Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania Women's Cheerleading

Taylor Zerphey was named Shippensburg University's head cheerleading advisor in April 2024.   Zerphey joined the Raiders after serving as a cheerleading coach in Derry Township for the last eight years. She also spent seven years working as a cheerleading coach for the Elizabethtown Bears Club squad, including service as a coach for the 'A' squad that won Grand Champions at the Big Blue Battle Competition.   In her time at Derry Township, Zerphey was a longtime Head Coach of the junior high squad, working to implement the first middle school competition team and increase participation in the program, with the squad size doubling during her tenure.   As a performer, Zerphey was a member of the Big 33 Pennsylvania Cheerleading Team. She was also a member of the World Cup International Open Level 6 team.   Zerphey earned her bachelor's degree in international business and an MBA in strategic leadership from Elizabethtown College in 2021 and 2023, respectively.

Dave Osanitsch ‘96 is in his 21st season as the head coach and director of the Shippensburg University men’s and women’s track & field programs. The 2025-2026 campaign is his 29th season as a track and field coach at the collegiate level.   In 20 years as the Head Coach of the SU men’s and women’s track & field programs, Osanitsch has guided the Raiders to 52 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Championships. The rest of the PSAC has combined to win just 28 league titles in the same span.   Shippensburg University Track & Field has achieved profound levels of success during Coach O’s tenure.  With 52 PSAC titles, Osanitsch holds the most conference championships in any sport in the 75-year history of the league. In 2025, Osanitsch was named to a prestigious list of 75 “PSAC Distinguished Keystones.” The list recognized coaches, staff members and administrators who have been historically influential in the 75-year history of the conference. Osanitsch’s unrivaled success has helped shape PSAC Track & Field, while his leadership at the both the conference level and the national level with the U.S. Track & Field and Cross-Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) has left a lasting impact on the sport.   Since 2006, Osanitsch has earned a record 50 PSAC Coach/Staff of the Year awards and 28 USTFCCA Division II Region Coach of the Year awards. He won the Men’s Outdoor Coach of the Year award for 14 consecutive seasons from 2010-24. Along with the team’s PSAC success, Shippensburg University Track & Field has had four NCAA Championship Relays, 175 NCAA All-Americans and 11 NCAA All-American relay squads during his tenure. In addition, nearly every school record has been broken while hundreds of Automatic or Provisional NCAA qualifiers have been achieved along with a multitude of PSAC champions.   Osanitsch began coaching at his alma mater in 2002 as an assistant coach in track and field, primarily working with the jumpers and multi-event athletes – a role he maintains as the head coach. Since his arrival at Shippensburg, the jumps/multis squad has garnered 85 individual PSAC championships and a multitude of All-PSAC honors. Additionally, Osanitsch has produced 44 NCAA All-Americans in the jumping and multi events. Of the 20 events Coach Osanitsch oversees, his athletes have captured 17 of the 20 School Records at SU.   A 1996 graduate of Shippensburg with a Bachelor of Science in criminal justice, Osanitsch was a five-time NCAA Division II Championship qualifier in the 55-meter and 110-meter hurdles. He was a two-time PSAC indoor champion in the 110-meter hurdles in 1993 and 1995 as well as a two-time ECAC indoor champion in the 55-meter hurdles. In 1993 and 1995, Osanitsch was a member of both the PSAC and ECAC outdoor track and field championship teams.   