Utah Valley University Women's Cross Country

Coaches: Oversees all events; Distance Coach Scott Houle is in his 21st season as the head cross country and track & field coach at Utah Valley University in 2024-25. As the head coach at Utah Valley University, Houle has won a total of 38 conference championships. He has been recognized for his efforts by being named the men's and women's Western Athletic Conference and Great West Conference Cross Country, Indoor Track & Field and Outdoor Track & Field Coach of the Year an impressive 38 times.  Houle has also produced 79 Track & Field NCAA Qualifiers, two women's team qualifiers for the Cross Country Championships, six individual NCAA Cross Country National Championship qualifiers in Joshua McCabe (twice), Jason Lynch, Tyson Lambert, and multiple qualifiers for the first time in 2020-21 in Maddie Bench Empey and Britain Reynolds. For the first time in program history in 2022, the women's cross country team made the first of two straight team appearances at the NCAA Championships. In 2022, the program had its first cross country All-American in Everlyn Kemboi.  He has coached a total of 80 Individual USTFCCCA All-Academic honorees, 25 All-Academic Cross Country teams, and 26 All-Academic Track and Field teams. The 2009 men's cross country team led the way by achieving a No. 7 national academic ranking with a team GPA of 3.63. Houle has been the cross country and track & field coach at UVU since 2004-05.  Houle came to UVU via Orem High School. While at Orem from 1993-2004 he was the head cross country, track and field and girls basketball head coach. During that time his girls basketball team played for three state championships and was nationally ranked twice. His cross country and track and field teams finished second 10 times along with cross country being nationally ranked 5 times. In 2002 the Orem High girls cross country team won the Utah State Championship Title. Prior to coaching at Orem High, Houle was an assistant girls’ basketball, boy's and girl's track and field and cross country coach at Mountain View High School in 1992-93. In 1991-92 he was an assistant coach in women's basketball at SUU and an assistant coach for cross country and track and field at SUU. Additionally, in 1989-91 he was an assistant girls’ basketball coach at Cedar City High School. Houle graduated from Southern Utah University in 1993 with a Bachelors degree in physical education and special education. In 2002 he received his Masters from BYU in education leadership. Houle is married to Jana Houle, who is also a graduate from SUU with a bachelor degree in home economics and marketing.  She also received a Masters degree from the University of Phoenix in educational counseling. In 2014-15 Jana was recognized by Michelle Obama as the State of Utah Counselor of the Year and a finalist of United States Counselor of the Year. Jana received her second Masters degree from SUU in educational administration and is currently an assistant principal at Skyridge High School in Lehi. They have two daughters, Skotie who is married to Joshua Steele, and Brylie who is a college student at UVU. Outside of coaching, Houle enjoys spending time with his wife and kids and being outside. Coaching runs in the Houle family. His brother Mark coaches cross country and track and field in Sebeka, Minnesota. Dave Houle was the head coach in cross country and track and field and women's basketball at Mountain View High School in Orem for 25 years. Dave has won 67 State Championships, seven National Championships and was sponsored by both Adidas and Nike. Kirk Houle was an assistant cross country and track and field coach at Mountain View HS and was been key in the success of cross country and track and field programs. Eric Houle has been the head cross country and track and field coach at SUU for the last 24 years, Houle’s nephew Nathan Houle is the Head Cross Country Coach at Idaho State University.   HOULE'S ACCOLADES 40 Conference Championships 26 Second-Place Finishes 40 Coach of the Year Awards Women’s Cross Country Championships '07, '08, '09, '10, '11, '12, '15 (WAC), '16 (WAC), '21 (WAC), '23 (WAC), '24 (WAC) Men’s Cross Country Championships '07, '09, '10, '11, '12, '13 (WAC), '14 (WAC), '15 (WAC), '18 (WAC), '19 (WAC) Women’s Indoor Track and Field Championships 11-12, '25 (WAC) Men’s Indoor Track and Field Championships 11-12, 14-15 (WAC) Women’s Outdoor Track and Field Championships 07-08, 08-09, 09-10, 10-11, 11-12, 12-13, 23-24 (WAC) Men’s Outdoor Track and Field Championships 07-08, 08-09, 09-10, 10-11, 11-12, 12-13, 14-15 (WAC), 18-19 (WAC)   NCAA All-Americans Outdoor Track and Field Second Team Michael McPherson, Decathlon (2014) Nicholas Taylor, 100m (2016) Everlyn Kemboi, 10k (2022)   Honorable Mention Trac Norris, 3,000-meter Steeplechase (2015) Nicholas Taylor, 