Zach Toothman Head Boys Track & Field Coach, Boys Distance Coach zachary.toothman@gmail.com (812) 608-0836 Coach Toothman has been the head boys track & field coach at Avon High School since 2011. In his six years at AHS, the boys have steadily improved as a program, including six straight IHSAA Sectional team titles, five straight Hendricks County titles, three Hoosier Crossroads Conference team championships (2014-2016), a runner-up finish in the Hoosier State Relays (2014), and three top 10 finishes in the IHSAA State championships (8 th 2013, 3 rd 2014, 7 th 2015). He is also the head boys cross country coach at AHS and trains the boys distance runners year-round. Before coming to Avon, Toothman was an assistant cross country coach at Franklin Central High School in 2008 and head girls track & field coach at Franklin Township Middle School East in 2009. He was then an assistant boys coach in both cross country and track & field at Ben Davis High School during the 2009-2010 school year, where the Giants won the 2010 IHSAA 4x800m relay and overall team State championship. Coach Toothman graduated from Tell City High School (Tell City, IN) in 2000 where he was an all-conference runner in cross country and track & field. He then went on to the University of Southern Indiana where he received his degree in Psychology in 2005. He also ran cross country and track & field for the Screaming Eagles and was Academic All-GLVC for three years and co-team captain in 2004. Coach Toothman obtained his master s degree in School Psychology from the University of Dayton and was the assistant men s cross country coach at UD from 2005-2007. Coach Toothman currently works as a school psychologist for Perry Township in Indianapolis. He is married to Erin (Vickery-Swalley) Toothman, an elementary special education teacher in Wayne Township and a 2001 graduate of Avon High School who also coaches girls cross country and track & field at Ben Davis High School. Rick Finchum Assistant Track & Field Coach (Jumps) rfinchum10@gmail.com Coach Finchum graduated from Decatur Central High School in 1982, where he lettered in track and field, football, and basketball. He was a four year letter award winner in track and field, competing in the high jump, long jump, 100 m, 200 m, and 4 x 100 m relay. This is Coach Finchum's 22nd year coaching track and field, beginning in 1996, all with Avon high School. He spent five years as the girls head coach, with the girls winning their first Hendricks County Championship in 2000. Primarily coaching high jump and long jump over the years, he's been blessed with many gifted athletes. These athletes have won numerous County, Conference, Sectional, and Regional jumping titles, as well as State qualifiers and All-State athletes. Several of his athletes have gone on to compete collegiately for Indiana University, Indiana State University, Purdue University, University of Indianapolis, Indiana Wesleyan, and the University of Kentucky. Coach Finchum is in his 16th year as a firefighter for the Washington Township/Avon fire department. He is married to Angie Finchum, an RN working for Hendricks Regional Hospital. He has two sons, Anthony and Jake. Anthony is a Fire Investigator currently working for a private firm in St. Louis, Missouri. Jake is currently a sophomore at Eastern Kentucky University studying Fire, Arson, and Explosion Investigation. Chris Hargis Assistant Track & Field Coach (Jumps) Chrishargis1@aol.com Coach Hargis graduated from Ben Davis High School in 1983. He lettered in track and field three years, competing in the high jump and long jump. His senior year he was co-captain and leading points scorer on the Giants team. Coach Hargis also competed in the decathlon, finishing second in a Midwest Regional meet in Missouri in 1982. After graduating high school, Coach Hargis attended IUPUI working towards his degree in business. During college, he was a part time jumps coach at Ben Davis High School. He was also the head high jump official for the World Masters Division Decathlon meet held in Indianapolis.
