CHARLESTON – When Jim Stintzi and Soyini Thompson arrived at Charleston Southern in 2016, the vision for them was clear: bring the Buccaneers into the conversation as one of the premier programs not just in the Big South Conference, but the entire Southeast.

Ten years later, that vision has become a reality, without a doubt. They invested in recruiting, athlete development and created an environment where student-athletes could compete with the best programs in the Big South, producing one of the most successful eras in school history.

Across cross country, indoor track & field and outdoor track & field, Charleston Southern has captured conference championships, produced NCAA Championship qualifiers, and now earned First-Team All-American honors with Maeva Tahou becoming the first Buccaneer to earn this level of accolade in program history. All of this has been accomplished while rewriting the school and conference record book at a historic pace.

The 2025-26 academic year served as another landmark chapter in the decade-long rise. The Buccaneers earned 81 All-Conference honors across the six championship seasons. They added another conference championship to their trophy case and claimed runners-up accolades in each of the track championships.
This year marked the tenth season since the arrival of the leaders of the programs in Jim Stintzi, Director of Track & Field and Cross Country, and Soyini Thompson, Head Coach for Women's Track and Field. During their decade, they have completely rewritten the school's records and raised the programs back to the highest level of excellence in their NCAA DI era. Additionally, this marked the 11^th year with Brandon Blanton, throws coach, and second with Karl Thiessen, women's distance coach.

By the Numbers

• 6 consecutive Big South Men's Cross Country Championships
• 2 NCAA Championship qualifiers in men's cross country
• 2 USTFCCCA All-Region men's cross country selections
• 81 All-Conference honors during 2025-26
• 2 NCAA First Team All-American (Maeva Tahou 2x)
• 43 school records broken, with 22 improved on or broken for the first time this year
• 468 All-Conference winners across all sports in the past decade
• 401 new entries into the all-time top ten across all sports in the past decade
• 1 Big South Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year (winner across all sports in the league)

 
Men's Cross Country Continues Its Championship Legacy
Charleston Southern men's cross country once again demonstrated why it has become one of the premier programs in the Big South Conference.

The Buccaneers captured their sixth consecutive Big South Men's Cross Country Championship during the fall season, continuing one of the most dominant stretches in conference history. Stintzi, the six-time Big South Coach of the Year, ranks second on the conference's all-time leaderboard for Big South Championships with six to his name. CSU finished with an impressive 21-point team score while placing six runners on the All-Conference team.

Caleb Kenyon led the way by winning the individual conference title, while Hayden Goode and Micah Gilpatric followed closely behind to complete the 1-2-3 finish for the Buccaneers.

The accomplishment further reinforced the consistency and culture established within the program under head coach Jim Stintzi, who earned Big South Men's Cross Country Coach of the Year honors once again.

Charleston Southern's success extended beyond the conference championships as the program continued to produce elite regional performances. Hayden Goode received the 2025 Big South Men's Cross Country Runner of the Year following a standout season that concluded with the highest finish of all conference runners at the NCAA Southeast Regional.
In total, in his ten years leading the program, Stintzi has coached two USTFCCCA All-Region selections (only two in program history), two qualifiers for the NCAA Championships (only two in program history), four Big South Individual Champions (six total in program history), three Freshmen of the Year (only three in program history), 49 All-Conference honorees (74 in program history) and two Runners of the Year (only two in program history).
 
Women's Cross Country Builds Momentum
The women's cross country program also continued its upward trajectory during the 2025 season.

The growth shown during cross country season carried directly into the remainder of the academic year, helping set the foundation for one of the strongest overall years in recent program history for Charleston Southern women's track & field.

During Stintzi's tenure, the program has experienced several historic milestones including Sarah McCartney winning Big South Runner of the Year in 2023 (only winner in program history), Maddie Wheatly claiming Freshman of the Year in 2021 (only winner in program history) Taylor Barnes and Taylar White winning Scholar-Athlete of the Year in 2021 and 2024 (only winners in program history) and 24 All-Conference honorees (40 total in program history).
 
