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Joni Sanders

Joni Sanders

Joni Sanders enters her third season with the IUPUI women’s cross country program and her second year as head coach. She became the third head coach in the program’s history in December 2008 when she replaced Scott Williams at the helm.

In her first year with the Jaguars as an assistant coach, she helped sophomore McDuffee become just the third All-League performer in the program’s history. McDuffee became the first IUPUI women’s runner to eclipse the 22-minute barrier at the 6K distance, establishing a new school record.

On the recruiting trail, Sanders has successfully landed future student-athletes from across the state. Her 2009 class netted three freshmen that all competed in The Summit League Championships, headlined by Rachel Zajac. In the summer of 2010, she inked former Warren Central standout Rebekah Jones to a National Letter of Intent.

Prior to coming to IUPUI, the Shelbyville, Ind.-native had coached both track and cross country at the high school level the past 11 years.

In 2006-07, she served as the girls cross country coach at Whiteland High School, while also teaching psychology, sociology and U.S. history. Before that, she taught 10 years at Pike High School while coaching the Red Devils in both cross country and track and field. She helped the Pike girls to a IHSAA state runner-up finish in track in 1999, while earning the Conference Indiana Track Coach of the Year award in 1999 and 2000. In 2006, she was awarded the Metropolitan School District of Pike Township District Coach of the Year honor. She coached multiple state-qualifiers in track and cross country while at Pike High School.

Sanders served as a member of the Indiana Cross Country All-Star Coaching Staff for the Mid-East Meet of Champions from 2001 to 2007. She also coached on the Indiana Track and Field All-Star staff from 1999 to 2002.

Sanders graduated from Butler University in 1996 with her degree in Secondary Education. She was a four-year letterwinner and two year captain on the Bulldogs cross country and track teams, earning three straight CC/Track Mental Attitude Awards. Her freshman year, she was named the BU Freshman Athlete of the Year and the track team’s Most Valuable Runner Award.

Sanders earned her Master’s in School Counseling on the IUPUI campus and is a counselor at the Ben Davis High School Career Center.