Coach Hargis is entering his fifth year as a part-time assistant jumps coach at Avon High School. Prior to AHS, Coach Hargis coached jumps at Avon Middle School South. Coach Hargis is the owner of Berger Hargis Landscape Management, a local business doing work in Hendricks County and surrounding counties. He is married to his wife Trina, a substitute teacher in Avon, and their four children Tori and William, both out of high school, and Audrey and Luke, both of which attend school in Avon. Kristina Slagle Assistant Track & Field Coach (Sprints & Hurdles) kristina.slagle@inventivhealth.com Coach Slagle graduated from Plainfield High School in 2003 where she was a 4-year letter winner in track and field, running hurdles and short sprints. She qualified for the IHSAA state track meet in the 100m hurdles in 2002 and still owns Plainfield s school record in the event. After high school, she went on to pursue a degree in secondary life science education from the University of Indianapolis. While at U of I, she was a 4-year varsity letter winner, competing in both the 100m and 400m hurdles and short sprints. She is currently attending Indiana Wesleyan for a master s degree in Management. Coach Slagle is in her seventh year coaching track and field at Avon. She works mostly with the boys and girls hurdlers. Currently, Coach Slagle works a clinical site manager for InVentiv Health. She lives in Greenwood with her husband, Phil, and their daughter, Kaylin. Doug Keele Assistant Track & Field Coach (Throws) coachkeele@yahoo.com Coach Keele graduated from North Vermillion High School (Cayuga, IN) in 1983 before going on to the University of Indianapolis where he received his degree in Communications in Business in 1987. Coach Keele was a scholarship athlete on the track & field team where he competed in the triple jump, sprints, javelin, shot put and discus. He was a three time national qualifier and earned All-American status in the shot put in 1986. Before coming to Avon, Keele coached the throwers at Brownsburg High School for several years. Since coming to Avon, the track & field team has sent several athletes to the IHSAA state meet with multiple All-State athletes, including the 2014 IHSAA Shot Put State Champion, Angelo Allen. Several of Coach Keele s throwers have gone on to compete in college, including the current University of Arkansas school record holder in the hammer, a Big East champion in the shot put, an Olympic trials qualifier and several All- Americans. Coach Keele currently works for Cummins Crosspoint in Indianapolis. He is married to Trish and they have two daughters (Jordyn and Madison). Jordyn is a graduate of The University of Indianapolis with a degree in nursing and was a heptathlete for the Greyhounds track & field team. Madison is currently on the track & field team at Indiana State University studying elementary education and special needs instruction, and was an All-State athlete in the pole vault for Avon High School. Jesse Hicks trackfit2@gmail.com Coach Hicks was born and raised in Indianapolis and graduated from Arsenal Tech High School. He is a USATF Level 1 certified coach in the sport of track and field. Coach Hicks has been coaching at some level for 17 years. He works with the sprinter at AHS and is also an assistant coach with the Indiana Storm, a local track club. With the Indiana Storm, Coach Hicks works with athletes in a wide
range of ages with strength and conditioning, and has been fortunate to have been a part of coaching multiple athletes to USATF Youth and Junior Olympic National Championships. Coach Hicks currently works as an Operations Manager for the Millcraft Company. He is married with four children, including Anthony, a junior on the Avon High School track & field team. Anthony L. Newbern Sr. Assistant Track & Field Coach (400 / Sprints) newbernal13@sbcglobal.net Coach Newbern graduated from East Saint Louis High School in Illinois in 1985. He was All-State in the 800m and ran on the 4x800 and the 4x400 meter relays as well. Coach Newbern earned three varsity letters in cross country and track & field while in high school and also helped his team to win the 1985 Illinois State Class AA Track Championship during his senior year. He was also a part of the East St. Louis Railers Summer Track Club and ran in the USATF Junior Olympics. Coach Newbern attended Indiana State University on a track & field scholarship where he received a degree in Information Technology. He ran both cross country and track & field for the Sycamores and was a four-year letter winner. Coach Newbern also held the ISU school indoor record for the 4x800 meter relay and the distance medley relay. He is also a member of Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity. Coach Newbern is married to Debra and has two children - Anthony II (Tony) who is a freshman at Southern Illinois University - Carbondale and a member of the SIU track & field team, and Lauren is a senior at Avon High School and is a varsity cheerleader and member of the track & field team. Coach Newbern works as a System Administrator for a financial Institution in Carmel, Indiana and has his Level 1 USATF certification. He continues to run and weight train in his spare time and also enjoys mentoring, playing flag football, and traveling. Nathan Fry Assistant Track & Field Coach (Sprints/Hurdles) ntfry@avon-schools.org Coach Fry is a 2003 Avon High School Graduate. During high school, he ran varsity cross country from his sophomore through senior year. He also earned four varsity letters in track & field primarily running hurdles and long sprints. He was also a four-year wrestler for the school. Coach Fry attended Ball State University where he earned a Bachelor s degree in Fine Arts with an emphasis in painting as well as a Bachelor s degree in education. At Ball State, he was unable to compete on the track team due to the disbanding of BSU s Boys Track team in 2004. During his college career, he did become a seasoned veteran of Ball State University s bed races. In 2006 his team secured first place honors in the championship bed race. Fry has coached with the high school track team for eight seasons, working mostly with the hurdlers and sprinters. Kyle Lee kdlee@avon-schools.org Coach Lee graduated from Avon High School in 2004. He earned four varsity letters in track and field while attending Avon High School and was a state qualifier in 2003 (Long Jump) and 2004 (4x100m Relay). He then attended Indiana State University (Terre Haute, IN) where he received his degree in Elementary Education.
This is Coach Lee s eighth year coaching sprints at Avon. Coach Lee also teaches 6 th grade math and science at Avon Intermediate School West. He is married to Laura Lee, an instructional coach in Wayne Township. The Lee s also have a son, Lucas and a daughter, Lily. Caleb Bailey Assistant Track & Field Coach (Distance) calebshanebailey@gmail.com Coach Bailey is entering his second year as an assistant coach for boys track & field at Avon High School. He is also an assistant coach with the AHS boys cross country team. Prior to coaching at Avon High School, Coach Bailey spent two years at USA Track & Field (USATF), the national governing body for track and field, cross country and long distance running. While at USATF, Bailey developed strategic marketing plans to enhance and increase fan engagement and increase membership. Coach Bailey worked closely with elite athletes to help create deeper and more meaningful connections with fans. Coach Bailey graduated from Western Carolina University (Cullowhee, NC) in 2004 with a degree in Sport Management. While at Western Carolina, he was a two-time NCAA Division I National Qualifier in the 800m and in cross country. In addition, he was a seven-time individual conference champion, 4-time athlete of the month, overall male Athlete of the Year and current school record holder in the 800 (1:48:32) and 10k XC (30:15). After college Bailey signed a contract to run for the Indiana Invaders, an elite track and field team in Indianapolis, and competed for the Invaders until 2008. Coach Bailey lives in Plainfield with his beautiful wife Jennifer and their five children, Zachary, Delaney, Keely, Cooper, and Juliet. In addition to his coaching duties, Coach Bailey is a stay at home dad and says it s the most physically demanding job he has ever had, but by far the most rewarding! Samantha Silva Assistant Track & Field Coach (Pole Vault) ssilva392@marian.edu Coach Silva is entering her second year as an assistant pole vault coach at Avon High School. She graduated from Clinton Prairie High School (Frankfort, IN) in 2011 where she competed in long distance, high jump, and pole vault. She set the school record in pole vault her senior year at CPHS. After high school, she went on to pursue a bachelor s of science degree in nursing from Marian University. While at Marian University, she competed on the track & field team in pole vault where she set the MU pole vault school record. She now works as an ER nurse at Riley Children s Hospital. Sam Penrod spenrod@partnered-property-management.com Albert Vinson albertvinson@sbcglobal.net Terry Upshaw terryupshaw@ymail.com Ed Richard Assistant Track & Field Coach (Pole Vault) eprichard@avon-schools.org
Kevin McGrath Assistant Track & Field Coach (Throws) kjmcgrath@avon-schools.org Domoni Springer domoni_g@gmail.com