Southern Utah University Women's Track

Houle originally came to this small Division 1 program set in a beautiful town of 30,000, no SUU cross country or track and field team had ever won a conference title.   Now, 39 conference titles later, the program is one of the best in the country, achieving success that is normally reserved for schools of size, resources, and history. Whats more, Houles expertise extends beyond the conference level.  His athletes compete at the regional, national, and international levels on a regular basis gaining experience in countries such as Canada, Russia, Great Britain, and Hungry.  This includes multiple World Track and Field Championship appearances, as well as an appearance at the 2012 Olympic Games in London.  Due to these accomplishments, Houles program has been featured in national and international track and field articles and magazines. Its no secret that the Thunderbirds have excelled under the direction of Houle, voted 35-time Conference Coach of the Year.  Houles program first reached national prominence in 1999 when the Thunderbirds knocked out five nationally ranked teams to win the NCAA Mountain Regional Cross Country Championship.  In this process the Thunderbird men broke the six title streak won by the national powerhouse Colorado, a challenging feat that only one other team in the state of Utah has accomplished to date. This win put the Thunderbirds in the national limelight, catapulting them into the national rankings for the first time in the history of the program.  This also earned Southern Utah University its first NCAA Division 1 Championship appearance where the team finished 21st in the country. That year Houles efforts garnered him the NCAAs Mountain Regional Coach of the Year award, and the Championship victory ushered in a new era of achievement by Southern Utah athletes. Notably, All-American Jess Baumgartner broke through at the NCAA Cross Country Championships to finish in third place, opening the door for Cam Levins, who followed up with a fourth place finish and a pair of National titles. Cam Levins went on to become SUUs first Olympian when he ran at the 2012 London Olympic Games in both the 5,000m and 10,000m. At the Olympic Games, in the 5,000m trials, Levinss performance put him in an elite group as his performance in the first round became the fastest trial ever run for that distance in the history of the Olympic Games.  Later that year he went on to win the highest honor in collegiate track and field as he won the prestigious Bowerman Award, placing a Southern Utah athlete as one of the all-time greatest athletes in the history of the NCAA. Southern Utah University is the smallest school in the country, and the only one in the state of Utah, to ever win this distinguished award.  This event cemented Houles program as one of the top for developing athletes in the collegiate ranks.  Levins received a contract from Nike and now trains with the Nike Project team. Distance athletes at SUU are second to none when it comes to development. Sharla Platt Manuele, a 5:30 miler out of high school, improved her mile by 51 seconds and was running a 4:39 mile at SUU.  Manuele became an All-American both on the track and in the classroom. Cam Levins began as a 4:18 miler out of high school.  Levins brought home Southern Utahs first Division 1 national title in any sport at SUU, with victories in both the 5,000m and 10,000m at the NCAA Outdoor National Championships. His times in both the 5,000m and 10,000m are now among the top 5 all-time best performances in NCAA history. On the track, the sprinters have experienced enormous improvements while at Southern Utah University.  A major breakthrough took place when All-American Natalie Gibson, a 46.5 300m hurdler just out of high school, qualified for the NCAA National Championships. Gibson placed 9th with a time of 57.7 in the 400m hurdles, a time that still stands as a record and a performance that would be competitive by todays standards at the national level.  Preston Meyers, a 100m sprinter also out of high school, arrived with a best time of 11.1, improving to 10.4 while at SUU.  Meyers went on to win multiple conference championships and qualified for the first rounds of the NCAA National Championships. The Thunderbirds started accruing conference titles early on in Houles career at SUU, setting the standards of achievement in the program high. The mens teams, to date, have won a combined 19-conference titles including a Triple Crown (winning XC, indoor, and outdoor championships all in one year) and 19 team runner-ups. The women have established themselves just as powerfully in conference championships by winning 19-conference championships, 3 Triple Crowns, and 15 runner-ups.  Individuals from these teams have moved on to represent SUU on NCAA Regional, National, and International stages. The highest national placing for the mens team was in the 2012 season when the mens team finished 11th   out of 320 Division 1 teams at the NCAA National Championships for both indoor and outdoor track and field. These accomplishments are some of many achieved by Houles athletes and teams during his tenure at Southern Utah University.   Program Achievements under Coach Houle: ·       1,078 All-Conference Athletes ·       35 Conference Athletes of the Year ·       28 Conference Newcomers of the Year ·       321 Individual Conference Champions ·       38 Team Conference Championships ·       124 NCAA West Regional Qualifiers ·       25 NCAA All-Region Performers           ·       1 NCAA Mountain Region Team Championship ·       47 NCAA National Championship Qualifiers ·       14 NCAA All-American citations ·       2 NCAA Individual Championships ·       2 Top 5 Individual Finishes at the NCAA Cross Country Championships ·       Bowerman Award Winner ·       2012 London Olympics Qualifier The impressive success of Houles athletes follows them off of the track and into the classroom as they continue to maintain a record of outstanding performance as university students. Considering that these athletes compete all year long with no off-season, most with part-time jobs, their success is unmatched.  Houle promotes a philosophy that track & field is only a precursor of a more important arena that lies in the future.  The highlight of academic success began with Sharla Platt Manuele as she won the Student Athlete of the Year for all sports in the Summit League Conference and became an Academic All-American.  Erin Stone followed in her footsteps to become SUUs 2015 Valedictorian and Academic Athlete of the Year for all sports in the Big Sky Conference. Academic Achievements Under Coach Houle: ·       885 Academic All Conference Athletes ·       9 ESPN Academic All Americans ·       18 USTFCCCA Academic All Americans ·       2 Conference Academic Athletes Of The Year (all sports) Sharla Platt Manuele: Summit League Erin Stone: Big Sky Conference ·       15 CoSIDA (Sports Information Directors of America) Academic All-District VIII ·       2 Mens Academic National Championships. 1st out of 315 DI teams. ·       5 Womens finishes in the Top Ten Academic Team in the Nation ·       2 Time Womens Highest GPA and Top Ten Finish in the Nation (315 DI Teams) Coaching Cross Country and Track & Field runs in the Houle family.  Coach Houle's nephew, Nate Houle, is the head distance coach at Idaho State. His younger brother, Scott Houle, is the head coach at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah. Older brother Dave Houle was an inductee to the National High School Hall of Fame for coaching in the year 2000. An interesting fact is that year Dave Houle was inducted the same year as Steve Prefontaine, one of the most admired Olympic distance runners in American history. Houle graduated with undergraduate degrees in Communications and Physical Education, going on to receive a Masters Degree in Secondary Education from Southern Utah University. He began his coaching career at Salt Lake Citys Judge Memorial High School. In eight seasons at JMHS, Houles cross country team won 10 region team championships, five team state runner-ups, and three state championships where before no JMHS cross country team had ever won a region or state championship. Houle is married to his college sweetheart, Diane, and they have two sons, Deric and Nicholas.  Houle has been inducted into the Utah Summer Games Hall of Honor, the Southern Utah University Coaching Factory Hall of Fame, and has received the University Board of Trustee Award, all in recognition of his career and coaching accomplishments.