INFO | Complete USTFCCCA men's All-Region release
INFO | Complete USTFCCCA women's All-Region release
 
New Orleans, La.----The Wingate University cross country program has received three additional All-Region accolades from the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA), officials announce this week. Head coach Pol Domenech is the Southeast Region Coach of the Year for men's and women's cross country after leading Wingate to team titles in both '23 SER postseason races. Bulldog junior student-athlete Titouan Le Grix is the SER men's cross country Athlete of the Year.
 
The USTFCCCA member coaches vote on the regional COTY and AOTY awards. Domenech is the only WU men's XC coach to receive this honor, bringing home the trophy three years in a row. He is the second WU women's XC coach to be recognized by the coaches' association. Previously, Wingate's Joe Soehnlen was named the Southeast Region Coach of the Year for women's cross country in 2013.
 
Wingate's Le Grix is charting new territory for the Bulldogs. He is the first WU student-athlete to earn Southeast Region men's cross country Athlete of the Year honors. Le Grix is only the second Bulldog runner to win a Southeast Region postseason race. Wingate Sports Hall of Fame member Natalie Creech Topper ('06) won the '03 Division II SER women's XC championship meet in Cary, North Carolina.
 
What They Are Saying about Titouan Le Grix
Wingate head cross country coach Pol Domenech
 
Opening remarks: "It makes me extremely happy to see Titouan receive the SER Athlete of the Year award. I am sure that all his teammates will share my sentiment as well. Titouan has been an amazing part of this team since his arrival in the Fall of 2021. As a recipient of this award, he showed that he is undoubtedly an amazing athlete, but above all, he is an incredible young man, who has been an amazing teammate and friend to everyone involved with the program."
 
Sharing the journey: "As coaches, we share the journeys with all our student-athletes. We go through the highs and lows with them, and seeing Titouan excel last Saturday, after a few years of setbacks, meant so much to me, the rest of the staff and the rest of his teammates. Titouan led the race wire to wire and produced an amazing physical performance, but I deeply believe that the biggest battle happened inside his head. He went out there and confronted some fears. This is extremely courageous and much more valuable than any accolade or award he will ever receive."
 
Sports is life: "I look at sports as a life tool. At the end of the day, winning is just the excuse we give ourselves to go along the journey. When we see our student-athletes go through some rough periods and then see them come out of it, this makes our mission accomplished. Sport is just the tool, but our endeavor is to help young adults find themselves and be proud of who they are becoming. It makes me proud to say that we are a very tiny part of his journey. This is only the new beginning for Titouan. I am tremendously excited to see what he can do on November 18 in Joplin, Missouri."
 
Titouan Le Grix quick hits
SER men's XC individual champion (2023)
2x All-SER men's XC team (2022, 2023)
 
- Posted a new school-record 10K time of 28:45.0 in Saturday's SER race
- Personal-best 8K time of 24:01.3 in the Royals XC Challenge (Oct. 8, 2021)
 
What They Are Saying about Pol Domenech
Wingate director of cross country and track and field Matt van Lierop
 
"We are honored that Pol has been recognized by his peers as the COTY for both men's and women's cross country. Once again, he has methodically developed this program into a championships juggernaut. We are all looking forward to see how he continues to guide his teams at the Big Dance in Joplin, Missouri on November 18."
 
Pol Domenech quick hits
3x SAC and SER men's XC Coach of the Year (2021, 2022, 2023)
2x SAC women's XC Coach of the Year (2021, 2022)
1x SER women's XC Coach of the Year (2023)
 
- Coached both Wingate XC teams to SAC and SER XC championships this year
- Achieved the same feat in '22, as the Bulldogs swept the SAC and SER titles
- Helped men's XC team finish second in the '23 Paul Short Run at Lehigh
- Forty-three teams competed in the PSR Gold Division as WU defeated 34 D1 teams
 
Up Next for the Nationally-Ranked Bulldogs
 
Both Wingate XC teams will compete in the NCAA Division II national championship meet on Saturday, Nov. 18. Missouri Southern State University is hosting this year's event at the Tom Rutledge Cross Country Course in Joplin, Missouri. The Adams State University women and the Colorado School of Mines men are the defending champions.
 
The women's 6K race is slated for 11 a.m. EST on Saturday, Nov. 18. The men's 10K race follows at 12:15 p.m. EST. The Bulldog men finished a program-best second in the 2022 Division II national championship meet in University Place, Washington. The Wingate women count a fifth-place performance in the 2021 Division II national championship meet in Saint Leo, Florida as their program-best showing.
 
Wingate University
 
Wingate University is a lab of difference-making that serves more than 3,400 students in North Carolina and offers 60 degree pathways, including 37 undergraduate majors, 10 pre-professional tracks and five dual-degree programs. Graduate students choose from seven master's and five doctoral programs. The University is home to the Cannon College of Arts and Sciences, the Levine College of Health Sciences, the Byrum School of Business, the Thayer School of Education and the School of Sport Sciences.
 
Founded in 1896, Wingate University is a leader in healthcare education where nearly one in five undergraduate students is preparing to be a pharmacist, physician assistant, physical therapist, occupational therapist or nurse. Student-athletes on Wingate's 25 teams compete in NCAA Division II and have brought home the SAC Echols Athletic Excellence Award the past 15 times it has been awarded. The University's motto is "Faith, Knowledge, Service." View current news and videos at www.wingate.edu.
 
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Wingate University women's cross country
NCAA national championship history
 
Team participation
2004 – Evansville, Ind.                                              
2007 – Joplin, Mo.                                                     
2013 – Spokane, Wash.                                             
2014 – Louisville, Ky.                                               
2015 – Joplin, Mo.                                                     
2016 – Saint Leo, Fla.                                                
2019 – Sacramento, Calif.
2021 – Saint Leo, Fla.
2022 – University Place, Wash.                                                
2023 – Joplin, Mo.
 
Individual participation (site)
2003 – Natalie Creech (Cary, N.C.)
2006 – Amber Hines (Pensacola, Fla.)
2012 – Keeley Wood (Joplin, Mo.)
2017 – Madison Hiatt (Evansville, Ind.)
 
Wingate University men's cross country
NCAA national championship history
 
Team participation
2021 – Saint Leo, Fla.                                                
2022 – University Place, Wash.
2023 – Joplin, Mo.

Individual participation (site)
2006 – Jayce Watson (Pensacola, Fla.)
2007 – Jayce Watson (Joplin, Mo.)
2008 – Jayce Watson (Slippery Rock, Pa.)
2019 – Micah Kipchumba (Sacramento, Calif.)