• 2004-05 Track and Field Coaches
Head Coach Mike Thompson Mike Thompson begins his 10th season as head men’s and women’s track and field coach in 2004-05. During his tenure, he has guided Binghamton from the NCAA Division III level to the Division I level. Since he joined BU’s staff in 1994, Thompson has produced 32 track All-Americans, including eight national champions, five runners-up and five third-place individual performances. This past season, he coached Rory Quiller to the NCAA Division I regional meet. Numerous honors have come Thompson’s way during his tenure at Binghamton. In 1998, he was named New York State Coach of the Year for both men’s indoor and outdoor track. Thompson also was selected as NCAA Division II Regional Coach of the Year indoors and outdoors. Two years prior, the Colorado native was named NCAA National Coach of the Year after leading the BU women’s indoor team to a sixth-place finish at the NCAA Division III Championship. In 1997, Thompson earned his first New York State Coach of the Year honor after his men were runners-up outdoors. In 1999, Thompson’s men placed 3rd at the New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) Championship, fifth at the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) meet, and took 10th at the NCAA Division II Indoor Championship. The women, meanwhile, were third at the conference championship, seventh at ECAC’s and 16th at the NCAA championship— all in the program’s first year at Division II. Thompson also served as the men’s cross country head coach for four seasons, before handing over the reins in 1999. Prior to assuming the head coaching duties, Thompson was BU’s assistant cross country/track coach during the 1994-95 season. A former two-time national track champion for the University of Northern Colorado, Thompson served as jumps coach at UNC, helping produce eight All-Americans and three NCAA champions. As an athlete, Thompson captured both the indoor and outdoor NCAA Division II pole vault titles in 1989. He was a three-time All-American, four-time conference champion, and still holds the UNC pole vault record at 17-7 1/4. This past year, he was inducted into the Northern Colorado Hall of Fame. Thompson holds a bachelor’s degree in communications and a master’s in physical education, both from UNC. In addition, he also has a USA Track and Field Level II Certification in the Jumping, Sprinting, Hurdle and Throwing Events. In addition, Thompson has been published in the Winter 2003 edition of Track Coach. The article, which is Thompson’s first published work, is entitled “Troubleshooting the Pole Vault.” Still competitive as an athlete, Thompson won three consecutive pole vault titles at the Empire State Games in 1995, 1996 and 1997. Mike, his wife, Sarah, and their two children, Kelly (3) and Rory (8 months) live in Binghamton. Both are instructors in the University’s physical education department.
Assistant Coach Annette Acuff Annette Acuff begins her fifth season as a full-time assistant coach with the track and field team. She coaches the distance runners and also serves as the cross country coach in the fall. Acuff came to Binghamton from University of Northern Colorado, where she was the assistant women’s cross country coach for three years. During that span, she coached one cross country All-American and three All-American distance runners in track. Under Acuff’s leadership, the Bears enjoyed back-to-back NCAA Division II Championship appearances, placing 10th in 1997 and 14th in 1998. A former NCAA Division I runner, Acuff earned all-conference honors in indoor track three straight years in the 1,000 meters at Oklahoma (1992-94). Acuff was also an Academic All-Big Eight selection four times (1991-94). Acuff received her bachelor’s degree in psychology from Oklahoma in 1995, and went on to earn her master’s degree in physical education, with an emphasis in sports psychology, from Northern Colorado in May 2000. Acuff has also earned her Level II Certification in the sprint and distance events from USA Track & Field
Assistant Coach Wally Yelverton Wally Yelverton begins his sixth season as an assistant track coach on the Binghamton staff. He was also a member of the staff in 1999. From 1991-2000, Yelverton was an assistant track coach at nearby Maine-Endwell High School. During the 2001-02 season, Yelverton coached his daughters, Marisa and Laura, both of whom were standout throwers. Laura won the conference title in the discus while Marisa finished third. Yelverton graduated from SUNY Oswego in 1977. In his senior year, he earned All-America honors in the shot put. Yelverton then went on to earn his teaching certification from Binghamton.
Assistant Coach Monisha Mealing Monisha Mealing begins her first season as an assistant coach. She just concluded an impressive four-year career with the Bearcats and earned her B.A. in psychology. At last season's America East Conference outdoor championship, Mealing was fourth in the heptathlon and sixth in the triple jump. At the conference indoor meet, she was eighth in the triple jump.
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