Former Minnesota State student-athlete and assistant jumps / combined events coach Jim Dilling was named head coach of the men's track and field program in the summer of 2013.
Dilling and his staff wasted no time planning for the future as the Mavericks recruiting class brought in 13 transfers midway through the season for the 2014-2015 campaign. It included athletes from not only the surrounding states but California, Florida, Georgia, Michigan, Montana, and the Bahamas. Five former NCAA Division I student-athletes now called Minnesota State their home in the first year as well as several junior college and NCAA DII & DIII student-athletes who were drawn to the appeal of not only the track program’s success but the over 140 academic majors offered by the university making the transfer process appealing for many.
Dilling's Honors
NSIC Indoor Coach of the Year: 3 (2013-14, 2014-15, 2015-16)
NSIC Outdoor Coach of the Year: 1 (2014)
USTFCCCA Central Region Indoor Coach of the Year: 3 (2013-14, 2014-15, 2016-17)
2013-14
In Dilling’s first year as head coach, the Maverick track and field team saw their highest national team finish in over 25 years placing fourth at the 2014 Indoor Track and Field National Championships last March in Winston-Salem, NC.
The outdoor season was also full of success as the Mavericks tied the programs highest national team outdoor finish with an eighth place finish at the 2014 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field National Championships last May in Grand Rapids, Mich. At the conference level, the Mavericks continued their reign of dominance in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) as they secured their sixth straight conference championship claiming both the indoor and outdoor conference titles in 2012, 2013, & 2014 and have won the last 10 out of 12 overall conference titles since joining the NSIC in 2009.
At the conclusion of the 2013-2014 season the Mavericks, claimed 15 All-American honors, four National runner-ups, and one National Champion, en route to breaking seven school records. The Maverick men swept the NSIC outdoor awards starting with senior Jerrell Hancock who was crowned the NSIC Track Athlete of the Year after ending his career with personal bests in the 60m - 6.77, 100m - 10.37, 200m - 20.49, 400m 47.44 and leaving with a trio of school records and 10 All-American honors in his time with the Mavericks.
Senior Chris Reed took home the NSIC Field Athlete of the Year award after winning his second National Championship in the shot put at the 2014 Outdoor Track and Field National Championships on his way to becoming a 10-time All-American and school record holder in five events including his DII National Record of 65’ 10.25” in the shot put. Freshman Myles Hunter was given the NSIC Newcomer of the Year award as he won both the indoor and outdoor NSIC hurdle crowns as well as finishing as the runner-up at the 2014 Outdoor Track and Field National Championships with a time of 13.96 in the 110m hurdles.
Junior Nathan Hancock continued the tradition in the combined events as he won the NSIC Heptathlon title and came back to score in 4 additional events for a 21 point contribution towards the team title indoors and added 24 points outdoors scoring in 5 additional events after winning the Decathlon crown. The Maverick combined event groups have won the past three NSIC Decathlon titles as well as the previous two Heptathlon titles in 2013 & 2014 as well as placing five in the top six at the 2012 Indoor NSIC Heptathlon scoring a combined 26 points. Hancock would go onto finishing as the runner-up at the 2014 Indoor Track and Field National Championships with a school record setting display of 5,449 points in the Heptathlon achieving his fourth All-American award of his career.
At the NSIC Indoor conference championship meet the Mavericks won nine individual events as well as went onto set meet records in two events, winning the team championship by 67 points. Chris Reed (Sr) set the NSIC meet record in the shot put with a toss of 63’ 11” and David Pearcill (Sr) captured the other when he jumped 49’ 0.75” to win the triple jump.
The Mavericks continued their record breaking season at the NSIC Outdoor conference championship meet where they won 10 individual events and winning the team championship by 48 points. Leading the charge was a clean sweep of the 110m hurdles by capturing the top 4 places and scoring 29 points as well as scoring a dominate 30 points in the triple jump by placing 5 in the top 7 including a 1-2-3 finish in the event. The Maverick jumpers went onto showcase their abilities during the 2013-2014 season by scoring 48 points at the NSIC Indoor Championships and 53 points at the NSIC Outdoor Championships.
