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Richard Ceronie While more than two decades have passed since Dr. Richard Ceronie took over the reins of the Miami University women's cross country and track and field program, Ceronie's passion for working with student-athletes remains the same as it was when he was first hired 24 years ago. Since taking over as the RedHawks' mentor, Ceronie's enthusiasm for developing successful student-athletes has not waned, and his vision of creating a program that is nationally-recognized in both athletics and academics has been realized. "I wake up every morning excited to go to work and continue to build our program to the highest level it can achieve," Ceronie said. "We have shown that it is possible to balance outstanding academics and athletics here at Miami." One of the trademarks of Ceronie's cross country and track and field program has been the ability to produce not only conference champions--61 Mid-American Conference gold medals have been won under Ceronie--but also academic all-conference athletes, as 84 athletes have been such honored during Ceronie's tenure. "It is great to watch the young people around me grow and develop academically, athletically and socially," Ceronie said. "There can be no greater reward than watching young athletes struggle with the challenges they face, then see them win a conference championship and walk across the stage to receive their Miami diploma." LEADERSHIP Ceronie also spent two years (2004-06) as the president of the Women's Intercollegiate Cross Country Coaches Association (WICCCA) after previously serving two years as the vice president of the seven-member council. Additionally, Ceronie has twice been elected to serve as cross country representative from the Midwest Region, was selected as the secretary of the NCAA women's cross country executive sub-committee and chaired Miami University's Unclassified Personnel Advisory Committee, which worked with the president's office on advancements for Miami's 1,200 unclassified staff members. "Miami University has been very good to me, and I've been blessed to work with some outstanding student-athletes in the cross country and track and field programs," Ceronie said. "My service is a way of giving back to the community and a sport I love, and it provides me an opportunity to invest in the advancement of Miami and its athletic programs." CRADLE OF COACHES "Each of those coaches came to Miami with great skills and talent, and Miami allowed them to expand on those talents and use our program as a springboard for their professional advancement," Ceronie said. "All of those coaches had a positive impact on the student-athletes, and I'm sure I learned more from them than I could have possibly given to them." THE MIAMI FAMILY "We strive to create a family atmosphere," Ceronie said. "The overall growth and development of the student-athletes is our number one priority, and from the top to the bottom, we work to foster a positive environment where success can be attained." ATHLETIC SUCCESS Ceronie's efforts have been recognized with team and personal accolades. He coached Miami to its first MAC track and field title in 1986 and was named Ohio's Coach of the Year in 1993. Recently, Ceronie was named the Mondo Great Lakes Coach of the Year and MAC Coach of the Year in 2003. Ceronie also is one of only four MAC coaches to produce an NCAA outdoor champion. In 1986, Karen Bakewell ran what was then the fastest 800-meter time in college history (2:00.85) and finished the year ranked among the world's elite. Another highlight of Ceronie's career was guiding Melissa Mayers, who became Miami's first cross country all-American in 1996. As one of Ceronie's standout pupils, Andrea Kremer (2001-04) became the only Miami athlete to earn all-America status in each of her first three years. A three-time Miami Female Athlete of the Year honoree, Kremer was named the 2001 MAC Women's Track and Field Outstanding Performer, placed 10th in the steeplechase at the NCAA Championships and became the first freshman female to be named the Miami Athlete of the Year. Kremer also was a cross country all-American in 2001 and a steeplechase all-American in 2003. During the past five seasons, Ceronie has overseen unparalleled success in track and field, as the RedHawks have produced 10 national qualifiers. Beginning in 2003, two Miamians qualified for the national meet in three straight seasons (2003-05), while two-time defending MidEast Regional Pole Vault Champion Sarah