Jocelyn Sparks enters her eighth season as assistant coach of the Colorado School of Mines track and field programs in 2020-21, serving as the primary pole vault instructor.
Despite an unprecedented 2020 indoor season, Sparks still guided the Oredigger pole vaulters to elite status. Connor McLean, Jake Pinkston and Hannah Miller all earned spots in the field at the NCAA Championships, Miller doing so as a true freshman. Additionally, Zach Clark and Brandon Hinkle provisionally qualified for the national meet. While the championships and outdoor season were canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Connor McLean still earned USTFCCCA National Field Athlete of the Year thanks, in part, to Sparks' coaching. At the conference level, Miller claimed silver and Gabby Griner took fourth for a pair of all-conference nods on the women's side. For the men, Pinkston grabbed gold and Twombly claimed sixth for two more all-conference awards. Additionally, McLean, Miller and Pinkston all brought home USTFCCCA All-America honors. Furthermore, Miller shattered the program's women's indoor pole vault record in the first appearance of her collegiate career.
The 2019 season saw Connor McLean take silver at both the indoor and outdoor RMAC Championships. McLean also qualified for both the indoor and outdoor NCAA Championships. Under Sparks' guidance he took #4 in the nation at the indoor championships, earning his third-career All-America award as a pole vaulter. Additionally, Sparks' vaulters added six marks to the Orediggers' indoor and outdoor record books including McLean matching his standing program indoor record of 5.26 meters.
In 2018, Sparks coached Jake Pinkston to gold in the pole vault at the NCAA Outdoor Championships. It marked Mines' first individual national title since 2011 as Pinkston matched his own school record on the way to victory. Sparks was also named USTFCCCA South Central Region Men's Assistant Coach of the Year in the 2017-18 indoor season as Connor McLean vaulted his way to silver at the NCAA Indoor Championships.
Sparks has been instrumental in leading one of the RMAC's best vaulting units. In 2017, Mines dominated the point-scoring in the RMAC men's pole vault as freshmen Jake Pinkston and Darin Meeker combined for 11 team points at RMAC Indoors; at the outdoor meet, Mines scored four men as Pinkston won gold and Meeker, Brandon Hinkle, and Zach Clark scored to combine for 19 team points. Pinkston was named the RMAC Freshman of the Year for the outdoor season as he set the program record in the pole vault, and went on to earn Second-Team All-America honors at NCAA Championships. Pinkston was the third Oredigger under Sparks to finish as an all-American after Connor McLean (2016 indoor) and Ben Timmer (2015 indoor). She also has worked with Mines' multi-eventers Triston Sisneros and Austin Smith, who have four combined all-America finishes in the NCAA heptathlon and decathlon.
Sparks most recently served as the Horizontal Jumps and Pole Vault Coach at Lake Superior State University from 2012 to 2013. She also coached at Jenison High School in 2012.
While on the Sault Ste. Marie, Mich. campus, Sparks oversaw four school records and coached three Lakers to NCAA qualifying marks, including two All-American efforts.
Originally from Palatine, Ill., Sparks was an eight-time All-American in the pole vault for perennial track and field power Grand Valley State University, leading the Lakers to four NCAA team championships during her career.
She set the program indoor pentathlon record in 2009 before focusing exclusively on pole vault. As a senior in 2011-12, Sparks placed third in the pole vault at the indoor national meet and was runner-up at outdoor nationals, clearing 12-7.5 (3.85 meters).
Sparks graduated from GVSU with a Bachelor of Science in exercise science in 2012.
She and her husband, Matt, reside in Arvada.
