July 2, 2008
ORLANDO, Fla. (www.ucfathletics.com) - Successful amateur coach Tyangela Sanders has joined the UCF track and field staff as an assistant coach, head coach Caryl Smith Gilbert announced on Wednesday.
Sanders, who spent the 2007-08 campaign as an assistant coach at Knoxville (Tenn.) West High School, has helped her athletes achieve dozens of accomplishments during her time as a coach. In eight years, Sanders has coached five individual national champions, six All-America athletes, 17 national finalists and 10 state champion performers.
From 2004-07, Sanders served as the executive director and head coach of Track Knoxville. Sanders helped create the club program and worked with athletes in the sprints, hurdles and relays.
"Tyangela brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to our program. She will assist in all event areas and will be a tremendous asset as we continue our quest to become one of the nation's elite programs," Smith Gilbert said.
Jackie Coward, a four-time national champion who was a senior at Knoxville West this past year, is one of the notable athletes that Sanders has mentored. She also coached Thomas Oatts, a 2006 Nike All-America honoree in the hurdles, who is currently attending Georgia Tech.
In 1999, Sanders began her coaching career, serving as a recruiting assistant at her alma mater, Tennessee.
Sanders was a standout student-athlete at Tennessee. In 1999, she garnered All-America honors in the 400m after finishing sixth at the NCAA Outdoor Championships. That same season, she received All-Southeastern Conference recognition following the league's indoor and outdoor meets.
Sanders joins a UCF program that enjoyed an impressive season in 2007-08. In Smith Gilbert's first campaign with the Knights, the team finished third at the Conference USA Outdoor Championships, its best finish at the event. Twelve Knights recorded NCAA Regional qualifying marks and 23 school records were broken.
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