Osanitsch was also an NCAA All-American in the 55-meter hurdles in indoor track. In 1994, he finished sixth at the NCAA Division II Indoor Track and Field Championships before placing seventh as a senior in 1996. Osanitsch currently holds the school record in the indoor 55-meter hurdles with a time of 7.49 seconds (8.06 60HH), a mark that is one of the fastest times in PSAC history. For his college athletic efforts, Osanitsch was inducted into the Shippensburg University Athletic Hall of Fame in 2010. In 2023, Osanitsch was tapped to serve on the USTFCCCA Board of Directors (BOD). He is in the midst of a four-year term. He is the Secretary for the BOD and serves as the Division II representative. From 2014-17, Osanitsch served as the Chairman of the USTFCCCA’s NCAA Division II Executive Council. Osanitsch, a longtime member of the USTFCCCA council, functioned as Division II’s highest-ranking officer on the national USTFCCCA board during his term of service.   Osanitsch and his wife Julie reside in Shippensburg. His daughter Madison was an All-PSAC and Academic All-District swimmer at Bloomsburg who will graduate in May 2026 with a master’s degree in speech pathology. His son Brayden also attends Bloomsburg. Coach O By The Numbers • 52 PSAC Team Championships • 10 PSAC Team Runner-Up Finishes Men’s Track & Field      2025- PSAC Outdoor Track- 2nd place 2025- PSAC Indoor Track- Champions 2024- PSAC Outdoor Track- Champions 2024- PSAC Indoor Track- Champions 2023- PSAC Outdoor Track- Champions 2023- PSAC Indoor Track- Champions 2022- PSAC Outdoor Track- Champions 2022- PSAC Indoor Track- Champions 2021- PSAC Outdoor Track-Champions 2020- PSAC Indoor Track-Champions 2019- PSAC Outdoor Track- Champions 2019- PSAC Indoor Track- Champions 2018- PSAC Outdoor Track- Champions 2018- PSAC Indoor Track- Champions  2017- PSAC Outdoor Track- Champions 2017- PSAC Indoor Track- Champions  2016- PSAC Outdoor Track- Champions 2016- PSAC Indoor Track- Champions  2015- PSAC Outdoor Track- Champions 2015- PSAC Indoor Track- Champions 2014- PSAC Outdoor Track- Champions 2014- PSAC Indoor Track- Champions 2013- PSAC Outdoor Track- Champions  2013- PSAC Indoor Track- Champions  2012- PSAC Outdoor Track- Champions  2012- PSAC Indoor Track- Champions  2011- PSAC Outdoor Track- Champions  2011- PSAC Indoor Track- Champions  2010- PSAC Outdoor Track- Champions  2010- PSAC Indoor Track- 3rd place  2009- PSAC Outdoor Track- Champions   2009- PSAC Indoor Track- Champions   2008- PSAC Outdoor Track- 3rd place    2008- PSAC Indoor Track- 2nd place   2007- PSAC Outdoor Track- 2nd place    2007- PSAC Indoor Track- 2nd place    2006- PSAC Outdoor Track- Champions   2006- PSAC Indoor Track- Champions   Women’s Track & Field 2025- PSAC Outdoor Track- 5th Place 2025- PSAC Indoor Track- 2nd Place 2024- PSAC Outdoor Track- Champions 2024- PSAC Indoor Track- 2nd Place 2023- PSAC Outdoor Track- 2nd Place 2023- PSAC Indoor Track- Champions 2022- PSAC Outdoor Track- 3rd Place 2022- PSAC Indoor Track- 7th Place 2021- PSAC Outdoor Track- Champions 2020- PSAC Indoor Track- 5th Place 2019- PSAC Outdoor Track- 3rd Place 2019- PSAC Indoor Track- 3rd Place 2018- PSAC Outdoor Track- Champions 2018- PSAC Indoor Track- Champions 2017- PSAC Outdoor Track- Champions 2017- PSAC Indoor Track- Champions 2016- PSAC Outdoor Track- Champions 2016- PSAC Indoor Track- 2nd place 2015- PSAC Outdoor Track- Champions 2015- PSAC Indoor Track- Champions 2014- PSAC Outdoor Track- Champions 2014- PSAC Indoor Track- 3rd Place 2013- PSAC Outdoor Track- Champions 2013- PSAC Indoor Track- Champions 2012- PSAC Outdoor Track- Champions 2012- PSAC Indoor Track- Champions 2011- PSAC Outdoor Track- Champions 2011- PSAC Indoor Track- Champions 2010- PSAC Outdoor Track- Champions 2010- PSAC Indoor Track- Champions 2009- PSAC Outdoor Track- 2nd place 2009- PSAC Indoor Track- 2nd place 2008- PSAC Outdoor Track- 3rd place 2008- PSAC Indoor Track- Co-Champions 2007- PSAC Outdoor Track- 4th place 2007- PSAC Indoor Track- 5th place 2006- PSAC Outdoor Track- 4th place 2006- PSAC Indoor Track- 5th place (The PSAC did not conduct 2020 PSAC Outdoor Championships or 2021 PSAC Indoor Championships due to the COVID-19 pandemic) Coaching Honors 50-time PSAC Coach of the Year 2006: Men’s Indoor, Men’s Outdoor 2008: Women’s Indoor 2009: Men’s Indoor 2010: Women’s Indoor, Men’s Outdoor, Women’s Outdoor 2011: Women’s Indoor, Men’s Indoor, Women’s Outdoor, Men’s Outdoor 2012: Women’s Indoor, Men’s Indoor, Women’s Outdoor, Men’s Outdoor 2013: Women’s Indoor, Men’s Indoor, Women’s Outdoor, Men’s Outdoor 2014: Men’s Indoor, Men’s Outdoor, Women’s Outdoor 2015: Women’s Indoor, Men’s Indoor, Women’s Outdoor, Men’s Outdoor 2016: Women’s Outdoor, Men’s Indoor, Men’s Outdoor 2017: Women’s Outdoor, Men’s Indoor, Men’s