In 2022, 2023 and 2024 they earned a team runner-up finish, setting a new best placing in school history at the meet. At the 2024 championship they had five student-athletes earn All-Conference honors as well marking a program record. Additionally, each of those three seasons have had school record lows for team scores of 58, 57 and 43. Lastly, in 2023 and 2024 they had the individual runner-up at the meet in McCartney and Keerstin Augustin, tying the best finish by a Buccaneer in school history.
 
Women's Indoor Track & Field Delivers Historic Performances
The indoor season proved to be one of the most successful in school history for Charleston Southern women's track & field. For each of the past three winters, they have claimed team runner-up finishes, a feat never accomplished before in school history. Additionally, the last four meets have seen them score over 100 points, a total that had never been reached.

This year, they saw two conference records and six school records broken on the women's side. There were 30 new entries into the all-time top ten for the school record book as well as nine in the conference's top ten.

At the Conference Championships, the Buccaneers dominated the awards podiums with 16 All-Conference performances and seven event champions. Additionally, Maeva Tahou won Most Outstanding Performance and Most Valuable Athlete after scoring 40 points individually, claiming the titles in all four events that she competed in, triple jump, long jump, 60m hurdles and 200m dash. Maya Clark received Co-Newcomer of the Year with Charleston Southern earning Coaching Staff of the Year.

This marked the third consecutive year the Bucs have claimed Most Valuable Athlete of the Championship Meet as Chloe Greene received it in 2024 and 2025. Prior to the run of three straight times earning the award, the Bucs only had two winners of the award in school history. Additionally, Coach Soyini Thompson claimed Coach of the Year in 2024, the first time they had won the award in program history and had the 2026 season mark the second time in school history. Lastly, they have earned Scholar-Athlete of the Year three times since their arrival with Caroline Edmondson in 2019 and 2020 and Greene in 2024 and had never had someone earn this prior.

Since the arrival of Thompson and Stintzi, the Buccaneers have completely rewritten many of the records across the school and the conference. There had been 121 All-Conference performers prior to their hiring and they have now had 112 come during their tenure. Additionally, there had been 21 champions at the meet before they arrived and have now won 20 under their leadership. In events that are still competed at the NCAA Championships, there are 21 Buccaneers inside the league's all-time top ten and 17 of those were coached by them. Additionally, across the 17 events competed, 11 of them have had the school record get broken. Lastly, of the possible 170 entries in the school's all-time top ten, 99 belong to student-athletes over the past 10 years.
 
Men's Indoor Track & Field Closes the Gap
This winter marked the most successful indoor championship in men's track & field history. Across the past four championships, they have recorded four of the top five team score totals in school history. Over the past three years, they have finished as the runners-up, to tie the best finish in school history and recorded a program-best 160 points this year.

This winter, they saw two school records and one conference record broken. There were 26 new entries into the all-time top ten for the school as well as four in the conference's top ten.

At the Conference Championships, the Buccaneers had tremendous success with 16 All-Conference performances and six event champions. At the meet, Martin Iriondo earned Most Valuable Athlete after scoring 26 points individually as he won the 5K and claimed second in the mile and the 3K. Iriondo became the first winner of an award at the meet since Javon Young in 2012.

Aden Price received Freshman of the Year as he collected 21.5 points with individual championships in the 200m and 400m as well as third with the 4x400m relay. He became the third winner of the award in school history and second under the current coaching staff as Carl Murray IV claimed it in 2024. Lastly, the Buccaneers earned Co-Coaching Staff of the Year at the championship, the first time since Tim Langford won it in 2012.

Since the arrival of Thompson and Stintzi, the school and conference records have flipped on their head with the success experienced. They have now combined to coach 102 All-Conference student-athletes. Additionally, there had been 38 event champions at the meet before their arrival and now 27 under their leadership. In events that are still competed at the NCAA Championships, there are 32 Buccaneers inside the league's all-time top ten and 19 were coached by the current staff. Additionally, across the 17 events competed, eight of them have had the school record get broken. Of the 170 possible entries in the school's all-time top ten for those events, 88 are by student-athletes from over the past 10 years.
 
Women's Outdoor Season Brings More Championships and Recognition
This spring ranks as the most successful outdoor conference championship in school history. They finished as the team runner-up at the meet to tie the highest finish in program history, extending their streak to three consecutive meets with that placing. They notched a school record of 247 points, besting their 2024 total of 231.

