Phaedra Blaize, Jason Ollison & Meshia Levister Join the LU Blue Tigers
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Posted By: Kennedy Williams on August 01, 2022 Phaedra Blaize, Jason Ollison and Meshia Levister have joined the Lincoln University Department of Athletics. Dr. Kevin Wilson, the Vice President for Advancement, Athletics and Campus Recreation, made the announcements on Tuesday (July 19). Blaize will join the Blue Tigers as the Assistant Athletic Director for Digital Brand Strategy. Ollison, a 20-year coaching veteran with strong local ties, has been named the next head coach of the Lincoln softball team. Levister has been named to the newly created position of Director of Golf and will oversee both the LU men's and women's golf programs. "We were really fortunate to attract high-character, talented professionals with different experiences to the Ambush," Dr. Wilson said. "They each bring unique perspectives, a passion for developing young people, HBCU pedigree, and a plan for success. I can't wait to see their impact on our student-athletes, the Jefferson City community, and beyond." Blaize served as a graphic design specialist for The Everglades Foundation in Miami, Fla. for the past year after a three-year term as the Assistant Director of Creative Services at Washington State University, an NCAA Division I institution. Blaize, who also has experience working at Division I Florida Atlantic University, has a long history of creating dynamic graphics and multimedia content promoting student-athletes from a wide variety of sports, as well as high-profile coaches such as Lane Kiffin (currently head football coach at Ole Miss) and Mike Leach (currently head football coach at Mississippi State). Collaborating with other members of the athletic department, Blaize will also oversee the digital management of the Blue Tiger brand and continue to grow LU's presence via all social media platforms. Ollison has spent the last six years working at Versailles High School, including serving as the head softball coach in 2020 and 2021. In each of those years, Versailles broke the school record for victories in a single season, with Ollison and his staff earning the Tri-County Conference Coaching Staff of the Year award following each season. Ollison, who simultaneously organized and managed all of the Morgan County Athletic Club's youth programs, finished his tenure at Versailles with a 34-20 record. From 2017 through 2022, Ollison also served as the head baseball coach at Versailles, leading the program to its first ever district runner-up finish in 2021. Ollison previously was the head baseball coach at Benton County R-IX in Warsaw, Mo. in 2016 as well as the head baseball coach at Greenridge High, where he took a team that had won just four games in 2013 and led the program to district runner-up finishes in 2014 and 2015. In 2005, Ollison created the Mid-Missouri Crawdads Baseball Club, a semi-professional organization in St. Elizabeth, Mo. Ollison was the general manager and head coach for three years, leading the club to a second place result at the 2006 United States Baseball Congress World Series. In all three of those seasons, the Crawdads were ranked among the top-25 in the country by the National Semi-Pro Baseball Association. A 2000 graduate of Lincoln University with a bachelor's degree in business administration, Ollison earned All-MIAA honors while playing for the Blue Tigers. Ollison got his coaching start at his alma mater, serving as the team's hitting coach in 2001 and 2002. The Blue Tigers had a team batting average higher than .330 both years, with the 2002 team's .340 average ranking as the 13th-best in NCAA Division II. In addition to his many years as a baseball and softball coach in mid-Missouri, Ollison also has won four district championships as a high school basketball coach. Ollison has been voted the "Best Local Coach" by Missouri's Best Magazine each of the past four years and, in 2015, was inducted into the Semi-Pro Baseball Hall of Fame. Levister, a former LPGA Tour golfer and Division I assistant, will become the first-ever Director of Golf at Lincoln University. Levister will serve as the head coach for both the Lincoln men's golf team and the LU women's golf team, and will oversee both teams as they continue to improve competitively both in NCAA Division II and at the annual PGA WORKS Championship. Levister is the first-ever African American woman to lead both golf programs in MIAA history and currently the only African American woman leading a golf program in the conference. Levister is no stranger to the PGA WORKS Championship, as she won the tournament, then known as the PGA Minority Collegiate Championship, as a student at North Carolina Central University, an NCAA Division I program, back in 2001. Levister enjoyed a decorated career as a player at NCCU, earning multiple All-CIAA awards and institutional honors. Following the end of her collegiate career, Levister began playing professionally, joining the LPGA Tour and playing from 2010-14. In 2004, Levister won the Virginia State Amateur Championship, and in 2015 she won the PGA Mid-Atlantic Women's Championship. In 2016, Levister won the PGA Mid-Atlantic Senior/Junior Championship. Levister has spent the last 17 years teaching, mentoring and developing golfers, and, in 2021-22, she was selected as a Tara VanDerver Fellow by the Women's Sport Foundation. In 2020, Levister returned to North Carolina Central as the assistant men's golf coach, and immediately helped the program lower its team and individual scores. Last year, Levister was also given the role of the assistant women's golf coach, and worked with both programs, occasionally serving as the acting head coach when the teams had overlapping tournaments. After exhausting her eligibility as a college student, Levister moved straight into professional golf, but returned to NCCU to finish earning her bachelor's degree. She graduated in December 2021 with a bachelor's of science degree. SOURCE Lincoln University If you enjoyed this article, Join HBCU CONNECT today for similar content and opportunities via email! |
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Kennedy Williams
From Loganville, GA Spelman College class of 2020 Member Since July 2016 |
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