NEW ORLEANS – The NCAA Track and Field Championships begin Thursday in Charlotte, North Carolina, but whatever happens, Chico State’s Michael Wickman and men’s track and field Head Coach Kirk Freitas can already be classified as winners. The U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) has named Wickman as the men’s track West Region Track Athlete of the Year, while Freitas was honored as men’s track West Region Track Coach of the Year.

Wickman has been honored as the West Region Track Athlete of the Year for the second straight season. The senior from Walnut Creek is the nation’s second-ranked 1,500-meter runner (3:44.03) and is also entered in the 800 meters in the NCAA Championships as the No. 9 seed (1:50.76). Earlier this month, Wickman finished first in both the 800- and 1,500 titles at the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) Championships.

This is the second time in the past four years Freitas has been selected as West Region Coach of the Year. He recently won his seventh consecutive CCAA Coach of the Year award, leading the Chico State men’s track and field team to the conference championship.