Campbellsville University has named cross country graduate assistant Hilary Cebulko as the new head coach of the men's and women's programs, effective Jan. 4. CU athletic director Rusty Hollingsworth made the announcement Dec. 15.

Cebulko will take over for Scott Hortness, who will return his full-time focus to his assistant coach position with baseball. She will also serve as distance coach for outdoor track and field.

"We have a minimum of 20 student-athletes in the cross country program each year and that is difficult to maintain while splitting time with another sport. I decided it would be in the best interest of this program, and our student-athletes, to have a coach that can spend time with them the entire year," Hollingsworth said. "Scott has done a fantastic job for the university by keeping the cross country program at a competitive level. He is a great recruiter and coach and was willing to step in and fill a gap for us in a time of need."

The move is one of two similar moves in Campbellsville's fall sports, as volleyball head coach Randy LeBleu also stepped aside to focus full-time on his baseball job and allow his assistant to take his place. Like LeBleu, Hortness feels the move is best for the sport.

"We never really thought the cross country job would be mine for an extended period of time. We had a three-year plan to get the program moving in the right direction," Hortness said. "Hilary Cebulko might end up being the best thing to ever happen to the running program here at Campbellsville … She has a knowledge and experience that all the runners here should benefit from. If the runners will listen and apply what Coach Cebulko is teaching them, there should be a lot of excitement next year in the cross country and this spring with track."

Prior to coming to Campbellsville in the fall as a graduate assistant, Cebulko competed at North Central College in Illinois, where she served as captain of the cross country team in 2008. She also interned with the outdoor track and field coaching staff and in the athletic office. She said the past fall has helped her add to those experiences.

Cebulko charts runners during practice.

"This past season, I was able to know and understand what the current athletes were going through, and I feel that this will help me moving forward. I am very excited for the new position," Cebulko said. "I have learned a lot from previous head coach Scott Hortness, and I feel we have the building blocks to create a successful program."

Cebulko said her goal for the program is to build "great student-athletes who love to run."

"We are going to aim to build on consistency and the groundwork that has been laid," she said.

In addition to her duties with cross country and outdoor track, Cebulko will explore the expansion of the running program by adding indoor track and field for year-round conditioning.

"We are considering at this time the possibility of adding indoor track for men and women in the near future. This would give us a chance to add some new runners to our programs and allow our cross country and track athletes more opportunity to compete," Hollingsworth said.

Hortness, who took over the program on a temporary basis, was named the 2008 Mid-South Conference Coach of the Year for cross country and took his team to the National Christian College Athletic Association national meet each of his two years. He also had individuals qualify for the NAIA national meets.