200m (2016) Aaron Johnson, Long Jump (2022) Adam Bunker, 3,000m Steeplechase (2022) Hannah Branch, 10k (2022)   Indoor Track and Field Michael McPherson, Heptathlon Larry Still, Pole Vault   NCAA Cross Country All-Mountain Region Josh McCabe 2010 Josh McCabe 2012 Cliff Nielson 2012 Tyson Lambert 2017   NCAA Academic National Ranking  2009 #7 in the Nation Men’s Cross Country 3.63    USTFCCCA All-Academic Teams Men’s Cross Country 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024 Women’s Cross Country 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024 Men’s Track and Field 2010, 2011, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024 Women’s Track and Field 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024   USTFCCCA All-Academic (Individuals) 80 NCAA Regional Individual Qualifiers 79 Individual events qualified to the NCAA Regional Championships 74 All-Academic Independent Conference Individuals 46 All-Academic Great West Conference Individuals 339 All-Academic Western Athletic Conference Individuals 547   WAC Joe Kearney Award Michael McPherson, 2014-15 WAC Stan Bates Award Tyson Lambert, 2017-18 Andre Jones, 2020-21 NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship Sally Hansen  Trac Norris Mike Keith Tyson Lambert ESPN Academic All-District team Jacob Buhler Karinne Bentley   Individual All-Independent Conference First and Second Team Honorees 93 Individual All-Great West Conference First and Second Team Honorees 269 Individual All-Western Athletic Conference First and Second Team Honorees 436 Great West Conference Performance Honors Cross Country (11) 2012      Women’s Freshman of the Year 2012      Men’s Freshman of the Year 2012      Male Athlete of the Year 2011      Men's Freshman of the Year 2010      Women's Freshman of the Year 2010      Male Athlete of the Year 2009      Female Athlete of the Year 2009      Women's Newcomer of the Year 2009      Men's Newcomer of the Year 2008      Women's Newcomer of the Year 2008      Men's Newcomer of the Year Indoor Track & Field (7) 2012      Men's Freshman of the Year 2012      Men's Athlete of the Championship 2012      Women's Athlete of the Championship 2011      Men's Most Outstanding Performance 2010      Men's Newcomer of the Year 2009      Male Athlete of the Year 2009      Men's Newcomer of the Year Outdoor Track & Field (9) 2012      Female Performance of the Meet 2011      Female Athlete of the Year 2011      Female Newcomer of the Year 2010      Male Athlete of the Year 2010      Male Newcomer of the Year 2010      Female Athlete of the Year 2009      Female Athlete of the Year 2009      Male Athlete of the Year 2009      Men's Newcomer of the Year   Western Athletic Conference Athlete Honors Cross Country 2013      Male Coach of the Year Scott Houle 2014      Male Coach of the Year Scott Houle 2015      Male Coach of the Year Scott Houle 2015      Female Coach of the Year Scott Houle 2015      Male Runner of the Year Jason Lynch 2015      Male Champion Jason Lynch 2015      Female Runner of the Year Sam Heaton 2015      Female Freshman of the Year Sam Heaton 2015      Female Champion Sam Heaton 2016      Female Coach of the Year Scott Houle 2017      Female Freshman of the Year Hannah Branch 2017      Male Freshman of the Year Anthony Ocegueda 2018      Male Coach of the Year Scott Houle 2018      Male Runner of the Year Kevin Lynch 2019      Male Coach of the Year Scott Houle 2019      Male Runner of the Year Kevin Lynch 2021      Male Freshman of the Year Max Mahon Indoor Track & Field 13-14     Male Field Athlete of the Year Michael McPherson               Male High Point Award Michael McPherson 14-15     Michael McPherson finished 12th in the Nation (Heptathlon)               Male Athlete of the Year Michael McPherson               Male Coach of the Year Scott Houle 15-16     Male Track Athlete of the Year Trac Norris               Female Track Athlete of the Year Savannah Berry 16-17    Male Outstanding Track Performer Tyson Lambert 16-17    Male Outstanding Field Performer Daven Russell 17-18    Female Outstanding Track Performer Savannah Berry 17-18    Female Freshman of the Year Hannah Branch 19-20    Male Outstanding Freshman Athlete Ethan Farrer 19-20    Larry Still finished 10th in the Nation (Pole Vault) 21-22    Female Outstanding Track Performer Everlyn Kemboi 22-23    Female Outsanding Track Peformer Everlyn Kemboi 22-23    Male Outstanding Track Performer Habtamu Cheney Outdoor Track & Field 13-14     Male Field Athlete of the Year Michael McPherson               Male High Point Award Michael McPherson 14-15     Male Coach of the Year Scott Houle               Male Freshman of the Year Tyson Lambert 15-16     Male Most Outstanding Track Performer Nicholas Taylor               Female Most Outstanding Track Performer Savannah Berry               Male Most Outstanding Field Performer Daven Russell 18-19     Male Coach of the Year Scott Houle               Male Outstanding Track Performer Andre Jones               Male High Point Award Daven Russell  20-21     Male Outstanding Track Performer Aaron Johnson               Male High Point Award Aaron Johnson  21-22    Female Outstanding Track Performer Everlyn Kemboi

