Following a national search for the successor to retired head coach Jarrett Slaven, the University of Tampa has selected Logan Wells as its new head coach for women's cross country and track.
"First of all, I want to thank Larry Marfise and everyone on the search committee at the University of Tampa for giving me this opportunity," says Wells. "I'm ecstatic to be taking over a program that I believe has the talent and resources to be a perennial contender on the national stage. I can't wait to build on the foundation of success that coach Slaven and others have laid for years, and I fully expect to carry on that tradition."
Wells brings collegiate coaching experience from four institutions, as this marks his third head coaching position. A lifetime runner, Wells comes from a coaching family, where his father and grandfather also served as coaches. His father, Brady Wells, is currently the head men's and women's cross country coach at Hanover College.
Wells previously served as the head cross country/track and field coach at NCAA Division III Spalding University, since March 2021. He led the program to three school records in track. He also coached two SLIAC individual conference champions with two SLIAC Newcomer of the Year awards.
Among his accomplishments during his short stint at Spalding include 14 top-five program finishes among cross country, track, and field events. He also coached his runners to 14 SLIAC all-conference awards, including five first-teamers and nine on the second team.
Prior to Spalding, Wells spent two years as the head cross country and assistant track field coach at Bluffton University. In his inaugural season, he guided the Beavers women's team to a fourth-place finish in the HCAC Championships and placed two runners on the HCAC All-Conference First Team. In addition, the men's team placed 6th and both teams were recognized by the USTFCCCA for their performance in the classroom making the Academic All-America list. On the track, Wells helped guide his runners to seven all-conference performances, including a conference champion in the women's 10,000m run.
Prior to his time at Bluffton, Wells spent two years at Otterbein University and his alma mater of Hanover College. As an assistant coach, Wells helped coordinate practices, recruit athletes and manage on-campus events. Wells also has a background in hosting events through helping Hanover College host the 2013 NCAA DIII Cross Country National Championships, as well as through coordinating races with Columbus Running Company in Columbus, Ohio.
As an athlete, Wells is ranked fifth all-time in Hanover school history over the 8-kilometer distance. He has also trained and raced with the CRC (Columbus Running Company) Elite team from 2015-18 and owns a personal best in the marathon distance of 2:26:18. In addition, he competed in the 2016 USATF half-marathon championships.
Wells holds a USATF Level 2 Coaching Certification in addition to an endurance specialist certification from the USTFCCCA. Wells has a Master's from Ohio University, in addition to a Bachelor's degree from Hanover College.
Source: https://www.tampaspartans.com/sports/wxc/2022-23/releases/20220625j4k2bk
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