Outdoor 2018: Women’s Indoor, Men’s Indoor, Women’s Outdoor, Men’s Outdoor 2019: Men’s Indoor, Men’s Outdoor 2020: Men’s Indoor 2021: Women’s Outdoor, Men’s Outdoor 2022: Men’s Indoor, Men’s Outdoor 2023: Men’s Indoor, Women’s Indoor, Men’s Outdoor 2024: Men’s Indoor, Men’s Outdoor, Women’s Outdoor 2025: Men’s Indoor 28-time USTFCCA Regional Coach of the Year 2006: Men’s Indoor, Men’s Outdoor 2008: Women’s Indoor 2010: Women’s Indoor, Women’s Outdoor 2011: Men’s Indoor, Women’s Indoor, Women’s Outdoor 2012: Women’s Indoor 2015: Women’s Indoor, Women’s Outdoor, Men’s Outdoor 2016: Men’s Indoor 2017: Men’s Indoor, Women’s Outdoor 2018: Men’s Indoor 2019: Men’s Outdoor 2020: Men’s Indoor 2021: Men’s Outdoor, Women’s Outdoor 2022: Men’s Indoor, Men’s Outdoor 2023: Women’s Indoor, Men’s Indoor, Men’s Outdoor 2024: Men’s Indoor, Men’s Outdoor, Women’s Outdoor School Record Holders at SHIP during Coach O’s tenure as Jumps/Multis Coach:   Men’s Outdoor Long Jump- Herman Kirkland- 25’ ¾” Triple Jump- Steve Waithe- 51’ 6 ½” High Jump- Leander Toney/Jalen Ramsey- 7’ 1 ¾” Decathlon- Mason Boyd - 6955 points   Men’s Indoor Long Jump- Herman Kirkland- 25’ 3 ¼” Triple Jump- Steve Waithe- 50’ 5 ½” High Jump- Tra-C Davis- 7’ 1” Heptathlon- Mason Boyd - 5186 Points   Women’s Outdoor Long Jump- Sarah Hunt- 20’ 9 ¾” Triple Jump- Tunisia Lacy- 42’ 5” Pole Vault- Kali Hepner- 12’ 11 ¾” Heptathlon- Sam Beckerleg- 4670 Points   Women’s Indoor Long Jump- Sarah Hunt- 20’ 0 ½” Triple Jump- Abby Wagner- 41’ 3” Pole Vault- Kali Hepner- 12’ 10” High Jump- Rebekah Newhart- 5’ 7 ¾” Pentathlon- Nicola Pugge- 3370 (3391) Points   NCAA All-Americans during Coach O’s Tenure as Jumps/Multis Coach: Sarah Hunt – 6-Time NCAA All-American (Long Jump & Triple Jump) LeQuan Chapman – 6-Time NCAA All-American (Long Jump/Triple Jump) Tunisia Lacy – 5-Time NCAA All-American (Triple Jump) Herman Kirkland – 4-Time NCAA All-American (Long Jump/60) Abby Wagner – 4-Time NCAA All-American (Triple Jump) Steve Waithe – 3-Time NCAA All-American (Triple Jump) Tra-C Davis – 3-Time NCAA All-American (High Jump) Zarria Williams – 3-Time NCAA All-American (Long Jump) Jalen Ramsey – 2 Time NCAA All-American (High Jump) Kali Hepner – 2-Time NCAA All-American (Pole Vault) Megan Breski – NCAA All-American (Pole Vault) Andrew Batula – NCAA All-American (High Jump) Mason Boyd - NCAA All-American (Heptathlon) Donnie Graybill – NCAA All-American (Heptathlon) Cody DeBoer – NCAA All-American (Long Jump) Shamar Jenkins – NCAA All-American (Triple Jump) Sara McKean - NCAA All-American (Long Jump)

Steve Spence is in his 29th season as the head coach of the Shippensburg University men’s and women’s cross country teams in 2026. Spence also serves as an assistant coach with SU’s track and field teams but devotes his time to the athletic discipline at which he excelled – distance running.    An Olympic marathoner, World Championships marathon bronze medalist and 19-time Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Coach of the Year, Spence has tutored nearly 100 All-Americans in track & field and 18 All-Americans in cross country at Shippensburg University.   Among the distinguished distance runners he has mentored are Randy Lowe, who won the 10K outdoor national championship in 1992, Emily Budnyk, the national runner-up at the 10K outdoor national championship in 1999, Mary Dell, the national runner-up in the 3K steeplechase in 2010, and daughter Neely Spence, a four-time national champion in the 5K and two-time national cross country champion.   He has also coached four national championship indoor distance medley relay squads, winning both the men’s and women’s titles in 2011, and helped mentor Brayden Burleigh – the 2014 NCAA Division II indoor champion in the mile.   Spence was promoted to a full-time assistant coaching role in November 1997 before being named the head coach of Men’s and Women’s Cross Country and Track & Field in July 1998, succeeding Galen Piper and Bob Walker.   In eight seasons as the head coach of six SU sports, Spence was named PSAC Coach of the Year six times (MXC – 2000, MITF – 2003, 2005, MOTF – 2003, 2004, WOTF – 2005). He was also named the NCAA Division II East Regional Men’s Track and Field Coach of the Year from 2003-05.   