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NEW ORLEANS, La. – Virginia Tech junior Alexander Ziegler (Dischingen, Germany) and director of track & field and cross country Dave Cianelli have earned regional awards for the Southeast Region for the 2012 outdoor track & field season as announced Monday by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA). Ziegler was named the Southeast Region's Men's Field Athlete of the Year, while Cianelli was named the region's Men's Coach of the Year.

This outdoor season, Ziegler won his first Atlantic Coast Conference title in the hammer throw with a mark of 229-11 (70.09m). He also placed second at the NCAA East Preliminary Round (230-1, 70.13m) to earn his spot at this week's NCAA Championship. He won the hammer at Clemson’s Bob Pollock Invite with a season best mark of 240-1 (73.17m) and was runner-up at the Florida Relays and at Clemson’s Tiger Qualifier. Ziegler was also named a Capital One Academic All-District student-athlete last week.

The defending national champion in the hammer throw, Ziegler will compete in the hammer at the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championship at Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa on Friday at 2:00 p.m. CDT. He is currently ranked No. 2 in the nation in the event.

In his 11th season at Tech, Cianelli guided the Hokie men to their first-ever ACC Outdoor Championship in April in Charlottesville, Va. The Tech men had five ACC individual champions and 14 All-ACC performers at the meet. The Hokies spent the entire season ranked No. 1 in Southeast Region and are currently ranked No. 8 nationally with 14 entries (13 individuals) at the NCAA Championship, which ranks as the second highest number of entries among men’s programs at the national meet.

Cianelli has now been named the Southeast Region's Men's Coach of the Year for four straight seasons, dating back to the 2011 indoor season.

For updates on Virginia Tech track & field, follow the Hokies on Twitter (@VT_Track).