Emerson Adds Hess as Assistant Coach
Butler Community College head track and field and cross country coach Mark Emerson announced the addition of Austin Hess as an assistant coach Friday afternoon.
EL DORADO, Kan. – Butler Community College head track and field and cross country coach Mark Emerson announced the addition of Austin Hess as an assistant coach Friday afternoon.
"I am really excited to welcome Austin to Butler," Emerson said. "Austin shined throughout the interview process and I am confident he will help develop our programs in many aspects."
Hess joins Butler after a coaching stint at his alma mater, Kansas Wesleyan University, where he coached the cross country teams and distance runners. In his one season as an assistant coach, Hess helped lead the Kansas Wesleyan women's cross country team to the 2025 KCAC Championship and coached an NAIA All-American in the indoor 1,000-meter run.
Before beginning his coaching career, Hess competed in cross country and track and field at Kansas Wesleyan from 2020-25. He was a four-time national qualifier and earned nine All-KCAC selections.
Hess was also a four-time NAIA Daktronics Scholar-Athlete selection and was named Kansas Wesleyan's Indoor Track and Field Champion of Character in 2022 and 2024. He served as team captain of the Coyotes' cross country team from 2021-25.
Hess earned a Bachelor of Arts in sport management with minors in coaching and business management from Kansas Wesleyan in 2024.
-Butler Athletics-