Courtesy of North Carolina A&T State Athletic Communications
EAST GREENSBORO – One week after his North Carolina A&T State men's and women's indoor track & field teams each won their fourth consecutive Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) indoor championships, Duane Ross, N.C. A&T's Director of Track & Field Programs, had a repeat of his own.
The United States Track and Field Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCA) named Ross the Southeast Region Men's Coach of the Year for the second consecutive season as his Aggies head to the NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships.
Last season, Ross won the Southeast Region Coach of the Year honor for both men and women. The Aggies men are ranked 17th in the nation and fourth in the Southeast Region by the USTFCCCA. The region includes schools such as Virginia Tech, Kentucky, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, N.C. State and Clemson.
"It's always an honor to be appreciated by so many great coaches," Ross said. "Our student-athletes are unbelievable. They're the reason we love what we do and why we work so hard."
In winning their fourth straight conference indoor title, the men's and women's teams were dominating at the Prince George's Sports and Learning Complex in Landover, Md.
Each team scored 165 points, as the women won by 34 points and the men won by 32 points. The women won five individual championships and a relay race. Five individuals and one relay finished in first for the men at MEACs.
On the men's side, Ross will send seven athletes to the 2020 NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships, March 13-15, including his son Randolph Ross, who will enter as the top runner in the world in the 400 meters. Randolph Ross will also be a part of the men's 4x400-meter relay team along with seniors Elijah Young, Akeem Sirleaf and Trevor Stewart.
Stewart will also appear in the 400. Fellow senior Jaylan Mitchell is a qualifier in the 60 meters and Division I transfer Abbas Abbkar qualified in the 800 meters. Ross will also send three females in 60-meter runner Cambrea Sturgis and 60-meter hurdle competitors Madeleine Akobundu and Paula Salmon.
Over his eight seasons at N.C. A&T, Ross has led the Aggies to four women's MEAC indoor championships, four men's MEAC indoor championships, two women's outdoor MEAC championships and three men's MEAC outdoor championships for a total of 13. He also coached Kayla White to an indoor national championship in the women's 200m in 2019.
Four Aggies have made a U.S. National team since Ross arrived in Aggieland.