SE's Mason takes home Fred Dafler Career State Coach of the Year award

For 21 years, Seneca East boys cross country has been in good hands.Without a doubt, the biggest reason for that has been coach Doug Mason. Mason, who started his cross country coaching tenure at SE 21 years ago in 2005 with a team of just five runners – including SE girls cross country coach Matt Schock on the roster – his program slowly built a proud tradition of cross country in Attica, culminating with SE's first state championship in 2012.Not only has his coaching tenure brought success, but also being a junior high track coach for 32 years and the school's athletic director, it's safe to say he's helped shape a lot of successful Tigers.Deservedly so, the Ohio Association of Track and Cross Country Coaches selected Mason as the recipient of the Fred Dafler Career State Coach of the Year award for boys cross country Jan. 30 down in Columbus."Obviously, I feel fortunate and blessed and it's an award some outstanding coaches have won," Mason said. "But I'm very fortunate to work with this community, to get to coach and teach and work in, it's very supportive of the sport of running. I've just tried to continue what great coaches before me did here, who made running very important to our school and community. "So again, to get to represent our school … to have my name brought up for this award, it's more of a representation of our community and our school and the sport of cross country and track."During his time coaching boys cross country, he has a record of 2,193-972 as his teams have captured five league titles, three district runner-up titles, six district titles, a regional runner-up title, a regional championship and five state meet appearances with teams never placing below eight place."With cross country, there's no bench like basketball where there's only five that can start, so every kid gets to participate," Mason said. "You get to work with kids of all abilities, so there's some kids that come out of the womb that are talented and fast, but there are others that evolve into outstanding runners. "Nevin Holmes was a perfect example of that this past year. I also had a kid in the past named Bryce Watson, who was on the state championship team and when he started in seventh grade he could only run from one light pole to the next. That was it. And then by the time the state championship team came around, he was in the top seven on the team. To me, that is the greatest joy comes from those kids. I think cross country is a great sport where that light comes on at some point in a kid's career and they turn into that person they didn't know they could be. Cross country really lends itself to that."Other local coaches in the past that have won the Fred Dafler Award include Calvert's Stewart Behm in 2017, SE's Rod Schar in 2008 and Lakota's Myron Cline back in 1983. It is the highest coaching award in the state of Ohio for cross country and it's given to only one coach in the entire state."Coach Mason is extremely deserving of this award. He's very humble, is a servant leader," Schock said. "He's always working and he always leads by example. He is always leaving somewhere better than he found it and he leads in athletic excellence as well over the year. "He's also brought stability to the program at Seneca East. When he first started in 2005, it was my senior year and he was my third coach in four years. Since then, because of his stability is why our program has been able to grow and succeed."The Fred Dafler Award is voted on by the executive board of the OATCCC and with his longevity of 21 years at the helm of the SE boys cross country team with success on the course, but also being a well-respected coach and leader in the sport, he was certainly deserving of the award, Schock said. "The reason Seneca East has had such success over the years before Doug and since he's taken over is the steady hand at the lead," Schock said. "From starting with just five runners to now having consistently 15-plus every year, and with the invitationals and the league meet we host every year, I would just say it points to the stability of our program. "Also, him being the AD as well, he lets us do those things. He's very supportive in those ideas. He's a special leader because he lets people do those things for him and he also has trust in them to do it. He does that in our cross country program and he does that in our athletic department as well."