Geopfert Invites Public to Meet Track and Field Staff

MANHATTAN, Kan. – Director of Track and Field/Cross Country Travis Geopfert invites the public and media to a press conference to meet the entire Wildcats staff on Thursday (Aug. 22) prior to the 2024-25 season.

Geopfert's staff of ten assistant coaches— including head cross country coach Kate Bucknam, associate head coach John Newell and assistant coaches Trey Brokaw, Stephanie Brokaw, Mat Clark, Christopher Goodwin, Kip Janvrin, James Milholen, Clive Pullen and Olympic gold medalist Tara Davis-Woodhall will be introduced to the public at the K-State indoor track and field complex at 11 a.m. Questions to any of the staff members are welcome as well as individual media interviews at the conclusion.

Also in attendance will be Hunter Woodhall, USA Paralympian coached by Geopfert, set to compete in Paris Games in the 100- and 400-meter dash from August 28-September 8.

Entering from gates 1 or 3 on College Ave or gate 5 on Kimball Ave, fans are encouraged to park in the south end of the west lot by Bramlage Coliseum and Morgan Family Arena for the shortest walk down to the indoor complex. Parking is prohibited in the south lot.

Davis-Woodhall returned from Paris as a gold medalist, winning the women's long jump with a distance of 7.10m/23-3.50. Competing professionally since graduating from Texas in 2021, Davis-Woodhall enters her first coaching role with the Wildcats.

Bucknam is two weeks away from leading the cross country team to its first meet of the season on Aug. 31 at the Bob Timmons Classic. Bucknam will oversee a mostly young roster in her first year after spending the last seven years at Belmont.

Newell, working with throwers, returned from the Paris Olympics after a former Arkansas student athlete, Roje Stona, broke the men's discus Olympic record and won gold at 70.00m/229-8. Newell has worked with five Olympians, also coaching USA's Veronica Fraley in Paris in the women's discus.

Brokaw will provide aid to the cross country teams and recruit potential Wildcats for the upcoming seasons. Brokaw previously led a track and field program of his own at Western Illinois for three years quadrupling the Leathernecks' roster size.

Brokaw, nee Stephanie Brown, spent the last three seasons with her husband Trey at Western Illinois as assistant coach with the distance runners. In 2023 she helped guide the Leathernecks' Female Student-Athlete of the Year Paulina Wuestefeld in multiple school record performances. Graduating from Arkansas in 2014 as a decorated athlete, Brokaw still runs professionally and previously qualified for the 2012 and 2016 USA Olympic Trials in the 800 and 1,500 meters.

Clark will coach the sprinters after spending 10 years with the Razorbacks as director of strength and conditioning, working with multiple Bowerman award finalists and Olympians. Clark trained athletes through eight NCAA Championship titles, including 19 athletes to 33 individual NCAA titles and 7 relay teams.

Goodwin will serve as assistant coach and director of operations for the Wildcats after spending the last two seasons at Central Missouri as a graduate assistant. As a coach he oversaw four NCAA All-Americans and 10 new top-10 school performances. Graduating from UCM in 2022, he was the 2022 NCAA Division II outdoor national champion in the long jump, the first event title for the school.

Janvrin will oversee the combined events athletes and pole vaulters after spending the last 35 years at Central Missouri. He led Central Missouri women to their first Division II Championships, both indoor and outdoor in 2014-15. Janvrin was an Olympian in his own right, competing in the decathlon at the 2000 Sydney Olympics.

Milholen comes from Adams State University in Alamosa, Co., where he was the assistant coach for sprints and hurdles. Milholen graduated from Arkansas in 2022 with six NCAA All-American honors and was a three-time All-SEC athlete. He attended the University of Colorado for his graduate degree in 2023 and after graduating competed professionally at the 2023 outdoor and 2024 indoor USATF Track and Field Championship.

Pullen, coaching the jumpers, is also a former Olympian who competed at the 2016 Rio Olympics for Jamaica in the triple jump and was a two-time NCAA national champion. Pullen was coached by Geopfert at Arkansas before working alongside him at Arkansas and Tennessee, assisting with 6 NCAA Champions.

-- k-statesports.com --

How to follow the 'Cats: For complete information on the K-State Track and Field and Cross Country Teams, visit www.kstatesports.com and follow the team's social media channels on X (formerly Twitter), Instagram and Facebook.

Kansas State University Athletics

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