Wingate, N.C.----When Jackie Kirby joined the Wingate University cross country and track and field coaching staff as director of operations in June of 2022, she could not have imagined how the last 18 months would develop. As the Bulldogs have claimed multiple conference and national championship titles, the next step for Kirby was a promotion to head coach for men's and women's track and field for the 2024 season.
 
Kirby's squads begin a busy track and field calendar with indoor meets in Boston and Winston-Salem this weekend. They look to build on Wingate's recent men's cross country NCAA national championship performance as incentive for more success. Bulldog director of cross country and track and field Matt van Lierop believes Kirby is ready for the challenges which lie ahead.
 
Building from the beginning
 
"I've had the honor to watch Coach Kirby grow as a student-athlete, a coach and a person over the last two decades," van Lierop says. "She's been with me from the beginning, part of my first-ever Keystone College recruiting class, when my coaching career began in 2004. Her development as a runner, following the ever-changing structure of the 'medieval' training program I was creating, helped me start what is now considered the 'Wingate Way.'"

"After her graduation, she accepted an assistant position with me at my next stop, Mount Olive," van Lierop recalls. "It's there that we continued to tweak the program and where we recruited and met Pol Domenech in the fall of 2013. Kirby continued to impress and was elevated to associate head coach, and eventually became head coach of cross country, leading the UMO men to a top-15 finish at NCAAs in 2019."

New opportunities at Wingate University
 
"When a new position opened at Wingate, it was time to have her rejoin what Coach Pol Domenech and I were building here with the Bulldogs," van Lierop says. She's the final piece to the puzzle, adding her unlimited skill set in so many areas, including photography and graphic design. Upon her arrival, she immediately leveled our social media presence and recruiting materials way up, helping WUXCTF explode onto the scene, right as we began to hit our stride."

"Having Coach Kirby among this staff, while winning our NCAA XC title, after this two-decade long journey, was just as good as it gets," van Lierop says. "In my opinion, she's finally home, in this team family culture that's so exciting to be around. Adjusting her position title to head coach for track and field and assistant coach for cross country was a no-brainer. She will continue to help Pol, and the rest of the WUXCTF coaching staff, elevate this program to the next level."
 
Believing and motivating
 
Wingate senior student-athlete Luis Hernandez Perez is grateful for Coach Kirby's influence on his life. "Coach Kirby has had a large impact on my life as an athlete, but also as a person in general," Hernandez Perez says. "After my first couple of semesters were not going as planned, she kept believing in me and motivating me to better myself. This patience has really helped me become a better athlete. If it wasn't for her, I might not have even continued in college."
 
Hernandez Perez stayed the course, leading Wingate to its third consecutive South Atlantic Conference men's cross country league championship in October. Hernandez Perez finished second with his personal-best 8K time of 23:03.57. "Over the last year, my results were improving drastically, but her attitude did not change," Hernandez Perez says. "She kept motivating me and always tried to get me in the best position possible to perform well."
 
"These attributes will be beneficial for everybody as she steps into her new role," Hernandez Perez says. "I am certain that she will be successful and I am looking forward to the track season and seeing everybody work hard towards their goals."
 
'Coach and ambassador, caring and compassionate'
 
Kirby's coaching competitors are taking notice of her talents. Texas A&M University-Kingsville track and field/cross country head coach Ryan Dall has known Kirby for 10 years. "Jackie has always been an excellent coach and ambassador for the sport," Dall says. "Not only has she been successful on the track and in cross country, she is also a caring and compassionate person who always does her best to put her athletes' needs first. Wingate is very lucky to have her and I'm sure she will continue to build on that program's success." 
 
Whirlwind 18 months
 
Kirby's first year with the cross country and track and field programs saw Wingate sweep six-of-six South Atlantic Conference titles. The Bulldogs won the 2022 SAC men's and women's XC crowns. Wingate claimed first place in both Southeast Region cross country championship races as well. The men's XC team finished second at NCAAs. Team victories in both the 2023 SAC men's and women's indoor and outdoor track and field followed.
 
On the national level, Wingate won one relay and one individual national championship at the 2023 NCAA Division II indoor meet. Freshman distance specialist Hamza Chahid had a hand in both, starting with Wingate's win in the men's Distance Medley Relay (DMR) on Friday, March 10. Chahid earned his second gold in the men's 3000 meters on Saturday, March 11.
 
The 2023-24 cycle has begun in a similar fashion. The Wingate cross country teams won both the 2023 SAC and SER championship meets. The Bulldog men's XC team earned the school's third NCAA team national championship earlier this month in Joplin, Missouri. The Wingate women's XC team finished eighth at the same event.
 
Jackie Kirby coaching biographical sketch

- Joined WUTFXC staff in June of 2022 as director of operations
- Promoted to Wingate track and field head coach in the summer of 2023
- Started Mount Olive cross country head coaching tenure with Conference Carolinas men's Coach of the Year award in 2019
- Six-time USTFCCCA Southeast Region track and field Assistant Coach of the Year while at UMO
- 47 times Conference Carolinas league champions (both XC and T&F)
- 15 times Southeast Region champions (both XC and T&F)
- 57 NCAA Division II All-Americans (both XC and T&F)
- 14 NCAA Division II XC national championship appearances with a 15th place men's showing in 2019
- 14 NCAA Division II indoor track and field national championship appearances
- 18 NCAA Division II outdoor track and field national championship appearances
- Impacted every area of the UMO XCTF programs, including team operations, training and recruiting
- Coordinated volunteer service outreach for the Trojans
- Served four years as Mount Olive's athletic department photographer for all sports.
- Worked seven years as the program's graphic designer and social media coordinator
 
Jackie Kirby USTFCCCA regional and national involvement
 
- Served on USTFCCCA national and regional poll committees (2016-present)
- Served on USTFCCCA NCAA Division II cross country executive committee as Conference Carolinas representative (2018-22)
 
Jackie Kirby education and athletic honors
 
- Earned Bachelor of Arts degree in visual art, photography and graphic design from Keystone (Pa.) College in 2009
- Inducted into Keystone College's Athletics Hall of Fame in 2019
- Received the Keystonian awarded to the school's most outstanding athlete three times (2007, 2008 and 2009)
- Served on Keystone Student-Athlete Advisory Committee three years
- Served as team captain for both cross country and track and field for two seasons each under the tutelage of then-KC head coach Matt van Lierop
 
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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