In 2005, Spence became the first men’s track and field coach in conference history to win both the indoor and outdoor championships in the same season, a feat later duplicated by his successor, Dave Osanitsch. Beginning with the 2005-06 academic year, Osanitsch was named the head coach of the track & field teams, while Spence remained as the head coach of cross country to focus solely on the distance program.   Overall, Spence is a 13-time PSAC Cross Country Coach of the Year, having earned the honor at least six times for each gender (MXC – 2000, 2009, 2010, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2023, 2025; WXC – 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2016). He is also a ten-time U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Atlantic Region Coach of the Year (MXC – 2009, 2015, 2017; WXC – 2009, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2016, 2025).   Spence is committed to creating individualized training programs in order to help each student-athlete reach their goals and achieve their potential. His success was noted in his first season as a head coach, as the SU women’s cross country team earned a third-place finish at the 1998 NCAA Championships – the highest in school history – trailing only the perennial powers of Adams State and Western State.   From 2008-12, Spence was named the PSAC Women’s Cross Country Coach of the Year and the USTFCCCA Atlantic Region Women’s Cross Country Coach of the Year each season. The 2008 women’s cross country team brought Shippensburg back to prominence. After finishing 12th at the PSAC Tournament in 2006, Spence’s recruiting efforts were rewarded with SU’s third PSAC Championship and NCAA Regional Championship in school history in addition to a sixth-place finish at the NCAA Championships. It began a streak of four consecutive PSAC and Atlantic Region championships for the women’s team.   In 2009, the men’s cross country program won its first NCAA Atlantic Region Championship in school history. The Raiders placed all five of their scoring performers among the Top 13 finishers to bestow each gentleman with USTFCCCA All-Region honors. At the 2009 PSAC Championships from Edinboro, Shippensburg was the only school to have six runners among the Top 20 and nine runners among the Top 30.   The memories of the 2010 season will never be forgotten. Spence guided a women’s squad that finished fourth at the national championships, including an individual national championship for Neely Spence and All-America honors for Mary Dell and Katie Spratford. He also guided the Raiders to their third consecutive conference and regional championship crowns – recording a 79-point victory at the PSAC meet and an 86-point victory at the regional meet.   At the 2010 PSAC Championships, SU had nine of its 10 runners achieve All-PSAC honors with a Top 20 finish. SU's pack was so impressive at the meet, that if the No. 6 through No. 10 runners had competed as a separate team, that group would have finished second at the meet ahead of all the other PSAC schools.   On the men’s side, Spence instructed a group that won its first conference championship in school history by placing four runners among the Top 5 and had all 10 of its runners finish in the Top 30. If SU's top five scorers lined up in a dual meet competition against all of the other finishers from the PSAC, the Raiders still would have won the conference championship.   A second-place finish at the Atlantic Region Championships put Shippensburg’s men in the national meet for the second straight year. At nationals, the Raiders finished seventh as a team – improving six spots from 2009.   The SU men’s squad won back-to-back PSAC Championships and Atlantic Region Championships in 2016-17, while the 2015 men’s squad placed fifth at the NCAA National Championships – the third-best finish in school history. For three straight years, the SU men’s team has also had an individual All-America finish at nationals (Austin McGinley – 2015, Kieran Sutton – 2016, Alex Balla – 2017). Most recently, Spence directed the men's team to the 2023 PSAC Championship and a third-place finish at the 2023 NCAA Atlantic Region Championships – with the Raiders being the only team to represent the league at the 2023 NCAA Division II Men's Cross Country National Championships.     