North Park University Women's Track

Imig has helped to spearhead a resurgence of cross country and track & field, dramatically increasing the numbers and level of competition of the team.  From 2012-2015, Imig has been a part of a track and field coaching staff that as produced 14 school records, 81 All-Conference performances, 128 all-time top ten marks, and three NCAA All-Americans. The 2015 track and field season produced the best Viking team finishes in over a decade.  The women claimed sixth place at the indoor conference championship while the teams finished sixth (men) and seventh (women) respectively at the outdoor CCIW meet.   Individually, Imig coached Mia Gomez to All-Conference honors in the 3k (indoors) and 10k, and guided the womens DMR to a fifth place finish at the indoor championships. The cross country program has also experienced tremendous growth during Imigs tenure with 10 Vikings adding their names to the schools all-time top 25 lists and with dramatically improved invitational, conference, and regional finishes. The 2014 season produced the highest mens finish at the conference championships (seventh) since 2008 and saw Mia Gomez earn All-Conference honors with her 16th place finish.  Further evidence of the vast improvement the program has made in recent history can be found in the 1-5 team scoring finish times at the conference championships.  In 2012, the men's scoring line-up had an average finish time of 31:06. In 2013 it improved to 29:09 and this year North Park dropped an additional 90-plus seconds in averaging 27:37 for 8k. The women's team meanwhile has had over a five-minute improvement from 29:44 in 2012 to 24:31 this season (27:19 in 2013). At the 2014 regional championships both teams continued their steady climb up through the field:   2014 - 27th place, 792 pts, 24:33 avg.         2013 - 34th place, 990 pts, 26:33 avg.        2012 - No Team Score                                      2014 - 30th place, 887 pts, 28:06 avg.         2013 - 32nd place, 985 pts, 28:44 avg.       2012 - 39th place, 1139 pts, 31:30 avg. Prior to coming to North Park, Imig served as the head boys' cross country and assistant track and field coach at St. Charles North High School (St. Charles, Ill.) from 2007 to 2010. Under his tutelage, the cross country team finished sixth (2007), eighth (2008), and 20th (2009) at the IHSA championships and produced two All-State athletes. On the track side, Imig coached thirteen distance athletes to the Illinois State Track & Field Championships and coached five all-state athletes including the 2008 state-champion 4 x 800 relay (7:45). The same relay went on to compete at the Nike Outdoor National Championships earning All-American honors with a fifth place finish. Imig also served as an assistant coach at Greenville College in Greenville, Ill., from 2005 to 2007. He helped lead the mens and womens cross country teams to first place finishes at the 2005 and 2006 St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SLIAC) Cross Country Championships and the track and field teams to first (men) and second (women) place finishes at the 2006 NCCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships. In total, Imig guided twenty-seven athletes to SLIAC All-Conference honors, produced four NCCAA All-Americans, and two NCAA Division III national qualifiers in cross country and the track and field distance events. Other coaching experiences for Imig include positions at Bartlett High School (Bartlett, Ill.) and Eastern Illinois University in Charleston, Ill. Imig guided the Bartlett High School girls distance program from 2001 to 2005 and served as a graduate assistant coach at Eastern Illinois University while obtaining a masters degree in physical education. As an undergraduate, Imig ran under legendary coach Al Carius at North Central College in Naperville, Ill. Imig was a member of five NCAA Division III national championship cross country and track & field teams and served as a captain on the 1999 cross country team. During his high school career, Imig earned all-state honors in cross country while competing for Joliet Township (Joliet, Ill.). He continues to enjoy training and the occasional race, and has set personal best road times in recent years of 52:17 (ten-miles) and 1:09:50 in the half-marathon.

Masanet has been part of 21 team conference championships with coaching stops at Eastern Illinois, Long Beach State, Missouri-Kansas City and Northeastern Illinois. With a well-rounded coaching background, Masanet is a noted mid-distance specialist having coached seven Eastern Illinois mens 800m runners to 1:51 or faster clockings from 2008-2010, including Dave Holm (1:48.86) to a 12 place finish at the 2009 NCAA Division I Indoor Track and Field Championships. Also during his tenure at EIU, Masanet coached Dan Strackeljahn to a school record in the 1500m (3:43.94) and an eventual sub-4:00 time in the mile (3:59.77) as a post collegian. Masanet also coached Jillian Blondell and Jake Stout to school records in the steeplechase, and Dave Carlson (10000m) and the mens distance medley relay team to NCAA qualifying times. The 2005 Ohio Valley Conference cross-country Coach of the Year, Masanet was part of a staff that hosted five conference championships and the annual Illinois High School State Track and Field Championships. He served as the NCAA Midwest Region representative for mens cross-country from 2008-2009 after serving as the treasurer of the coaching association (USTFCCCA) from 2005-2008. At Long Beach State, he coached Jenny Yadon to a school record in the steeplechase (10:33.99) and helped lead a resurgence in the cross-country and distance program at the school. Masanet also served as the NCAA West Region representative for mens cross-country from 2003-2004. During his tenure at Missouri-Kansas City, Masanet won the Mid-Continent Conference (now Summit League) coach of the year five times and as head track and field coach, oversaw four NCAA national qualifiers, including UMKCs first All-American (Matt Voelker, High Jump) in 2002. His distance runners established every school record and set three Mid-Continent Conference records (womens 800m and 5000m and mens 1500m) while winning ten individual conference titles and ranking in the top ten in the Midwest region in cross-country three straight years (1998, 1999, 2000). Masanet started his full-time coaching career at Northeastern Illinois in 1995 after a one-year stint as a part-time coach at UC Santa Barbara. While at NEIU, Masanet coached Daniel Silva to a runner-up finish at the 1996 Mid-Continent Conference cross-country championship. He is married to Leah (LeFebvre) who is finishing her PhD in Communication Studies at the University of Texas-Austin. 2004-2010 Eastern Illinois University Head Cross-Country / Assistant Track and Field Coach 2002-2004 Long Beach State University Assistant Cross-Country / Assistant Track and Field Coach 2000-2002 Missouri Kansas City (UMKC) Head Cross-Country / Head Track and Field Coach 1997-2000 Missouri Kansas City (UMKC) Head Cross-Country / Assistant Track and Field Coach 1995-1997 Northeastern Illinois University Head Cross-Country / Head Track and Field Coach 1994-1995 UC Santa Barbara Assistant Cross-Country / Assistant Track and Field Coach 2005 Ohio Valley Conference Mens Cross-Country 2002 Mid-Continent Conference Mens Indoor Track and Field 2000 Mid-Continent Conference Mens Outdoor Track and Field 2000 Mid-Continent Conference Womens Outdoor Track and Field 2000 Mid-Continent Conference Mens Indoor Track and Field 1999 Mid-Continent Conference Womens Cross-Country