as reported earlier (thanks to Tyler Garrett for breaking the story)
Trujillo Named Women's Basketball Coach
KINGSVILLE, TEXAS – Texas A&M-Kingsville Director of Athletics Kenneth Oliver announced that Michael Trujillo is the new head women’s basketball coach for the Javelinas on Tuesday afternoon.
“Michael was extremely prepared during the interview process and he really distinguished himself from the other candidates,” Oliver said. “We are excited to welcome he and his family to the athletic department and think he will do an outstanding job.”
Trujillo had been an NCAA Division I assistant coach for the past eight years and began his career as a student assistant for the women’s basketball program at Northern Arizona. He spent the last four years at Texas State where he was a part of one Southland Conference regular season championship team that made an appearance in the WNIT. He spent one season as an assistant coach at his alma mater Northern Arizona and three seasons at Sam Houston State. At all three schools, he was directly involved in recruiting and on-court coaching.
Trujillo plans to “lead by example” and mentioned that changing the mentality of the players in the program will probably be his greatest challenge in his first year. “My vision for the program is a commitment to excellence in everything we do on the court, in the classroom and in the community,” said Trujillo.
Heading into his first role as a head collegiate coach, Trujillo talked about having many emotions all wrapped into one. “I have been looking forward to it (getting a head coaching job) for several years,” Trujillo said, “and can’t wait to get started.”
Trujillo has recruited the same general region in his seven years at Sam Houston State and Texas State that he will be recruiting at A&M-Kingsville. He has developed strong contacts among the AAU and high school coaches in the region. “Having already recruited the region and knowing the coaches makes it that much easier on me when it comes to recruiting because I already have a relationship with the coaches,” said Trujillo.
Assistant coach Crystal Oates, who served as the interim head coach for the past few months, will be retained on Trujillo’s staff and he looks forward to working with her. “I felt very comfortable knowing that I would be working with Crystal,” said Trujillo. “I have known her for several years out on recruiting and have always been impressed by her. We have talked a few times already and we are on the same page with a lot of things already.”
Trujillo will officially begin in Kingsville on June 27 and he takes over for Scott Hyland who was the head coach for four years previously. “This is a tremendous opportunity for me and my family,” said Trujillo. “I am extremely excited about it and am thankful for Dr. Tallant, Ken Oliver and the search committee giving me this opportunity.”
Trujillo and his wife, Tammy, have an infant son, Aaron.
Lofton announces new Wildcats
ABILENE – ACU head track and field coach Roosevelt Lofton announced Tuesday that the Wildcats have added five athletes for the 2012 season.
Lofton announced the middle distance runner Banjo Jaiyesimi will join the men's team, while junior college transfers Shenae Steele and Ayesha Rumble and high school standouts Emily Hill and Karolyn Palmer will join the women's team. Lofton also said the team will have additional signings to announce later in the summer.
Jaiyesimi joins a men's team that will be trying to replace three program pillars from the last four years in sprinter Desmond Jackson, jumper Ramon Sparks and hurdler Andrew McDowell. All three won national championships in their career, and they were part of the ACU men's track team that won both the NCAA Division II indoor and outdoor national championships in 2011.
Jaiyesimi is a junior college all-America transferring to ACU from Iowa Western Community College where he was fifth in the 800 meters at the NJCAA national indoor championship meet last spring. He also ran on the IWCC 4x400 relay team, which finished seventh indoors.
He has personal best times of 49.68 in the 400 meters, 1:53.54 in the 800 meters and 18:15.56 in the 5000 meters.
"After watching Banjo at the junior college indoor championship meet, I believe he will be a great asset for our program," Lofton said. "He has a tough, aggressive attitude on the track, and that will make him a high-caliber competitor and scorer at the national meet for us."
Steele is transferring to ACU from Iowa Western Community College she is the school record-holder in both the 100 meters (11.72) and 200 meters (24.05).
"Shannae is an extremely talented athlete with multiple all-America certificates to her credit," Lofton said. "She will be a huge asset to our women's sprint group. Shannae will bring leadership and experience to a young women's team and has a chance to be a top scorer at the national championship meet."
Rumble is transferring to ACU from Iowa Central Community College where she won the NJCAA 1000-meter national championship last winter. Rumble won the title in a school-record time of 2:58.14, helping her team to a third-place finish in the team standings.
Rumble now holds school records in the indoor and outdoor 800 meters, the 1000 meters, and as part of both the 4x400 and 4x800 relay teams.
Palmer is a sprinter from Duncanville High School with career bests of 12.20 in the 100 meters and 25.93 in the 200 meters. She'll compete in the 100, 200 and 400 and on both relays for the Wildcats.
Hill is a middle-distance standout from Magnolia High School, which is where former ACU pole vaulter Seth Westmoreland is now the boys' head track coach.
Hill qualified for the Region III-4A finals in the 800 meters three times, reaching the state track met as a junior. She was a two-time district champion in the 800 meters in high school. She also helped her cross country team advance to the state meet for the first time last fall.
Outside the LSC....
From key moves to clutch playoff wins, relive the Mavs' championship timeline
U.S. beats Guadeloupe to advance in Gold Cup action
UT wide receiver Timmons granted release, will transfer
Pryor apologizes, doesn't say specifically why
Small-ball key to UT's return trek to Omaha
Aggies have Gamecocks on tap in CWS
No comments:
Post a Comment