Landau served as Miami's representative in 2006. During the 2006-07 season, Ceronie sent three Miamians to the national meet, with high jumper Kristina Bolterstein qualifying both indoors and outdoors. After tying a MAC indoor record with a leap of 6-1 1/2, Bolterstein won her second straight MAC indoor title, finished 17th at the NCAA Championships and was tabbed as the USTFCCCA Great Lakes Region Indoor Field Athlete of the Year. She then followed that up by becoming Miami's first high jump All-American during the outdoor season, as she was the eighth American finisher at the national meet. Ten Miami Athletes of the Year also have come from Ceronie's program during his tenure, more than any other program at Miami. ACADEMIC SUCCESS "The environment provided by Miami is ideal for an athlete to excel on the field, as well as off," Ceronie said. Ceronie's 2005 cross country squad posted a team grade-point average of 3.38--the highest of any Miami varsity team during the 2005-06 school year--and was named as a Women's Intercollegiate Cross Country Coaches Association Academic All-America team for the 12th consecutive season. Carol Eckerly and Jennie Stoll also garnered Academic All-MAC honors. Ceronie's track and field athletes also compiled an impressive academic resume in 2005-06, finishing with a 3.17 GPA, the 35th-best nationally for Division I women's programs. Of the 330 Division I institutions that sponsor women's cross country and track and field, less than 10 percent are recognized nationally by the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association as a Scholar All-American Program, something Miami also accomplished in the 2005-06 season. Additionally, Landau and Kristina Bolterstein were honored by the USTFCCCA as Scholar All-Americans, and Bolterstein also placed on the CoSIDA/ESPN the Magazine Academic All-District IV Second Team. Multi-event standout Taryn Nye also earned Miami Scholar Athlete of the Year honors, the eighth athlete under Ceronie to earn Miami Athletics' highest academic honor. The program's eight scholar-athlete awards are tops of any varsity team at Miami. THE CERONIE FILE In 1979, Ceronie was appointed to the faculty at Geneseo State University (N.Y.), where he took over the men's track and field program and established the women's cross country and track program. The women's team went undefeated for three years and sent a cross country runner to the NCAA Championships for the first time in the university's history. Ceronie also produced the first men's conference champion. Before joining the staff at Geneseo State, Ceronie taught sixth grade and coached in the Canton (N.Y.) school system. Having gone without a state qualifier since the establishment of the cross country and track and field program, Canton sent 40 athletes to the New York state meet during Ceronie's four years (1975-79). As a runner at Brockport State University (N.Y.), Ceronie won three straight sprint championships and led his team to the 1974 conference championship. An example to his athletes in the classroom, Ceronie earned two bachelor's degrees in health education (1974) and elementary education (1975) from Brockport State. Ceronie then earned a graduate degree in elementary education from Geneseo State (1982) before earning a master's in sports administration (1989) and Ph.D. in educational leadership (1993) from Miami. Ceronie resides in Oxford with his wife, Karen, a chemical engineer at Proctor & Gamble, and their daughters, Katelin Elizabeth (17), and Lauren Marie (15). CERONIE QUICK FACTS: Education: Bachelor's degree in health education (Brockport State, 1974) ... bachelor's in elementary education (Brockport State, 1975) ... graduate teaching certificate in elementary education (Geneseo State, 1982) ... master's in sport organization (Miami University, 1989) ... Ph.D. in educational leadership (Miami University,1993.) Coaching: Head coach at Miami University (1984-present) ... (1982-84) assistant track and field coach and strength coach at University of Cincinnati ... (1979-82) head coach at Geneseo State University ... (1975-79) head coach at Canton H.S. Running: Helped Brockport State to 1974 conference track and field championship ... three-time conference sprint champ.
THE CERONIE FILE Year CROSS COUNTRY OT&F 1984-85 3rd 4th 1985-86 4th 1st 1986-87 7th 3rd 1987-88 4th 4th 1988-89 3rd 6th 1989-90 7th 7th 1990-91 4th 4th 1991-92 4th 3rd 1992-93 2nd 4th 1993-94 2nd 4th 1994-95 5th t-7th |
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