LANCASTER – The University of Antelope Valley is pleased to welcome Clay Mayes to its athletic department as head coach of both the UAV men’s and women’s cross country programs.

“I know UAV is a university that has the resources to work towards collecting national accolades, team titles and conference championships,” Mayes said, “and I am very excited to be working for UAV, am grateful for the opportunity and cannot wait to get ready for next season.”

A Claremore, Okla. native, Mayes graduated from the University of Oklahoma in 2011 with a degree in Psychology, and also earned his EMT certification in 2012.

As a runner during his time at Oklahoma, he was a scorer on the 2009 twelfth-place finishing team at the NCAA Cross Country National Championships and was named Big 12 All-Conference in the men’s 10,000-meter.

Mayes comes to UAV after serving as the head coach for the men’s and women’s cross country and track programs at Bacone College from 2014 to 2018.

While at Bacone, Mayes led the cross country program to three-consecutive top-20 team finishes at the NAIA Cross Country Nationals between 2015 and 2017, a top-15 team finish at the NAIA Indoor Track Nationals in 2016 and a top-15 finish at the NAIA Outdoor Track Nationals in 2017.

Roy Burns, who filled in during the 2018 as UAV’s interim cross country head coach, will stay aboard with the team as an assistant coach, aiding coach Mayes and the cross country program as an advisor.

“On behalf of the UAV Athletic Department, we would like to thank coach Burns for his dedication to the cross country program,” stated associate athletic director Nick Ferry about Burns, “Roy is a great person and we are incredibly grateful for his hard work and flexibility throughout the season.”

UAV’s men’s and women’s cross country teams each competed last at the California Pacific Conference Championships in Fresno, with the men’s team placing nine out of 10 teams with a team time of 3:15:01.0, and the women’s team also placing nine out of 10 teams, finishing with a team time of 2:16:01.0.