and field at Oswego State for one year after acting as an assistant coach for cross country and track and field at Bucknell University.   During his three seasons in Lewisburg, Pa., Wilson guided the women's squad to three consecutive Patriot League team championships and the men's team to its first title in 19 years.   Additionally, Wilson worked with Amy Mantush who set a Patriot League record in the high jump in 2010, Nicholas Hruch, Kyle Anthony and Drew Fitzgerald who all qualified for the NCAA Regional/First Round in the high jump, long jump/triple jump and high jump/pole vault respectively.    Wilson has also coached at William & Mary (2005-2007), Oneonta State University and his alma mater Virginia Commonwealth University (2000-2002).

Carpenters first year during the 2013-14 season. Records fell indoors as Stewart Dalton broke Davidsons 15-year old long jump record and Michael Lorentsen bested the previous school pole vault record three times. Additionally, the 4x400-meter relay team posted a Davidson all-time top-10 time, and Xzavier Killings became Davidsons second-best performer all-time in the high jump as the first Wildcat to leap over 6 feet in 30 years.   Outdoors, Lorentsen neared the school pole vault record with three peformances that ranked amongst the top-10 best in school history. The Cats under his guidance also impressed at the SoCon Championships with Lorentsen, Dalton, hurdler Charles Rappe and both relay teams earning top-eight finishes, and Rappe and Killings earning all-freshman honors.   Prior to arriving at Davidson, Carpenter served as a graduate assistant coach for the Texas State track and field program for two years, where he focused primarily on the jumps and multis and specialized in the high jump. Carpenter also helped with the recruitment of incoming student-athletes, as well as overseeing all weightlifting for the jump and multi-event athletes as a certified strength coach.   During his stint at Texas State, he guided five indoor Southland Conference medalists, including one champion and NCAA indoor provisional qualifier, and also coached eight outdoor conference medalists, including five Southland champions and five NCAA regional qualifiers. He also served as an assistant coach to a three-time All-American and Olympic Trials qualifier in the pole vault, Logan Cunningham.   Carpenter is USATF Level II certified in the jumps and USTFCCCA certified in the sprints, hurdles, relays and throws. He is also a NSCA Certified Strength & Conditioning Specialist. Carpenter graduated from Texas State in 2010 with a degree in exercise and sports science and received his masters degree in exercise science in August 2012, also from Texas State.

Straub came to Davidson in 2000 after spending eight years as the assistant women's track & field coach at Wake Forest University, where she was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2004. Her tenure at Davidson has yielded much success both on and off the trails.   Straub has coached the Wildcats to two Southern Conference cross country championships (2003 and 2005) and has been named SoCon Coach of the Year three times (2002, 2003 and 2005).  In 13 seasons, Straub has coached 12 runners to All-SoCon cross country honors, including three-time honorees Brenna Burns (2005-07), Megal Atias (2005-07) and Caroline Sanker (2006-08). Kelly Fillnow and Heather Conarroe (2009, 2010) were named All-SoCon twice (2003-04), and Sally Stanhope (2001), Anna Brew (2002), Allie Martin (2005), Natalie Atabek (2009), and Danielle Ruggieri (2009) also earned the honor under Straub's guidance.   While competing on a team level is often challenging in the competitive Southern Conference, Straub has coached several individual athletes to great success in both indoor and outdoor track.   In 13 seasons of Indoor track competition, Straub has coached a pair of individual champions, a SoCon record holder, a Freshman of the Year, a Most Outstanding Performer, and four All-SoCon performers.   In 2007, she coached a pair of SoCon indoor individual champions in Burns (3,000 meters, 9:53.83) and Kristen Meister (high jump, 1.81 meters). Meister, who still holds the Southern Conference record in the event, was also named Indoor Track Freshman of the Year that season, while Burns earned Indoor Track Most Outstanding Performer honors. Burns, who was a two-time Indoor SoCon Runner of the Week, was also a SoCon Indoor individual champion the following season when she won the 5,000 meters (17:18.56). In 2010, Straub coached Natalie Atabek to All-SoCon and All-Freshman honors in the 5,000 meters. Sanker and Burns also earned All-SoCon honors in the 5,000 meters, in 2008 and 2007, respectively.   In Outdoor track, Straub's athletes have been equally successful, as she has coached nine All-SoCon performers, seven individual event winners, one freshman of the year and the program's first NCAA qualifier before adding another in 2014.   The Wildcats final season in the Southern Conference was one of their most impressive, highlighted by Sarah Paddons participation in the 2014 NCAA East Regional Meet in June. Paddon was the 2014 Southern Conference Champion in the 1,500-meter run and became the first womens track & field athlete since 2007 to qualify for the regional meet. Teammate Erin Osment was the SoCon runner-up in the 10,000m at the outdoor meet and the duo led a group that set new program marks in every single indoor & outdoor meet. The 2013-14 Wildcats ended the year with  11 updates to the Davidson record books.   