March 06, 2017

Redwine, Hays earn Regional Coach of the Year honors

NEW ORLEANS – Kansas track & field head coach Stanley Redwine, along with associate head coach Tom Hays, took home Midwest Regional awards for the indoor track season it was announced Monday by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA). Redwine was named the region’s men’s head coach of the year, while Hays claimed the Midwest’s men’s assistant coach of the year award.

Redwine, now in his 17^th year at the helm of the Jayhawks, coached the Kansas men’s team to its highest indoor conference finish since 1983, claiming second overall at the Big 12 Indoor Championship Feb. 24-25. KU’s 110.5 points scored in its runner-up finish were its most ever at a Big 12 indoor meet. The Jayhawks also saw four individuals win Big 12 titles, which tied for the most by a single school at the meet and was the program’s most at a league meet since 1989.

Redwine also saw his Kansas program rise to No. 6 in the USTFCCCA weekly rankings, the highest ranking in KU history. The Jayhawks feature six athletes and one relay team who qualified for the NCAA Indoor Championships to be held this week in College Station, Texas. The figure marks the most qualifiers of any team in the Midwest region.

The regional award is the third for Redwine but his first time being honored for the men’s team. He was named the Midwest’s Head Coach of the Year for the Kansas women’s team following both the 2012 and 2013 outdoor seasons.

Hays, a former member of the Kansas track & field team, now in his 13^th season since returning as an assistant coach, oversaw arguably the deepest pole vault crew in the NCAA throughout the indoor campaign. Five of his vaulters finished the season ranked among the top-20 in the national rankings, all clearing 5.45 meters (17-10½) or better, with three of those Jayhawks earning NCAA Championship qualifying spots. It marked just the seventh time in the 52-year history of the indoor championships that more than two vaulters from a single school qualified for the NCAA meet.

Hays also coached sophomore Paulo Benavides to the Big 12 title in the pole vault, marking the seventh time in the last 11 years a Jayhawk has left the indoor league meet with the conference’s vault title in tow. In addition to Benavides’ win, Hays’ vaulters combined for 28.5 points at the league meet after claiming the top-four finishes, a feat never before accomplished by a single school in the event at the Big 12 Indoor Championship.

The Regional honor is the first for Hays since the current Regional Award format began in 2006.

The Jayhawks are gearing up for the NCAA Indoor Championships, which are set to be held March 10-11 inside Texas A&M’s Gilliam Indoor Track Stadium. The Kansas men enter the weekend ranked No. 11 in the nation and have seven entries into the meet.