LUBBOCK, Texas (July 1, 2020) – Lubbock Christian Director of Cross-Country and Track & Field Nick Cordes has announced the addition of three new assistant coaches for the expanded track & field team that will begin competing in 2020.
Matt Graziano will come aboard to coach throwing events, Vie Latham will head up jumps events and Tyree Gailes has been added to coach the sprints. The three bring extensive competitive and coaching experience to the program and will help lead the team along with Nick and Leigh Cordes.
“We are very excited about the addition of Matt, Vie, and Tyree to the program,” Cordes said. “They are highly successful athletes, technicians, and good people. We have no doubt they will hit the ground running and help our new sprinters, jumpers, and throwers push their limits while also setting strong examples of how to carry themselves on and off the track.”
The LCU track & field program was re-started with both indoor and outdoor teams beginning in the 2016-17 academic year, after a storied history in the sport at both the junior college and NAIA levels. When the program re-started four years ago, the Chaps and Lady Chaps began competing in running events 400 meters or longer, although shorter events have been included in the years since. Lubbock Christian has seen numerous successes at the Lone Star Conference Championships in the four years of the program, along with Jalen Tryon qualifying for the National Meet during both indoor and outdoor season in 2019 and indoor season in 2020.
Expansion of the track team comes with the addition of the new LCU Soccer & Track Complex that is currently being built on campus. Set for completion in August 2020, the new facility will include a modernized turf soccer field with an eight-lane track around the perimeter, press box for media and coaching staff, lights for evening competition, and stadium seating for 500 fans. Also included will be areas for throws, jumps and pole vault, allowing the program to add between 50 and 60 new student-athletes.
Tyree Gailes is a Texas native who grew up in Abilene but attended college just down the road at Texas Tech. Gailes has extensive experience running at not only the collegiate level, but also the professional level. He has most recently been a volunteer assistant coach for the Texas Tech Track & Field team, while also doing private training on sprint mechanics and block starts.
Prior to entering the coaching ranks, Gailes made his mark in the professional ranks, running for Reebok for two years and competing internationally for his country. He won the 100-meter dash in Brazzaville, Congo in 2008 and was second in the 200-meter at the same meet. He also was the 100-meter champion in Berlin, Germany that same year. Gailes secured a top 13 ranking in the United States in 2009 and was part of the USA 4X100 relay B team that clocked a time of 39.3 seconds.
At Texas Tech, where Gailes was a letter-winner for three years and two-time Division I All-American, he set three school records. The Abilene native ran a time of 10.11 in the 100-meter dash to place fourth at the NCAA D-I Outdoor National Championships, which stood as the school record until 2018. He also held the 200-meter outdoor record with a time of 20.5 that made him the Big 12 Champion in 2004. Indoors, Gailes held the 55-meter dash record from 2004-11. He was a team captain for the Red Raiders and helped the men’s program to its first Big 12 Championship of any kind during outdoor season in 2005.
Gailes ran at Garden City Community College before his time at Texas Tech, capturing seven All-America awards and a fourth-place finish in the 100-meter dash at the NJCAA Outdoor National Championships. In high school, he was a part of the Texas 5A State Championship team in 2001 at Abilene High School. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Exercise and Sport Science degree. Gailes and his wife Christal have been married for eight years and have two children together.
Latham also comes to Lubbock Christian University by way of Texas Tech, where she competed for four years while earning a Bachelor of Science Biology degree with a minor in Chemistry and a Masters in Interdisciplinary Studies, which she just completed in May.
For the last three seasons, while Latham was completing her master’s degree, she also worked as a volunteer coach for the Texas Tech Track & Field team, conducting practices for the jumpers in the program. Along with her duties at Texas Tech, Latham has coached horizontal jumps for the West Texas Select Track & Field team as well as conducted private coaching sessions with the majority of her athletes improving their jumps by at least one foot.
After graduation, Latham also competed professionally, qualifying for the USA Track And Field Championships from 2017 to 2019. She finished in fourth place in 2017 and moved up one spot for a third-place finish in 2018.
During her time with the Red Raiders, Latham captured one Big 12 Individual Title in the triple jump. She was selected as the Big 12 Athlete of the Week once in 2017 and four times named an All-American during her collegiate career.
Latham lettered for four years at Mesquite High School, regionally qualifying for the triple jump every year. In 2013, she was a Texas State 5A bronze medalist.
Graziano is yet another former NCAA Division I student-athlete but comes to LCU by way of the University of Connecticut, where he threw discus. He spent one semester as a volunteer assistant for the Husky track team before moving to Lubbock. Graziano has USATF Level I certification.
While competing at UCONN, Graziano was an All-American Conference selection all four years and qualified for the NCAA East Regional three times. His personal-best in the discus collegiately came as a junior at the 2015 Penn Relays when he threw 53.84m. Graziano also competed in several other throwing events and as a senior, he set new personal bests in the weight throw (14.78m), shot put (12.81m) and hammer throw (41.24m).
Indoor track and field season for both the Chaps and Lady Chaps will begin this winter, with outdoor track and field season to follow starting in March.