Adamson Associate Head Coach, Track & Field (Hurdles, Multis HJ) 12th Season Alma Mater: Utah Valley University (2007) Twitter: Hurdles, High Jump, and Multi-Event Coordinator Kirke Adamson has completed 11 seasons as the track & field and cross country associate head coach at Utah Valley University. Adamson helped lead the Wolverines to another successful year as the mens team won the Triple Crown (XC, Indoor Track & Outdoor Track), his 3rd triple crown overall. Adamson coached the institution's first NCAA Division I Indoor Track & Field All-American as Michael McPherson not only became the program's first-ever track athlete to qualify for the NCAA Championships but also the track programs' first Division I All-American by placing 13th in the heptathlon at the 2015 NCAA Indoor Championships.  With this success, Adamson was named the USTFCCCA Mountain Regional Indoor Assistant Coach of the Year, his 1st time receiving the honor. During UVU's five seasons in the Great West Conference (2008-2013), Adamson helped lead the Wolverines to an astonishing 21 conference championships (5 men's outdoor, 5 women's outdoor, 1 men's indoor, 1 women's indoor, 4 men's cross country and 5 women's cross country), including all six titles in 2011-12. Adamson has also helped produce 33 track & field NCAA Qualifiers during the past five seasons as well as lead the cross country teams to the NCAA Mountain Regional every season since 2009. Adamson has also coached 20 USTFCCCA All-Academic student-athletes in track & field during the past five seasons and both the men's and women's track & field teams have earned All-Academic status each year as well. The 2009 men's cross country team led the way by achieving a number seven national ranking with a team GPA of 3.63. Twice in Adamson's years the men's cross country team has led UVU with the top team GPA in the UVU athletic department. Adamson was also named the Assistant Coach of the Year for UVU in 2008 and 2015. Also in 2008, Adamson helped guide both the men's and women's track & field teams to a National Athletic Conference Championship.  During his tenure at UVU, Adamson has overseen a complete rewriting of the record books as all but 14 school records have been broken at least once.  The all-time top-10 depth charts are littered with over 95 percent of athletes who have served during Adamsons tutelage. In his first year he helped coach 12 Div. I All-Independent student-athletes in track and field. The women's track team finished third at the 2004 Div. I Independent Championships that spring. In cross country, Adamson assisted in leading the Wolverine women runners to a fourth-place finish at the Independent Championships while the men finished fifth. Before coming to UVU Adamson was the head track coach and assistant cross country and girls basketball coach at Orem High School in 2003-04. At Orem, the girls track team finished fourth in state, while the boys finished fifth. Adamson had five athletes win individual state championships in track and cross country that year. Prior to coaching at Orem, Adamson assisted the cross country, track and girls basketball teams at Mountain View High School in 2001-03. During that time the boys and girls cross country teams won the 4A Utah State championships. The boys cross country team won a national championship in 2003, while the girls team boasted a top-25 national ranking. Adamson was also an assistant track coach at Utah's Murray High School in 2000-01. Prior to coming to Utah, Adamson coached track and cross country for eight years in Colorado. From 1993-95 he was the assistant track coach at his alma mater, Alameda High School. Then in 1995-96 he coached track at Kennedy High School. From 1996-2000 he was the head girls track coach and assistant cross country coach at Dakota Ridge High School. While at Dakota Ridge, the girls cross country team placed third at state in the schools second year of existence. Adamson, from Lakewood, Colo., is married to the former Heather Wiemer of Pleasant Grove, Utah.  Adamson graduated from Utah Valley University in 2007 earning his Bachelor of Science in political science. When Adamson is not coaching he enjoys various outdoor activities such as hiking, climbing, biking, adventure racing and reading books. His brother Kent Adamson played football at Ricks College from 1981-83. His cousin, Craig Poole, is the former head coach of the BYU Track team and the USATF program at the Olympic training center in Chula Vista, California.  