2014-15
Dilling's second campaign as head coach went down a similar path as the first. The team saw three school-records and one national record set as Emmanuel Matadi set new standards in the 60-meter dash of 6.66 and the 200-meters of 21.10. Sophomore Myles Hunter set the school and Division II National Record in the 60-meter hurdles at 7.64. Both Matadi and Hunter shared time as USTFCCCA National Athletes of the Week. Matadi and Nathan Hancock brought home all-american honors from the NCAA Division II Indoor Championships held in Birmingham, Ala. The Mavericks secured their fourth straight NSIC Indoor Championships finishing with 163 points.
2015-16
The success continued for the Mavericks under Dilling's guidance, with both the men and women claiming all four NSIC titles, winning the men's and women's indoor and outdoor championships. Named the league's indoor coach of the year, Dilling led the Mavericks to a 19th-place finish at the NCAA DII Indoor National Championships and an 11th-place result at the national outdoor championships. Michael Sandle earned a national individual title in the outdoor triple jump, Kyran Stewart was an All-American with a sixth-place finish at the indoor national meet, high jumper Frank Velman was an All-American in the high jump with an eighth-place finishe and the outdoor 4x100m relay team placed fourth.
Assistant Coach Resume
In his time as an assistant coach with the Mavericks (2011-2013) Dilling helped coached several All-Americans including high jumper Keyvan Rudd, who established a personal best height of 7’1 ¾” in 2012 as well as two-consecutive NSIC titles and the NSIC league record in the high jump during the 2012-2013 season. David Pearcill also finished as the 2012 NSIC indoor champion in the triple jump and runner-up in the 2013 NSIC Outdoor Championships. Dilling’s jumpers totaled a NSIC Conference record at the time of 41.50 points in the high, long, & triple jump events as they went onto score a team total of 207.50 points winning the NSIC Indoor Championships by 96.5 points.
The Mavericks finished fifth at the 2013 NCAA Division II Championships in Birmingham, Ala. which was the highest finish by a Minnesota State track & field team since Dilling was a team member during the teams fifth place finish at the 2006 Indoor NCAA Division II Championships held in Boston, Mass.
Competitive History
As a student-athlete, Dilling racked up four national championships in the high jump, including two at both the indoor (2006 & 2007) and outdoor (2005 & 2007) national meets as well as a six-time All-American in the event (2nd at 2005 indoor & 3rd at 2006 outdoor). He was also a four-time North Central Conference outdoor champion and a three-time indoor champion and also a two-time NCC outdoor champion in the long jump. He finished just out of All-American status in the long jump placing ninth (season best of 23'9 1/4" at the 2006 NCAA Division II Indoor Championships minutes after setting the NCAA Division II high jump meet record of 7'6".
He left Minnesota State owning the school records in both the indoor (7’6 ½”) and outdoor (7’6 ½”) high jump as well as the NCC indoor record (7’6 ½)” and outdoor record (7’6 ½”). Dilling was a 15-time NCC Athlete of the Week and was named both the NCC Track and Field Outstanding Male Athlete and the Minnesota State Men’s Athlete of the Year in 2007.
Following his college career, Dilling was the 2007 USA Track & Field High Jump Champion and represented Team USA at the IAAF World Track & Field Championships in Oasaka, Japan, where he finished 16th in qualifying. His record setting season left him finishing the year ranked fourth in the US and 19th in the world. Dilling was a five-time USA Outdoor Championships qualifier (2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, & 2011) including appearances in the past two Olympic Trials and was a five-time Indoor Championships qualifier (2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, & 2012). His five-year professional high jump career led him to competitions throughout Europe, Asia, and the Caribbean and will be an extremely valuable asset in his efforts to begin a more international-based recruiting initiative for the Mavericks track and field program.
Dilling, a native of Fond du Lac, Wis., graduated with his Bachelor of Science from Minnesota State in 2007 and completed his Master of Arts in Sports Management in 2013. He also earned his USTFCCCA Coaching Certification as a Jumping Event Specialist in the same year.
