ANDERSON, S.C. - Aaron Schaffner has been named head cross country and track coach at Anderson College, AC athletic director Bobby Beville announced Friday morning. Schaffner, a native of Baltimore, Ohio, will be in charge of both the AC men's and women's cross country programs and the men's and women's track and field teams. "Aaron is dedicated to the sport of running and he has done a good job as an assistant for our cross country and track programs," Beville said. "He has earned the opportunity to be the head coach. We believe he will take our programs to the next level." Schaffner replaces Leroy Thomas, who resigned earlier this month. "I'm excited to have the opportunity to direct the programs at Anderson College," Schaffner said. "We've got some great freshmen coming in. I think both cross country teams are stronger than they were last year. Our goal is to improve the conference standing for both teams." Anderson College is a member of NCAA Division II and the Carolinas-Virginia Athletics Conference. The AC women won the CVAC title in 2002 and finished second in 2003. Schaffner has been a competitive runner since the seventh grade. He was two-time All-Ohio in cross country. He ran four years at Cumberland (Ky.) College and was a member of the Cumberland team that finished third in the 1999 NAIA national meet. He still competes in several road races a year. After his career at Cumberland, he joined the AC program as an assistant in 2000. As an assistant, he was actively involved in all aspects of the cross country and track programs. While serving as assistant coach, he also earned a bachelors degree in business administration from Anderson in 2001. In his first year as head coach, Schaffner will have the unique opportunity of coaching his younger brother Ethan, who joins the Anderson program as a freshman this fall. "I've always wanted to be a head coach somewhere, and I always wanted to coach my little brother," Schaffner said. "He was going to go where I was coaching. He's very excited about me getting the head coaching position."