Melissa Millar was Straub's first performer to earn All-SoCon honors, in the 400-meter hurdles in 2001, and under her guidance Davidson athletes have continued to excel. In 2006, Emily King won the 10,000 meters to earn Freshman of the Year and All-SoCon honors. The following season, Burns was All-SoCon in both the 10,000 meters and the 5,000 meters, and Meister won the high jump in a school and SoCon record to become in the program's first ever NCAA qualifier. In 2008, Burns won both the 10,000 and 5,000 meter events and went on to win the NCAA's prestigious Walter Byers Scholarship, the school's first ever winner. Megal Atias won the 3,000-meter steeplechase in 2008, and Danielle Ruggieri won the 10,000 meters in 2009. Natalie Atabek earned All-SoCon honors in the event the following season, and was also named to the All-Freshman team along with teammate Rosie Lewis.   Straub's first three seasons at Davidson were marked by steady improvement. Her teams finished seventh at the Southern Conference cross country championship in 2000, fifth in 2001 and third in 2002. The 2003 cross country season yielded strong performances throughout the year and culminated with the Wildcats' first-ever SoCon team crown. Straub also received SoCon Coach of the Year honors.   After a third-place finish in 2004, Straub again led the Wildcats to the SoCon cross country championship in 2005, the teams' second in three seasons, and was named SoCon Coach of the Year for her efforts. The Wildcat women earned a one-point edge over defending SoCon champion Chattanooga behind three All-SoCon performances.   The Wildcats continued to excel under Straub's guidance, finishing ninth in the NCAA Cross Country Regionals in 2006, the program's first-ever top 10 finish, behind three top-50 performances. Straub's squad finished third at the Southern Conference Championships, with three runners earning All-SoCon honors, and ended the season ranked ninth in the USTFCCCA Southeast regional poll.   In 2007, Straub led the Wildcat women's cross country team to a runner-up finish at the SoCon cross country championships, behind All-SoCon performances from Caroline Sanker, who finished second overall, along with Brenna Burns and Megal Atias, who both finished in the top 10. Sanker finished 24th at the 2007 NCAA cross country regionals, becoming the program's first all-region athlete, while Burns was awarded the NCAA's prestigious Walter Byers postgraduate scholarship, the school's first ever winner.   At the 2007 SoCon outdoor track championships, Straub's team scored a program-high 45 points behind standout performances from Burns and Atias. Burns won a pair of titles, the 10,000 meters and the 5,000 meters, while Atias won the 3,000-meter steeplechase in school-record time and earned All-SoCon honors in the 5,000 meters.   In 2008, the cross country team was designated an All-Academic Team, while Caroline Sanker was named All-Academic American after earning All-Regional Honors for her performance at the NCAA Southeastern Regionals and All-SoCon honors for her eighth-place finish at the Southern Conference Championships. In outdoor track, Straub coached Danielle Ruggieri to an individual championship in the 10,000 meters at the 2009 Southern Conference Championships, and Kim Colley and Kennesia Martin to record-breaking performances in the sprints and the jumps.   In 2009-10, Straub coached three runners to All-SoCon honors in cross country in Natalie Atabek, Danielle Ruggieri and Heather Conarroe, as the team finished fifth overall. Atabek was also named to the All-Freshman team and went on to earn All-SoCon honors in both indoor and outdoor track, becoming the first Davidson Wildcat to earn all-league honors three times in one season. Atabek finished second in the 10K at the 2010 outdoor SoCons, where along with teammate Rosie Lewis, she was again named All-Freshman, and third in the 5K at the 2010 indoor SoCons. In addition, two cross country runners and three tracksters earned All-SoCon Academic honors.   Straub coached a pair of top-20 finishers at the 2010 SoCon Cross Country Championships, as Heather Conarroe finished 13th to earn All-SoCon Second Team honors, and Lauren Childs finished 16th overall. Conarroe also scored for Straub's squad at the 2011 SoCon Outdoor Championships, finishing eighth in the 10,000 meters, along with teammate Sarah Cline, who was eighth in the 5,000 meters.   Straub graduated from Wake Forest in 1988 with a degree in English. At her alma mater, she coached four cross country All-Americans, eight track & field All-Americans, as well as several all-conference performers and individual champions in the Atlantic Coast Conference.   Both a tactical and motivational leader, Straub helped take the Demon Deacon women to two NCAA District III Championships and six NCAA appearances in cross country, including a 15th-place team finish at the 1998 championships.   "Jen brings to Davidson a tremendous amount of experience as a competitor and coach in one of the nation's outstanding programs," Davidson Athletic Director Jim Murphy.   As an athlete at Wake Forest, Straub earned All-America honors in cross country and led her team to a 10th-place finish at the 1987 NCAA Cross Country Championships. She won two individual ACC titles at Wake Forest, first in the 10,000 meters in 1988 and then in the 3,000 meters in 1989. Straub currently holds the indoor record in the 3,000-meter run and outdoor records in the 3,000 and 10,000 meters at Wake Forest. She was also named one of the top 50 cross country athletes in ACC history.   Straub continues to train and compete in road races throughout the Carolinas. She is married to Davidson golf coach Tim Straub. The couple has one son, William and a daughter, Sydnee. Straub is a United States Track & Field Coaches Association certified coach at Level I and Level II.