A 1985 graduate of Shippensburg with a bachelor’s degree in business administration, Spence made a name for himself as a member of the Raider cross country and track and field teams, where he was a seven-time NCAA Division II All-American. He spent 10 years as a volunteer coach at the university while he was running competitively as one of the top American road racers.   Spence is a Central Pennsylvania native from Elizabethtown. He came to Shippensburg University after graduating from Lower Dauphin High School in Hummelstown. As a student-athlete, he earned All-American honors in the 5,000 meters four years in a row in outdoor track and one year in indoor track while also receiving All-America honors twice in cross country.   Spence was PSAC champion in the 1,500 meters in 1982 and 1984, the 5,000 meters in 1982 and 1985 and the 10,000 meters in 1985. Two of his All-America honors in the 5,000 meters, outdoor in 1984 and indoor in 1985, were NCAA Division II national championships. In 1982 and 1985, Spence was voted the PSAC’s Outstanding Track Athlete. Spence still holds four school records in the 3,000 and 5,000 meters as well as the 1-mile and 2-mile runs while holding the outdoor record in the 5,000 meters.   At Lower Dauphin, Spence won the 1980 Pennsylvania Intercollegiate Athletic Association (PIAA) Class AAA 1,600-meter championship in a then-state record time of 4:12. He also won the 1980 PIAA District 3 championship where he established meet records of 4:15 in the 1600 and 9:15 in the 3200.   Following his graduation, Spence pursued a career as a distance runner where he began by making his mark on the international scene. He made his first top-10 listing in the Runner’s World Road Race rankings in 1988 when he finished third at the end of the season behind Road Runners Club of America (RRCA) Hall of Fame members Mark Curp and his mentor Jon Sinclair.   For the next four years, Runner’s World ranked Spence first in 1989 and 1990, second in 1991 and third in 1992. He won the 1990 Columbus Marathon (USA Championships) in his personal record of 2:12.17, qualifying him for the 1991 World Championships in Tokyo, Japan. The subsequent third-place finish was the first distance medal for the United States in international competition since Frank Shorter in 1976.   Earlier in 1991, Spence captured the Olympic Development 10,000 meters at the Penn Relays and in 1992, he won the Olympic Trials Marathon and was a member of the 1992 Olympic team.   At the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain, he finished 12th in the men’s marathon despite battling the flu, marking yet again, the best US Olympic marathon finish place since Shorter’s 1976 run.   Between college and 1993, Spence was a member of four international teams, including the 1991 World Championships, 1992 Olympics, 1989 NYC Ekiden Relay and 1991 Berlin, Germnay Ekiden Relay.   From 1989-91, Spence was the recipient of USATF’s Robert DeCelle Award, annually given to the Outstanding Long Distance Runner in the United States. He received the USATF’s Glenn Cunningham Award in 1991 as the Outstanding Runner in the US, 800 meters and up, and was the Road Racing Club of America’s Road Runner of the Year from 1989-92.   Spence retired from professional racing in 1997. His contributions to the sport of distance running have been numerous and many consider him to be one of the runners responsible for the re-emergence of distance running in the United States.   Since turning 40, Spence remained competitive and recorded some outstanding masters performances despite his coaching duties preventing extensive travel for masters competition. In 2003, he set the American Master’s national record for five miles with a time of 23:47, breaking the 1988 record held by Bill Rodgers.   In September 2004, at the Jefferson Hospital Philadelphia Distance Run, he won the masters division in 1:06.21, beating Andrew Masai and Abraham Limo, two top-ranked masters from Kenya, by more than 30 seconds. Spence also has an American Masters record for 10,000 meters on the track with a time of 30:18.16.   In 2003, Spence was inducted into the NCAA Division II Coaches Association Cross Country Hall of Fame and in the spring of 2005, was voted into the RRCA Hall of Fame along with Keith Brantly.   Spence and his wife Kirsten have three daughters: Neely, Reynah and Margeaux, and one son, Eli.