This year, they saw ten school records and three conference records broken during the spring outdoor season on the women's side. There were 43 new entries into the all-time top ten for the school as well as 12 in the conference's top ten.

At the Conference Championships, the Buccaneers had an incredible week with 24 All-Conference performances and program-record eight event champions. At the meet, Maeva Tahou earned Most Valuable Athlete after scoring 50.5 points individually as she won the 100m hurdles, long jump, triple jump and 4x400m relay. She was also second in the 100m, 200m and 4x100m relay. She earned Most Outstanding Performance for her triple jump which ranked 14^th nationally. Chloe Greene received Scholar-Athlete of the Year after she won the heptathlon, finished second in the javelin, third in the high jump and earned fourth in the 100m hurdles and 400m hurdles.

Since the arrival of Thompson and Stintzi, the Buccaneers have completely rewritten records across the school and the conference. There have been 102 All-Conference performers during their tenures. Additionally, there have been 70 event champions at the meet and 30 under their leadership. In events that are still competed at the NCAA Championships, there are 29 Buccaneers inside the league's top ten and 23 of those were coached by Thompson. Additionally, across the 21 events competed, 15 of them have had the school record get broken. Lastly, of the 210 possible entries in the school's all-time top ten for those events, 124 are claimed by student-athletes over the past 10 years.
 
Men's Outdoor Track & Field Closes the Gap
This outdoor season marked the most successful championship in men's track & field history since the 1990s. They scored 167 points, one off the program record of 168 from 1996. Additionally, they claimed team runner-up accolades, the fourth time in program history and the first time since they did three times in a row from 1995-97.

This year, they saw two school records and one conference record broken. There were 26 new entries into the all-time top ten for the school as well as four in the conference's top ten.

At the Conference Championships, the Buccaneers dominated the awards podiums with 16 All-Conference performances and six event champions. At the meet, Martin Iriondo was named as the Most Valuable Athlete after scoring 28 points individually as he won the 5K and 10K while claiming second in the 1500m. Laden Beckwith was selected as the Freshman of the Year as he collected 21 points with individual championships in the 100m and 200m as well as fifth with the 4x100m relay.

Since the arrival of Thompson and Stintzi, the Buccaneers have flipped many of the records across the school and the conference. There have been 79 All-Conference performers who came during their tenure. Additionally, there have been 21 event champions under their leadership. In events that are still competed at the NCAA Championships, there are 23 Buccaneers in the league's top ten and 14 coached by the current staff. Additionally, across the 21 events competed, nine of them have had the school record get broken. Lastly, of the 210 possible entries in the school's all-time top ten for those events, 76 belong to student-athletes over the past 10 years.
 
National Relevance
This outdoor season continued to show the strong upward progress of the programs with few things better to show for it than Maeva Tahou advancing to the NCAA National Championship meet. She qualified for the meet in the long jump and triple jump, breaking the school and conference records multiple times throughout the spring, including both yet again in Eugene. She claimed fifth in the long jump and sixth in the triple jump, earning First-Team All-American honors in each, becoming the first Buccaneer to score points in an individual event in school history. In 2009, the Buccaneers 4x100 claimed eighth in the National Championships to be the first and only time prior to this spring they had scored team points at the meet in program history.
 
In the spring 2021 and fall 2021 seasons, Charleston Southern had individuals qualify for the National Championships in Cross Country, the only two to ever advance to this in school history. Trevor Dominy ran 33:12.8 for 212^th in the spring 2021 season and Fearghal Curtin claimed 82^nd with his 30:03.4 in the fall 2021 season.
 
Looking Ahead to the Next Year
When looking at the overall success of the Charleston Southern Cross Country and Track & Field programs, there are few accomplishments in the program's history that have not been matches or surpassed during the past decade.

While the achievements have come from hundreds of student-athletes across the past decade, the common thread has been the leadership provided by Stintzi and Thompson. Their sustained success across all six championship seasons speaks not only to talent, but also to the culture established throughout the programs.

Over the last decade, Charleston Southern has evolved from a competitive program into one looked at as one of excellence in the Big South Conference. As the programs enter their second decade under Stintzi and Thompson, the foundation has never been stronger to continue its rise among the premier programs in the Big South and Southeast.