ANNAPOLIS, Md. - Navy track and field assistant coach Chris Johnson was promoted to recruiting coordinator along with his assistant coaching responsibilities by Director of Track and Field / Cross Country Jamie Cook on Thursday. Johnson has spent the last two seasons on Cook's staff as an assistant coach, working primarily with Navy's high jumpers and multi-event athletes.
 
"I would like to thank coach (Jamie) Cook and Mr. (Chet) Gladchuk for the promotion and for their support," said Johnson. "I am grateful every day to be able to work for such a fine athletic department alongside driven and knowledgeable coaches. I look forward to continuing to play a part in the success of the program and in its growth."
 
"A big congrats to coach (Chris) Johnson on his promotion. He has done a fantastic job in his first two years coaching, assisting with recruiting and handling a number of other responsibilities," said Director of Track and Field / Cross Country Jamie Cook. "He is present every day and is always looking at what is best for the program. I'm very excited to see what he will bring to his new position to continue to enhance our team."
 
Since Johnson arrived in Annapolis, Navy has dominated the multi-events and high jump at the Patriot League Championships. The Mids have won the men's indoor heptathlon, men's outdoor decathlon, women's indoor pentathlon and women's outdoor heptathlon in each of the last two seasons. Additionally, Johnson has helped Navy claim four conference titles in the high jump.
 
Baynes Autrey ('23) claimed four Patriot League titles in his final two seasons as a Mid. He broke Navy's indoor heptathlon record (5,510) at the 2022 Patriot League Indoor Championships and was named the Patriot League Indoor Field Athlete of the Meet. Autrey placed first in the outdoor decathlon at the outdoor conference championships with a score of 6,684 points. The Mountain Brook, Ala., native repeated as the heptathlon conference champion at the 2023 indoor championships by scoring the fourth-most points in school history (5,495). He then broke the Patriot League record in the decathlon at the outdoor championships with a score of 7,233 points.
 
Cole Bailey ('22) concluded his career working with Johnson in the high jump and earned a pair of All-Patriot League accolades. He placed first at the indoor championships (2.05m / 6' 8.75") and second at the outdoor championships (2.07m / 6' 9.5") in 2022. Additionally, Bailey registered a season-best height of 2.10m (6' 10.75") to place first at the Army-Navy Star Meet. His height earned him a qualifying spot in the NCAA East Regionals for the second-consecutive season.
 
Johnson also helped guide rising junior Preston Wilson to a second-place finish in the high jump at the 2023 indoor championships (2.05m / 6' 8.75") after he placed fourth during his freshman campaign (2.02m / 6' 7.5").
 
The women's team claimed five of the top six spots in the pentathlon standings at the 2022 indoor championship. Erin Higgins ('22) broke the league and program record to win the event (3,834) and Katie Halbert ('22) scored the second-most points in school history to place second (3,750). The Mids then placed first through fourth in the heptathlon at the outdoor championships. Higgins once again led the way with a winning score of 5,090 points, which is the second-highest point total in Navy history. Halbert finished in second place with the fourth-best score in school history (4,946).
 
Despite Higgins and Halbert graduating after the 2022 season, rising senior Annie Taylor and rising junior Isabella Romasko helped Navy remain on top of the conference in multi-events. Taylor won the pentathlon at the 2023 indoor championships with the sixth-best score in program history (3,666). She then claimed the heptathlon title at the outdoor conference championships with the third-highest point total in Navy history (4,985). Romasko placed second in both the indoor pentathlon and outdoor heptathlon with scores of 3,632 and 4,693, respectively. Her pentathlon score currently ranks seventh all-time in school history.
 
Johnson has also trained Taylor Buchanan ('22), Molly Chapman ('23) and rising senior Hannah Lowenstein into three of the best high jumpers in school history.
 
Chapman and Buchanan tied the indoor program record at the 2022 Army-Navy Indoor Star Meet (1.73m / 5' 8") to place first and second, respectively. Buchanan claimed the Patriot League indoor high jump title later in the season with a jump of 1.70m (5' 7").
 
Buchanan and Lowenstein posted the second-best outdoor mark in school history at the 2022 Penn Relays at 1.76m (5' 9.25"). Lowenstein set the current school record a week later at the Patriot League Outdoor Championships (1.77m / 5' 9.75") to place first. Her height also earned her a qualifying spot for the NCAA East Regionals. Additionally, Buchanan and Chapman recorded a height of 1.68m (5' 6") to finish in a tie for second place and in a tie for fourth place, respectively.
 
Lowenstein earned second place at the Patriot League Indoor Championships this past season with a jump of 1.70m (5' 7"), which is tied for the eighth-best height in school history. The Pompano Beach, Fla., native tied the second-highest mark in Navy history (1.76m / 5' 9.25") to repeat as the high jump champion at the Patriot League Outdoor Championships. Her mark also qualified her for the NCAA East Regionals for the second-straight season.
 
Chapman was named the Patriot League Women's Field Athlete of the Meet at both the indoor and outdoor conference championships her senior season. She placed fifth in the high jump at the indoor championships (1.65m / 5' 5") to go along with her victories in the long jump (5.87m / 19' 3.25") and triple jump (12.30m / 40' 4.25"). At the outdoor championships, she won the long jump (5.85m / 2.5") finished in third place in the triple jump (12.33m / 40' 5.5") and claimed fourth place in the high jump (1.68m / 5' 6").