Cross Country
- Title:
- Cross Country Head Coach
- Email:
- mcrogha1@kent.edu
- Phone:
- 330-672-8429
When Bill Lawson was hired to oversee the track and field and cross country teams at Kent State, he turned to three-time Olympian Mark Croghan to head the cross country and distance programs. Eight years later, Croghan has taken the cross country and distance programs to new heights.
“We are very excited to have Mark Croghan,” said Lawson. He has steadily improved the program. I believe now, in our distance and middle-distance programs, we are as strong as Kent State has ever been and I feel very confident of having someone of Mark’s expertise leading those groups.
“He is doing an outstanding job and we look for great things in the future from him,” Lawson added.
All of Croghan’s hard work paid off in 2009 as the men’s cross country team won its first Mid-American Conference title. In six races that year, the men claimed five overall team titles, including finishing ahead of a pair of top-10 teams in Wisconsin and Iona at the Iona Meet of Champions.
The women’s team also reached new heights in 2009. Kent State took home a pair of runner-up team finishes and the best finish at the MAC Championships (fifth) during Croghan’s tenure. Junior Alex Lizarribar tied Denise Bobby’s 1990 record for the best finish at the conference championships (second) and regional meet (ninth). She also became the second Kent State women’s runner to qualify for the NCAA Championships and her 77th finish was 29 places better than Bobby’s finish in 1990.
The 2009 season was successful not only on the courses, but also in the classroom. On Nov. 6, Kent State swept the conference scholar athlete awards when Lizarribar and fifth-year senior Tony Jordanek earned the distinction.
Before coming to Kent State, Croghan served as an assistant coach at the University School from 2001-06 and also served as the distance coach for the Ohio State men’s and women’s track programs from 1991-93. Under his guidance, Robert Gary earned All-America status three times and qualified for the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta.
As a steeplechase runner at Ohio State from 1988-91, Croghan won the national championship in that event in 1990 and 1991. He was also named the Jumbo Eliot Award winner in 1991 as the nation’s Outstanding Collegiate Track Athlete. He continued his success after college as he won the US National Championship in 1991 and 1994-97. Croghan as qualified for the Olympics 1992 in Barcelona, 1996 in Atlanta and 2000 in Sydney.
For his many career accomplishments, Croghan has been inducted into three hall of fames. In 1999, he was inducted into the Ohio State University Hall of Fame. In 2007, he was honored by the Ohio Association of Cross Country Coaches and most recently, he was elected into the Summit County Hall of Fame in 2009.
