Northwest Nazarene University Men's Cross Country

Spatz begins his 15th season with the Crusaders in 2015. Having led the NNU cross country and track and field programs since the fall of 2002, Spatz now looks forward to developing programs that are competitive at both the conference (GNAC) and national level (NCAA II). "I enjoy being able to apply my experience and love for the sport into a program that also reflects my personal faith."   Entering his 30th year as a collegiate cross country/track and field coach, Spatz has developed 80 performance All-Americans and 6 individual national champions. At NNU, Spatz has coached 440 GNAC All-Academic team members, 48 USTFCCCA Academic All-Americans, had 203 athletes set school records, and has coached 54 GNAC event champions. His teams have produced a total of 125 GNAC All-Conference performances on the mens side, and 152 GNAC All-Conference performances on the womens side since 2002. Also, 51 NNU student athletes have competed at the NCAA II national championships. In 2009, the mens team had its best NCAA II national meet finish, placing 16 th. The womens teams best NCAA II national meet placing came in 2008 when they finished 22 nd .   Spatz came to NNU from Eastern Oregon University, where he coached for 14 years 1988-2002, including 12 years as head track & field coach for men and women. Spatz began coaching in 1985 at Spokane Community College as an assistant. From 1985-88 he coached several conference champions in the NWAACC. During the 1987-88 season he also coached at University High School in Spokane, his alma mater. In 2014, Spatz was inducted into the Spokane Community College Athletic Hall of Fame as an athlete and as part of the coaching staff for both the 1986 and 1987 mens track team. The 1988 graduate of Eastern Washington University (Cheney) is certified by USA Track & Field as both an official and Level II coach. From 1993-96 Spatz served as the chair of the NAIA Cultural Exchange Committee. In the summer of 1994 he led a group of NAIA athletes on a trip to Barcelona, Spain, where they participated in the Catalonian Senior Championships. In 1995, Spatz was added to the World Sports Exchange (WSE) coaching staff. That August he traveled to Australia with WSE and 100 high school Cross Country athletes for 10 days of training and racing. In July of 2001, Coach Spatz traveled to Laos and Thailand with 12 athletes and one other coach with Athletes in Action. The team led clinics in both countries covering all areas of track and field. Beginning in 2005, Spatz has served as the Lead Track & Field Clinician for the Fellowship of Christian Athletes summer camps in Idaho, Wyoming, South Dakota, and in Oregon. In the summer of 2008, Spatz helped develop one of the first FCA pole vault camps in the country. As a past faculty advisor for the NNU FCA Huddle, Spatz is involved with FCA activities both on and off campus. Spatz and wife Cindy have two children, a daughter Rachael, 23, and son Micah, 21.

Perry begins his 9th season with the Crusaders in 2015. Jake was named the Associate Head Cross Country and Distance coach this summer. Jake graduated from Northwest Nazarene University in 2006, majoring in Recreation and Sports management. In 2013 he received his Master's in Coaching and Administration from Concordia University. Jake is a USATF Level 1 certified coach.  In 2002, Jake received the cross-country Steve Hills award. Jake is the only person at NNU to finish in the top 30 in the NCAA Division ll Western Regional meet four times in a row. In 2003-04 he was GNAC All-Conference in cross country. During the track and field season later that year, he was GNAC All-Conference in the 10K, placing 3rd. He continues his running career competing in marathons and ultra-marathon trail races across the country.   In Jakes eight years as one of the assistant cross-country and track coaches at NNU, he has coached 8 GNAC conference champions and 14 NCAA II Performance All-Americans. He also assisted in coaching Ashley Puga, who is a two-time NCAA II National Champion in both the indoor and the outdoor 800 meters during the 2008-09 season. Jake is married to NNU alum Jenny (Tyhurst), who is the assistant cross country and distance coach. They currently live in Nampa with their dog, Paisley. Jake can be contacted on his cell phone at .   Jake Perry Associate Head Cross Country/Distance Coach Coach Jake Perry begins his 9th season with the Crusaders in 2015. Jake was named the Associate Head Cross Country and Distance coach this summer. Jake graduated from Northwest Nazarene University in 2006, majoring in Recreation and Sports management. In 2013 he received his Master's in Coaching and Administration from Concordia University. Jake is a USATF Level 1 certified coach.  In 2002, Jake received the cross-country Steve Hills award. Jake is the only person at NNU to finish in the top 30 in the NCAA Division ll Western Regional meet four times in a row. In 2003-04 he was GNAC All-Conference in cross country. During the track and field season later that year, he was GNAC All-Conference in the 10K, placing 3rd. He continues his running career competing in marathons and ultra-marathon trail races across the country.   In Jakes eight years as one of the assistant cross-country and track coaches at NNU, he has coached 8 GNAC conference champions and 14 NCAA II Performance All-Americans. He also assisted in coaching Ashley Puga, who is a two-time NCAA II National Champion in both the indoor and the outdoor 800 meters during the 2008-09 season. Jake is married to NNU alum Jenny (Tyhurst), who is the assistant cross country and distance coach. They currently live in Nampa with their dog, Paisley. Jake can be contacted on his cell phone at .  

