Lehigh University Women's Cross Country

Uteschs 20th year with the Lehigh cross country and track and field programs, having served as the head cross country and distance coach from 1996 through 2007. Utesch then became Lehighs womens cross country coach prior to the start of the 2008 season, while her former runner Todd Etters 02 was appointed head coach of the men. Utesch also serves as Lehighs Recruiting Coordinator for the Cross Country and Track and Field programs.   In 2015, Utesch helped lead Lehigh to a seventh place finish at the Patriot League Championships and an appearance in the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regionals at Princeton. Under her guidance, 10 womens cross country student-athletes were named to the Patriot League Academic Honor Roll and the team was named an All-Academic Team by the USTFCCCA.   Under Uteschs guidance in 2014, the Mountain Hawks crowned their first-ever cross country All-American as Elizabeth Weiler finished 38th at the NCAA National Championship race. Lehigh finished sixth at the Patriot League Championship race and 13th at NCAA Regionals. In addition to success on the course, the Mountain Hawks were strong in the classroom as well, garnering APR Public Recognition and USTCCCA Academic honors.   Utesch led the Mountain Hawks to one of their most successful seasons during 2013, highlighted by a second place finish at the Patriot League Championships. Lehigh finished the race with four All-League runners and secured its best finish in the race since 2000. The Mountain Hawks then went on to place ninth at NCAA Regionals, just Lehigh's third ever top-ten finish. Strong in the classroom as well, Lehigh earned national recognition with an APR Public Recognition award and USTFCCCA Academic honors. Utesch mentored the 2013 Womens Cross Country Patriot League Scholar-Athlete of the Year Jennifer Markham as well as fellow Academic All-League member Rosie Roessel.   In 2012, Utesch led the Mountain Hawks to a fourth place finish at the Patriot League Championships. Three runners earned All-Patriot League honors with Julia Perry finishing fourth overall to earn a spot on the first team, while Ingrid Simon (11th) and Jessica Kendzor (14th) earned second team All-League honors. In addition to its best Patriot League Championships finish since 2008, Lehigh finished second in the Lehigh Invitational, won its dual meet with Lafayette and took 15th in the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional Qualifier. The womens cross country team continued to have one of the top academic records at Lehigh, with 11 student-athletes named to the Patriot League Academic Honor Roll. In 2011, Utesch's team placed 13 student-athletes on the Patriot League Academic Honor Roll. The Mountain Hawks placed 17th at Regionals and fifth at the Patriot League Championships. Utesch guided Lehigh to a stellar showing at the Paul Short Run where the Mountain Hawks placed 24th, their best showing since finishing 17th in 2008. In 2008, Utesch guided the Mountain Hawk women to a number-11 ranking in the Mid-Atlantic Region, their fourth consecutive victory over archrival Lafayette in the annual dual meet, a top-ten finish at the prestigious Iona Meet of Champions, and their second top-three finish at the Patriot League Championship in the past four seasons. Utesch also placed a pair of her student-athletes in Shannon Alejandro and Alexis Weiner on the All-Patriot League teams.      During the 2006 and 2007 seasons, Lehighs mens and womens programs were both ranked in the top-15 regionally and produced back-to-back top-20 finishes at the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Qualifying race. During that time, Utesch mentored three All-Patriot League selections, one All-Region selection and the 2006 Patriot League Rookie of the Year (Lehighs first-ever).    In 2005, Utesch had one of her most successful seasons, as both the Lehigh men and women finished the season ranked within the top-ten of the Mid-Atlantic Region, and produced top-ten finishes at the Iona Meet of Champions, as well as third (women) and fourth (men) place finishes at the Patriot League Championships. Four Mountain Hawks were named to the All-League teams, including Jen Schappert, who finished second overall for the second consecutive season. Schappert then went onto earn her second straight All-Region and Academic All-American honors. To top it off, Schappert became the first runner in school history to qualify for the NCAA National Championships.    In 2004, Utesch led the men to a number-eight ranking in the Mid-Atlantic Region; the highest ever in her reign at Lehigh, as the Mountain Hawks finished in the top-ten of every race they ran in, except the nationally known Paul Short Run, where they placed 11th. The men placed fourth and the women sixth at the 2004 Patriot League Championships, while three Lehigh runners were named to the All-Patriot League teams.   Utesch's accolades at Lehigh include having coached 22 All-Patriot League selections in cross country, an ECAC champion (Steve Gourley-1999), two Patriot League runner-ups in cross country (Alex L'Heureux and Schappert), the 2002 mens Patriot League champion and school record holder in the 3000-meter steeplechase (Alex L'Heureux - 8:54.72) and three consecutive womens 3,000-meter steeplechase Patriot League champions in Claudin Hull (2001), Lucinda Hull (2002) and Edann Brady (2003). Lucinda Hull is also the school record holder in the event with a time of 10:41.09.    Utesch's 1999 men's team finished third at the Patriot League Championships, the highest during her tenure. Overall, her male athletes have broken five school records including the indoor 1000-meters and the mile, which had stood for nearly 30 years.    The 2000 Patriot League Womens Cross Country Coach of the Year, Utesch led the Mountain Hawk women to a second place finish at the league championships that same season, the highest in her time. In addition,   The success of Uteschs teams does not stop on the trail or track however, as evidenced by the mens cross country team earning USTFCCCA Academic All-American Team honors six times while she was the head coach, and the women earning the same distinction five consecutive years. In addition, Schappert was named the 2006 Patriot League Womens Cross Country Scholar Athlete of the Year as well as an Academic All-American.   Utesch came to Lehigh after serving as associate head cross country coach and assistant track coach at Millersville University from 1994-96. During her tenure there, she coached nationally ranked Division II track and cross-country teams. The Millersville mens track & field team earned a ranking as high as 13th in 1996 while the womens track and field team ranked 18th that same year.   As assistant track coach, Utesch helped coach a total of five All-Americans, whose events ranged from the 3000 meters to the triple jump. In 1996, the Millersville womens track and field team won the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference title. Utesch was also named to the ECAC and Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) games committees during her time at Millersville.   Utesch earned her bachelor of science degree in business administration from the University of Rhode Island in 1988, where she was a member of both the cross country and track teams. She earned her M.B.A. from St. Francis College (PA) in 2000.                          Utesch and her husband Matt, the head track & field coach at Lehigh, reside in Bethlehem with their daughter Sydney and son Tyson.