Anna Schwulst/The Falcon (From left to right) SPU alumnus Chris Randolph, former head coach Doris Heritage and sophomore Jessica Pixler hold awards they received February 9th at the Pacific Northwest Track and Field Association banquet.

The Falcons clean up the track and the awards.

Sophomore runner Jessica Pixler, recently retired SPU cross country head coach Doris Heritage and alumnus Chris Randolph each took home an award from the Pacific Northwest Track and Field Association (PNTF) banquet on Feb. 9.

Pixler was named Track Athlete of the Year. Heritage took the Ken Foreman Contributor of the Year Award, and Randolph, who is among the top nine decathletes in the country, was awarded with Field Athlete of the Year.

The awards are handed out once a year by the PNTF, which meets monthly. At the January meeting, according to the minutes found online (http://pntf.org), the attending members were told they needed to nominate the Ken Foreman Contributor of the Year.

All board members--athletes, officials, coaches and parents who are heavily involved in track--were allowed to put forth nominees, who were then voted on.

Heritage said that the Ken Foreman award was one of the most prestigious awards with which she could be honored.

Ken Foreman, for whom the award is named, was the track and field coach at SPU for 38 years and was inducted into the National Distance Running Hall of Fame in 2003.

According to Heritage, he founded athletics at SPU. She took classes from him, and he was her coach and mentor.

"He is a person I admire, who contributed so much [to SPU and women's athletics]," she said. "Now I have an honor in his name."

Heritage said that she was pleased to be counted among the "people who give so much of their lives." The hall of fame, she said, is a huge honor. However, this award was given to her by "people who know [her]."

Erika Daligcon, the newly appointed SPU head cross country coach, said that Doris deserved this award for all of the little things she does.

"So often you see the big things that coaches do," Daligcon explained, "and don't know all the miniscule things. Doris is always thinking about what she can do--the unsung things."

"There is no one else who deserves it besides her," Pixler said of the former head coach. The team is "happy that she got it," she said.

The Track and Field Athlete of the Year awards for the past few years have gone to impressive athletes, Heritage said.

Last year, the University of Washington (UW) half-miler Ryan Brown, who won the PAC-10 and finished high in nationals, and world champion pole-vaulter Brad Walker, a UW alum, were recipients of the award.

"California usually has a huge conglomerate [of good athletes]," Heritage said. "Washington always has some too. This year we have good ones. All the best are nominated and voted on. It's not a popularity contest. It's based on statistics."

Daligcon called Pixler, "quite the rarity."

"It's like, where is the ceiling?" she said. "She [Pixler] is mentally able to push herself to excel."

Because her mental side is engaged, Daligcon said, it gives her an edge. Pixler has been a competitor since she was young, growing into someone whom Daligcon called, "a real find."

On Feb. 11, Pixler was also awarded the 2007 Division II U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Women's Cross Country All-Academic Athlete of the Year.

"I'm actually more proud of the academic award," Pixler, who is majoring in English, said. "I work hard to keep my grades up and do sports at the same time."

Heritage said that she does not consider either award more important, but that the academic award speaks to Jessica's talent not only as a runner, but as a person who displays excellence through many areas of her life.

Pixler's adviser and English professor, Eve Chaney, called Jessica a dedicated student who loves English.

"She asks great questions in class and really contributes to the discussion," Chaney said. "She's not that quiet person sitting in the back."

The past couple of weeks have been busy for Pixler, with three awards coming.

"It's surprising to be getting so many awards," she said. "There are so many other good runners out there. It's an honor."

Pixler is unaffected by the awards and is not striving for accolades, Daligcon said.

"She works for the pure love of the sport," she explained. "It's the same with Doris [Heritage]. That's a trait in good athletes."

According to Heritage, Pixler turned down a chance to go to Olympia to be honored by the State Senate because she didn't want to miss more school.

"It takes a lot of time to get accolades," Heritage said. "Our athletes have to do it all knowing they can't be in all their classes."

Chaney said that, since Pixler has a lot less time than many students, she is disciplined and has a plan.

"If she has a free minute, she works to get ahead on something," Chaney said. "It's noticeably different than other students, who can be more lackadaisical. She doesn't have that luxury."

"I'm taking what happens and going with it," Pixler said. "It's motivation to keep on working hard."

Heritage added that professors are starting to understand how much more the student-athletes have to do to keep up with all their schoolwork.

"We're biblical," Heritage said with a laugh. "To whom much is given, much is required. They [the student-athletes] are the best and the brightest."