Paul Smith was promoted to Associate Head Coach of the Utah Valley University Track & Field programs in August of 2023 and enters his 16th year with the program this coming season.    Smith has been with UVU since 2008 and specializes in sprints, jumps, and hurdles, and during his time has produced four All-American honors and 28 individual WAC Champions. He helped lead the Wolverines to WAC Championships in men’s outdoor (2015 and 2019) and an indoor men’s championship in 2015.   Smith has produced 35 NCAA Championship qualifying athletes, including All-American sprinter Nicholas Taylor, who became UVU’s first-ever dual All-American with top-16 finishes in the 100-meter and 200-meter dash at the 2016 NCAA Outdoor Championships in Eugene, Oregon. His most recent All-American came in 2022 when Aaron Johnson advance to the long jump finals.   After the 2016-17 campaign, Smith was named Assistant Coach of the Year at the Wolverine Club Athletic Awards banquet. He has been a part of the coaching staff for 15 team conference championships during the program’s tenure Great West Conference and the Western Athletic Conference (WAC). Before entering the coaching ranks, Smith enjoyed a three-year career as a sprinter from 2003-2006 at Brigham Young University where he was an NCAA qualifier in three events. Among those events, Smith was an NCAA qualifier three times in the 4x100 relay, two-time NCAA qualifier in the 4x400 relay and one-time qualifier in the 200-meter dash.   Prior to joining UVU’s coaching staff, Smith worked as an assistant coach of the track and field team at Timpview High School in Provo, Utah, from 2007-2008.   Smith and Stephanie Williams are the parents of two children, Davi Williams and Ezekiel Smith, and reside in Kaysville, Utah.  

Rowberry was recruited as an Orem HS senior in 2004, during Scott Houles first year as Head Coach at UVU (formerly UVSC). Tim received numerous awards as a student athlete. He was nominated as Freshman Athlete of the Year, won multiple conference championships titles, and was a 2x qualifier for the NCAA Outdoor Track Championships. Rowberry is a current record holder for UVUs DMR and Indoor 800m races, and holds a Top 10 All-Time performance ranking in 9 other Track & Field events. In 2014 while coaching at UVU, he ran his personal best time in the 800m of 1:48.63. In 2009, Tim was featured as an undergraduate CACI forum speaker in Washington D.C., representing UVU's Political Science program. The following year he appeared with the Smashing Pumpkins on the Jay Leno show. Then in 2011 he won a grant funded by Fulbright-Hays for advanced language studies and degree research in Salatiga, Indonesia. This grant was only awarded to 11 other students in the U.S. He earned his bachelors degree from UVU in Political Science with emphasis on International Relations in 2012. After his collegiate career, Rowberry has been pacing athletes in the Nike Oregon Project from 2013 to present. Tim Rowberry

Perez Assistant Coach, Track & Field (Throws) 3rd Season Alma Mater: Southern Utah University Twitter:  Throws Hector Perez is entering his second season of coaching on Scott Houle's staff in 2014. Perez comes to UVU after holding a two-year graduate assistant coaching position at his alma mater, Southern Utah University. Perez competed three years of track & field while at Southern Utah and specialized in the shot put, hammer and discus. During his senior season at SUU, Perez took first in the shot put at the Summit League Championships. Besides being an All-Summit League performer on the track, Perez also played three years of football for the Thunderbirds. Perez hails from Shafter, Calif., and is a graduate of Shafter High School.