The Ashland University Track & Field Team has become a hallmark of success in recent memory, winning three indoor national championships in four seasons.

However, the 2021-22 campaign started off on a bit of a sad note, as Jud Logan, the team’s head coach, passed away after a battle with leukemia in January at the age of 62.

Now the reins have been handed to Jacob Sussman, who is in his fifth year as a coach with the Purple and Gold.

With the recent success, the bar continues to be set higher for the Eagles.

“Jud Logan’s always set our standards pretty high as a program,” Sussman said. “We want to keep it that way, and our athletes feed off of that pressure. It pushes them to do better and better. We’re hoping to see continued success over the years.”

This year’s roster retains most of the championship winners over the past three-plus seasons, including star senior Trevor Bassitt, thrower Brent Fairbanks, runner Channing Phillips, and thrower Carrol Pauley, just to name a few.

And also new for this season is a state-of-the-art practice facility. After construction, the 125,000-square foot Niss Center will be home to Ashland’s daily track practices. It was also the site of the first event, the Jud Logan Light Giver Memorial, on Feb. 5.

Sussman and the team were quick to acclimate to the new building.

“It’s pretty awesome, actually,” he said. “We’re pretty blessed to have this brand-new facility. We don’t have to cram our entire team into our old indoor facility. It’s kinda given us a nice energy coming in here and being able to have everyone on our team be able to practice at the same time.”

After success in February meets and high marks from the seniors, the Eagles are now looking ahead to national competition, with 16 participants at the championships on Mar. 11 and 12 at the Robert W. Plaser Center in Pittsburg, Kansas.

The Ashland Eagles continue to prove themselves as a force in track and field competition, and whether they compete indoors or outdoors, they are not a team to be slept on.