Culver-Stockton Reinstates Cross County Program

May 04, 2023

Culver-Stockton College Director of Athletics Pat Atwell has announced a change in leadership for the men’s and women’s track and field programs and the reinstatement of the men’s and women’s cross country programs.

Doug Savage will not return as head coach of the track and field programs for the 2023-24 school year. Hunter Davis, the current track and field and cross country coach at Iowa Wesleyan University, has been hired as the Director of Track and Field and Cross Country Programs and will re-start the cross country program after a one-year hiatus.

“We are extremely excited to make the dual announcement that Culver-Stockton is reintroducing men’s & women’s Cross Country into our athletic portfolio and that Hunter Davis has been hired to lead these programs,” Atwell said.

“Iowa Wesleyan has had vibrant track and field and cross country programs under Coach Davis’s leadership. He is a proven recruiter and a proven coach with several students earning trips to nationals.

“Having the ability to reintroduce cross country with a sitting cross country coach is an important addition to our athletic program,” Atwell continued. “Track and field and cross country has unlimited growth potential, and we think that Coach Davis is the guy who can make that vision a reality.”

Davis is currently in his second season as head coach at Iowa Wesleyan, but his fourth year overall at the Mount Pleasant institution. Iowa Wesleyan is slated to close its doors at the end of the current school year.

“It was a very surreal and scary time when we are told a school that you have put your heart and soul into is closing down at the end of the year,” said Davis. “My first thoughts were not ‘I’m out of a job,’ my first thoughts were trying to scramble to help find my kids a new home and confirm that we had the ability to finish the season. We gathered the team for a meeting and with no hesitation wanted to finish the final ride (current season).”

“I later received a call from Pat (Atwell) and immediately knew it was a perfect fit. “I couldn’t be more excited to take over the track and field program and the opportunity to restart the cross country program,” stated Davis. “In my time at Iowa Wesleyan, I helped restart the track and field program in 2020, and we have come a long way in a brief time, and I’m excited to do it again. The opportunity is perfect, and I am super grateful for the opportunity from Athletic Director Pat Atwell and President Dr. Douglas Palmer to come to an amazing school in Culver-Stockton.”

A native of Spirit Lake, Iowa, Davis graduated from Morningside College in 2019 with a degree in mass communication and a minor in sports management. During Davis’s time as an athlete, he competed in cross country and threw the javelin for the Mustangs. Davis was named team captain his senior season at Morningside.