Coach Scott, Midgett Earn SoCon Specialty Awards
Following a highly successful 2024 outdoor season, Zack Scott ’89, VMI director of track and field, was tabbed the SoCon Men’s Coach of the Year, while Keyandre Midgett ’24, jumper, was named the Male Most Outstanding Field Performer.
Men’s Coach of the Year
Scott led VMI to its best finish since 2016 at the Southern Conference Outdoor Championships, as the Keydets finished in second place with 133 points. Five separate athletes earned six individual championships between the men’s and women’s teams at the league meet. Between both squads, a total of 18 All-SoCon honors were recorded, as VMI earned seven the first day and followed up with 11 the second day.
Scott’s leadership was instrumental in allowing the coaching staff to condition and train the cadet-athletes to be in peak shape and performance for the league championship meet as numerous Keydets broke school records during the course of the outdoor season, including Shea Hart ’26 (heptathlon), Cameron Thomas ’27 (pole vault), Eleyah Armstrong ’25 (long jump and 100m), and Alina LaForest ’26 (400m hurdles).
The honor is VMI’s first Men’s Outdoor T&F Coach of the Year award since the 2000 season.
Male Most Outstanding Field Performer
Midgett was named the Male Most Outstanding Field Performer after taking home individual titles in both the long jump and triple jump at the league championship.
The Portsmouth, Virginia, native won the long jump with a distance of 7.36 meters (24’ 1.75”) to earn All-SoCon honors, then proceeded to win the triple jump with a first-place distance of 15.24 meters to again earn All-SoCon recognition. He also ran a leg of the 4×100 relay to help the squad to a fourth-place finish at the meet.
He earned the same honor following the 2024 indoor season—for the second year in a row—after winning both the long jump and triple jump at the SoCon Indoor Championships.
“Keyandre Midgett has become our team’s horizontal jumps specialist for the past three years and [is] responsible for scoring no less than 20 points at the previous two outdoor and indoor championships, including breaking the NCAA Southeast region top 50 in the triple jump list indoor and outdoor,” said Scott. “His achievements and multiple awards earned over the years demonstrate that his hard work and dedication continues to be recognized by the Southern Conference track and field community and has not been wasted.
“Being selected as the Southern Conference Coach of the Year is a testament to the collective effort and dedication of our team, coaches, athletic department, and VMI administration. This recognition reaffirms the positive impact of the parents’ and alumni support [of] our commitment to excellence and inspires us to continue pushing boundaries and achieving new heights. Together, we have shown that with perseverance, passion, and teamwork, anything is possible.”
Editor’s Note: This article was first published at vmikeydets.com.