Jeff Eastman enters his seventh year as an assistant coach with the Northwest Nazarene track & field program going into the 2025-26 season. He works with the Nighthawks' sprints, vertical jumps, and horizontal jumps squads. Prior to NNU, he spent two decades coaching both track & field and football in his hometown of Merced, California, serving as an assistant coach at both Merced High School and Merced Community College. He is a USATF Level One certified sprint and jump coach, and is also certified with the USTFCCCA. Before moving to Idaho, Eastman served 27 years with the Merced Police Department. He spent time as a police officer, high-tech crime detective, and De-Tac Instructor. Eastman owns a Bachelor of Science degree in Criminal Justice Management from Union Institute & University. He is a proud father of five children - two daughters and three sons.

Christie begins his 1st season with the Crusaders in 2015. A 2014 graduate of NNU with a degree in Biology, Rimar completed his college competitive career in the spring of 2015 as one of the most decorated Crusader student-athletes in NCAA track & field history. Christie won the GNAC title in the outdoor 100-meter dash three times, twice joined his Crusader teammates in winning the GNAC title in the men's 4x100 outdoor relay, and claimed the GNAC outdoor title in the 200 meters once. He qualified for the NCAA Division II Outdoor National Championships twice, holds the NNU record for the 100, 200 and 110-meter hurdles outdoors and the Crusader record for the 60 and 60-meter hurdles indoors. Christie, who is working on his MBA, joined the NNU coaching staff in the summer of 2015 and will assistant with sprints, hurdles and relays while continuing to train for the 2016 Olympics in Brazil as a potential member os his home country's Barbados  Olympic Team. In 2013, he was fourth in the 200-meter and fifth in the 100-meter dashes at the Barbados Track and Field National Championships. Rimar Christie Assistant Track & Field Coach, Sprints/Hurdles/Relays Coach rimar Christie begins his 1st season with the Crusaders in 2015. A 2014 graduate of NNU with a degree in Biology, Rimar completed his college competitive career in the spring of 2015 as one of the most decorated Crusader student-athletes in NCAA track & field history. Christie won the GNAC title in the outdoor 100-meter dash three times, twice joined his Crusader teammates in winning the GNAC title in the men's 4x100 outdoor relay, and claimed the GNAC outdoor title in the 200 meters once. He qualified for the NCAA Division II Outdoor National Championships twice, holds the NNU record for the 100, 200 and 110-meter hurdles outdoors and the Crusader record for the 60 and 60-meter hurdles indoors. Christie, who is working on his MBA, joined the NNU coaching staff in the summer of 2015 and will assistant with sprints, hurdles and relays while continuing to train for the 2016 Olympics in Brazil as a potential member os his home country's Barbados  Olympic Team. In 2013, he was fourth in the 200-meter and fifth in the 100-meter dashes at the Barbados Track and Field National Championships.

Ainsworth begins his 9th season with the Crusaders in 2015. A 1993 graduate of the University of Idaho, Dustin served as the head track & field and cross country coach at Nampa High School from 1998 to 2006. Dustin is a USATF Level 1 certified coach. As an athlete, he competed at the University of Idaho. Dustin had the opportunity to experience many different events in his collegiate career, ranging from the decathlon to the relays. He made a national provisional mark in the 400-meter hurdles and focused on that event toward the end of his athletic career. Dustin was named the most valuable track and field athlete at the University of Idaho during the 1992 season.  Dustin began coaching in 1996 and found it to be very rewarding. He continued to expand his philosophy and looks at coaching as a way to help individuals succeed and meet their goals, in life as well as on the track. It is a very motivating thing to help studentathletes achieve life objectives.  Dustin adds that he has been blessed to work with the athletes at NNU and has found it reciprocal in nature. The athletes make it enjoyable for me, building relationships and strong ties with them makes coaching an exciting endeavor. During his time at NNU, Dustin has coached NNU student-athletes to 12 school records, 14 GNAC titles, 6 national marks and 3 national qualifying performances in the men and womens hurdles, sprints and relays. Family is very important to Dustin. He lives in Nampa with his wife, Sheri, and their twin boys, Declin and Kenton. Dustin Ainsworth Assistant Track & Field Coach, Sprints/Hurdles/Relays Coach Dustin Ainsworth begins his 9th season with the Crusaders in 2015. A 1993 graduate of the University of Idaho, Dustin served as the head track & field and cross country coach at Nampa High School from 1998 to 2006. Dustin is a USATF Level 1 certified coach. As an athlete, he competed at the University of Idaho. Dustin had the opportunity to experience many different events in his collegiate career, ranging from the decathlon to the relays. He made a national provisional mark in the 400-meter hurdles and focused on that event toward the end of his athletic career. Dustin was named the most valuable track and field athlete at the University of Idaho during the 1992 season.  Dustin began coaching in 1996 and found it to be very rewarding. He continued to expand his philosophy and looks at coaching as a way to help individuals succeed and meet their goals, in life as well as on the track. It is a very motivating thing to help studentathletes achieve life objectives.  Dustin adds that he has been blessed to work with the athletes at NNU and has found it reciprocal in nature. The athletes make it enjoyable for me, building relationships and strong ties with them makes coaching an exciting endeavor. During his time at NNU, Dustin has coached NNU student-athletes to 12 school records, 14 GNAC titles, 6 national marks and 3 national qualifying performances in the men and womens hurdles, sprints and relays. Family is very important to Dustin. He lives in Nampa with his wife, Sheri, and their twin boys, Declin and Kenton.

