By Katherine Jamtgaard. NEW ORLEANS, La. — App State men’s distance coach Brad Herbster has been named Sun Belt Men’s Cross Country Coach of the Year, the league announced Thursday. In addition to Herbster’s Coach of the Year honor, six Mountaineers earned all-conference honors.
“I’m thankful for the opportunity to coach a strong team and one that is dedicated to improving,” said Herbster. “The student-athletes put in the work and it showed at conference. We have a lot of work to do at the regional meet and look to build off a strong conference performance.”
“I want to congratulate Coach Herbster on the Coach of the Year honor as well as the athletes who have earned all-conference awards,” said director of track & field/cross country Damion McLean. “They have worked hard this year and it shows.”
In his first season as App State men’s distance coach, Herbster led the App State men’s cross country team to its first Sun Belt title since 2019 at the Sun Belt Championships on Oct. 28. The Mountaineers scored 28 points – the lowest team total at the championship meet since 2013 – and five Mountaineer men earned all-conference accolades after finishing in the top-13.
Herbster guided senior Oliver Wilson-Cook to a second-place finish at the Sun Belt Championships after Wilson-Cook earned three Sun Belt Runner of the Week honors during the regular season. Over the course of the season, Herbster also guided the Mountaineers to a pair of second-place finishes at the Firetower Project Run (Sept. 1) and Covered Bridge Open (Sept. 15) as well as a top-10 team finish at the Live In Lou Cross Country Classic (Sept. 30).
Seniors Oliver Willson-Cook, Calbert Guest, and Dwayne Lillie earned first-team all-conference accolades after finishing second (24:40.4), third (24:46.3), and fourth (24:53.6), respectively, in the men’s 8K race at the Sun Belt Championships. Junior Garrett Bivens earned second-team all-conference honors after finishing sixth overall (25:05.0), while graduate student Jonah Bird earned third-team All-SBC recognition after placing 13th (25:42.7).
Donahue earns second team All-SBC honors for women’s team
Senior Jasmine Donohue placed eighth in the women’s 5K at the Sun Belt Championships with a personal best time of 17:36.9. Donohue, who earned second-team All-SBC honors for her performance, helped the women’s squad to a fifth-place finish in the team standings.
The Mountaineers are set to compete in the NCAA Southeast Regional in Spartanburg, S.C. on Friday. The women’s 6K race is set for 11 a.m. with the men’s 10K race to follow at noon.
2023 Sun Belt Cross Country Awards
2023 Sun Belt Men’s Coach of the Year: Brad Herbster, App State
2023 Sun Belt Men’s Newcomer of the Year: Carlo Martinez-Jaramillo, ULM
2023 Sun Belt Men’s Runner of the Year: Teagan Flanagan, South Alabama
2023 Sun Belt Men’s Freshman of the Year: Carlo Martinez-Jaramillo, ULM
2023 Men’ First-Team All-Conference
Teagan Flanagan, South Alabama
Oliver Wilson-Cook, App State
Calbert Guest, App State
Dwayne Lillie, App State
Dawson Mayberry, Arkansas State
2023 Men’s Second-Team All-Conference
Jacob Pyeatt, Arkansas State
Garrett Bivens, App State
Evan White, Marshall
Carlo Martinez-Jaramillo
Cash Kunkel, Arkansas State
2023 Men’s Third-Team All-Conference
Rylan Brown, Arkansas State
Natnael Enright, Arkansas State
Jonah Bird, App State
Jonathon Hrivnak, Texas State
Ethan Mychajlonka, Arkansas State
Sun Belt Women’s XC Awards
2023 Sun Belt Women’s Coach of the Year: Jesse Duvall, Arkansas State
2023 Sun Belt Women’s Newcomer of the Year: Katherine Lawson, James Madison
2023 Sun Belt Women’s Runner of the Year: Molly Jones, Coastal Carolina
2023 Sun Belt Women’s Freshman of the Year: Rahel Broemmel, Arkansas State
