Headshots of Lauren Hirneisen (left) and Rachel Levy (right)
Track & Field and Cross Country Welcomes Levy and Hirneisen to Coaching Staff
8/13/2021 4:33:00 PM | Men's Cross Country, Women's Cross Country, Men's Track, Women's Track, Cross Country, Track & Field
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - North Florida track and field add on to its coaching staff as it welcomes assistants Rachel Levy and Lauren Hirneisen to the program.
"We found two ladies that we think are just going to really come in and do a great job as far as helping us continue to grow our program," Coach Pigg said about the addition of Levy and Hirneisen to his staff. "We want to surround our team with the best people that we can, and I certainly feel like we really hit it with both of these ladies."
Both Levy and Hirneisen have vast experience in track and field at the collegiate level. Levy holds records for six track and field events at Oakland and qualified for the NCAA Preliminaries in 2018 and 2019.
She was named the Horizon League Freshman of the Year in 2015, the Horizon League Cross Country champion in 2016, and the Horizon League Female Athlete of the Year in 2016 and 2019. For track and field, she's won six events over the course of her career in indoor 1-mile, indoor 3k, indoor 5k, and outdoor 5k.
Her accolades don't stop there, as she was also named Horizon League Runner of the Week 11 times and was selected twice for the academic all-league team.
Outside of competing, the Midland, Mich., native interned with Oakland dietetics from 2019-21 and was also part of a coaching internship with the Grizzlies this past spring before moving to Jacksonville to join the Osprey staff.
"When this opportunity popped up, I really wanted to jump on it," said Levy about becoming a coaching assistant. "I can't wait for the athletes to come back and I'm excited to get the season rolling."
She will look to make the most of her impact by sharing the experiences that she went through at Oakland and using it to help the athletes here perform at their best.
Much like Levy, Hirneisen brings a lot to the table from her time as a successful collegiate athlete. When she was a team captain during her junior year at Liberty, she was selected second-team All-Conference in cross country.
She was also selected to the Big South Presidential Honor Roll in 2018 and the ASUN Academic Honor Roll in 2019 and 2020.
During the summer of 2019, she was a camp counselor for the U.S. Naval Academy Track and Field camp that led campers through various workouts and activities. She also has three years of experience as a student worker for Division I and High School track meets and has put in hours of community service for maintenance and upkeeping at the Liberty Track and Field Indoor Complex.
"I'm really excited to get going and to work with Rachel," said Hirneisen about joining the staff. "It's exciting that we have two younger female coaches just to help with the woman's team and help get that moving. I think it'll really be good for the girls."
The Greencastle, Pa., native will look to help the Ospreys improve their times on the track, as well as assisting with their organization and travel plans throughout the season.
"We found two ladies that we think are just going to really come in and do a great job as far as helping us continue to grow our program," Coach Pigg said about the addition of Levy and Hirneisen to his staff. "We want to surround our team with the best people that we can, and I certainly feel like we really hit it with both of these ladies."
Both Levy and Hirneisen have vast experience in track and field at the collegiate level. Levy holds records for six track and field events at Oakland and qualified for the NCAA Preliminaries in 2018 and 2019.
She was named the Horizon League Freshman of the Year in 2015, the Horizon League Cross Country champion in 2016, and the Horizon League Female Athlete of the Year in 2016 and 2019. For track and field, she's won six events over the course of her career in indoor 1-mile, indoor 3k, indoor 5k, and outdoor 5k.
Her accolades don't stop there, as she was also named Horizon League Runner of the Week 11 times and was selected twice for the academic all-league team.
Outside of competing, the Midland, Mich., native interned with Oakland dietetics from 2019-21 and was also part of a coaching internship with the Grizzlies this past spring before moving to Jacksonville to join the Osprey staff.
"When this opportunity popped up, I really wanted to jump on it," said Levy about becoming a coaching assistant. "I can't wait for the athletes to come back and I'm excited to get the season rolling."
She will look to make the most of her impact by sharing the experiences that she went through at Oakland and using it to help the athletes here perform at their best.
Much like Levy, Hirneisen brings a lot to the table from her time as a successful collegiate athlete. When she was a team captain during her junior year at Liberty, she was selected second-team All-Conference in cross country.
She was also selected to the Big South Presidential Honor Roll in 2018 and the ASUN Academic Honor Roll in 2019 and 2020.
During the summer of 2019, she was a camp counselor for the U.S. Naval Academy Track and Field camp that led campers through various workouts and activities. She also has three years of experience as a student worker for Division I and High School track meets and has put in hours of community service for maintenance and upkeeping at the Liberty Track and Field Indoor Complex.
"I'm really excited to get going and to work with Rachel," said Hirneisen about joining the staff. "It's exciting that we have two younger female coaches just to help with the woman's team and help get that moving. I think it'll really be good for the girls."
The Greencastle, Pa., native will look to help the Ospreys improve their times on the track, as well as assisting with their organization and travel plans throughout the season.
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