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Wednesday, July 25, 2012

Track and Field Contact: Tom Fenstermaker

Mario Wilson Named Assistant Track and Field Coach

Former Clemson assistant brings 14 years of Division I experience

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va.—Mario Wilson has been named a Virginia assistant track and field coach, director of track and field/cross country Bryan Fetzer announced Wednesday (July 25). Wilson, who was an assistant at Clemson in 2011-12, has been a part of 23 conference champion teams in 14 years of NCAA Division I coaching experience. Wilson will coach the horizontal jumps, men’s high jump, javelin and the decathlon for the Cavaliers.

“I could not be more excited about Mario coming on board,” Fetzer said. “He fits our staff and direction perfectly. He is an incredible recruiter and an exceptional coach that understands what it takes to build a championship program.”

Wilson was the 2010 United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Southeast Region Assistant Coach of the Year and has been part of two Mid-Atlantic Region Coaching StaffÂ’s of the Year and seven conference coaching staffÂ’s of the year.

“I am both honored and excited to become a part of the University of Virginia family,” Wilson said. “I look forward to assisting Coach Fetzer and the rest of the staff as we pursue championships in track and field and cross country.”

Wilson spent the last four years as an assistant at Clemson, where he mentored Patricia Mamona to the 2011 NCAA outdoor title in the womenÂ’s triple jump as well as 13 additional All-Americans. He helped guide the Tigers to six Atlantic Coast Championships, including 10 individual conference champions, and to a fourth-place finish at the 2012 NCAA Outdoor Championships.

Prior to Clemson, Wilson was an assistant at New Mexico from 2007-09, where he tutored four All-Americans and nine NCAA participants. He helped lead Bucknell to 10 Patriot League cross country and track and field team championships from 2002 to 2007.

Wilson graduated from Marist in 1998 with a degree in psychology. He earned a masterÂ’s degree in education in 2004 from St. Francis (PA), where he began his collegiate coaching career. From 1998-2002, St. Francis won seven Northeast Conference team titles and Wilson coached 32 school record holders.

Wilson competed in track and field and was a standout football player at Marist, where he was a four-year starter and was named the 1998 Marist College Sportsman of the Year.