Perry begins her 3rd season with the Crusaders in 2015. Jenny has been involved with NNUs cross country and track programs since 2003. She competed on the Crusader cross country team in 2003-2006, and earned GNAC All-Academic honors in 2006 and 2007. After graduating from NNU in 2007, she continued to support the team by assisting her husband, associate head cross country coach Jake Perry, with various behind-the-scenes tasks. Perry regularly does visualization and relaxation exercises with the team and is largely involved in the personal and spiritual development of the distance athletes. She has helped coach four national-provisional qualifiers in track and field, two of which competed at NCAA Div. II Nationals. Jenny has a Bachelors degree in Psychology with a Minor in Criminal Justice. She received her Master's in Forensic Psychology from the Chicago School of Professional Psychology in 2010 and her Masters in Social Work at NNU in 2013. Jenny and Jake currently reside in Nampa. Jenny Perry Assistant Cross Country and Track and Field Coach Coach Jenny Perry begins her 3rd season with the Crusaders in 2015. Jenny has been involved with NNUs cross country and track programs since 2003. She competed on the Crusader cross country team in 2003-2006, and earned GNAC All-Academic honors in 2006 and 2007. After graduating from NNU in 2007, she continued to support the team by assisting her husband, associate head cross country coach Jake Perry, with various behind-the-scenes tasks. Perry regularly does visualization and relaxation exercises with the team and is largely involved in the personal and spiritual development of the distance athletes. She has helped coach four national-provisional qualifiers in track and field, two of which competed at NCAA Div. II Nationals. Jenny has a Bachelors degree in Psychology with a Minor in Criminal Justice. She received her Master's in Forensic Psychology from the Chicago School of Professional Psychology in 2010 and her Masters in Social Work at NNU in 2013. Jenny and Jake currently reside in Nampa.

John Mahr joined the NNU Track & Field staff prior to the 2019-20 season, coaching the pole vault and multi events. Mahr has spent over 35 years as a track & field coach, including 37 at the high school level and eight combined between Azusa Pacific and NNU. While at APU, Mahr was a part of the 1995 NAIA Indoor Champions squad and coached the 1995 NAIA Women's High Jump Champion in Latresse Moffet. Mahr has plenty of accolades from his high school coaching career, including four California State Girls Cross Country Championships, two Cross Country National Championships (girls in 2002, boys in 2008), California State Coach of the Year in 2005, and three-time SoCal Coach of the Year (1992, 2002, 2005). He coached 24 High School All-Americans in cross country and track & field including Shannon Meyer, the 2002-03 Jr. National Champion and USATF National Record holder in the heptathlon. Mahr has a number of coaching certifications, including the original TAC (Now USATF), Lead Certification Instructor (1988), USATF Level I Coaching Education Lead Instructor, LA84 Foundation Lead, and Instructor, Advanced Instruction - Cross Country and Track & Field. Outside of high school and college athletics, Mahr also developed the Comprehensive Athletic & Training Facility at the Naval Air Station in Miramar from 1984-85. He competed as a decathlete at Point Loma Nazarene University from 1978-1981, where he earned a BA in Physical Education. Mahr also has an MA in Kinesiology, with an emphasis in Physiology and Biomechanics. Originally from Dayton, Ohio, Mahr lives in the Treasure Valley with his wife, Dee. They have five children, 12 grandchildren, and one great-grandson. In his spare time, Mahr enjoys wilderness hiking, extreme mountain biking, ice hockey, and supporting The Ohio State University.