NEW ORLEANS – The Salisbury University track & field head coach,
Jim Jones, has been named Mid-Atlantic Outdoor Men's Region Coach of the Year by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) on Thursday. Assistant coach,
Jacob Shelton, was named Mid-Atlantic Men's Region Assistant of the Year.
Jones led the Sea Gulls to an eighth-place team finish at the 2026 NCAA Division III Outdoor Championships, led by
Kai Smith, who swept the 100 and 200 meters. Earlier in the season, Salisbury won the team title at the C2C Conference Outdoor Championships with 250 points, winning 11 events. Jones also earned the 2026 Indoor USTFCCCA Men's Region Coach of the Year this season.
Shelton coached the Sea Gulls' Smith to titles in the 100 and 200 meters at the 2026 NCAA Division III Outdoor Championships, setting top-3 Division III all-time marks in both events. His group of sprinters and hurdlers accounted for 117 of the Salisbury's 250 points in winning the team title at the C2C Outdoor Championships.
With the two National Championships from Smith, the Salisbury Track & Field program now has 20 individual National Titles, with the last coming from Salisbury's all-time great, Luke Campbell, 10 years ago in 2016. The men's track and field program also claimed the 2026 Coast-to-Coast Athletic Conference (C2C) Outdoor Championships for the 18th conference title in program history and the first since 2023.
The Sea Gulls earned 18 total All-C2C honors at the conference meet and rounded out the year with 18 All-Region honors.
Salisbury University is a proud member of NCAA Division III with primary membership in the Coast-to-Coast Athletic Conference, along with affiliate membership in the New Jersey Athletic Conference (football, men's & women's swimming), Coastal Lacrosse Conference (men's lacrosse), State University of New York Athletic Conference (field hockey), and Colonial Women's Golf Conference (women's golf). With over 500 student-athletes in 23 varsity sports, SU is recognized as one of the nation's most competitive intercollegiate athletics programs regardless of division, featuring dedicated coaches and staff that foster excellence on and off the field. The Sea Gulls have won a combined 23 team national championships, 26 individual national championships, and 211 conference championships, and have produced 54 Academic All-Americans.
To Make Tomorrow Yours at Salisbury University, and learn more about Sea Gull Athletics' tradition of excellence, visit
SUSeaGulls.com or follow on social media @SUSeaGulls.
