Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Men's Cross Country

Lynch was named the head coach of the Rensselaer men's and women's cross country teams in September of 2011.  He joined the RPI staff after serving as a head coach at Plattsburgh State for the past six years.  A native of Clifton Park, N.Y., Lynch guided the Cardinals cross country programs from 2005-2011, including his final three seasons as the Director of Track & Field and Cross Country at Plattsburgh State. In his career, Lynch has coached 24 NCAA All-Americans, 38 automatic and provisional qualifiers, over 100 all-conference honorees and 54 league champions in cross country and track. In July 2007, he earned endorsement as a Level 1 coach by USA Track and Field. In his first season at the helm of the Engineers, Lynch saw his squads produce solid results.  Both teams finished third at the Liberty League Championships, while the men and women took home third and fourth, respectively, at the NYSCTC Championships. The RPI men had a strong outing at the NCAA Atlantic Regional Championship, finishing sixth overall.  Leading the way was senior Jeff Corelli, who finished 12th at the 2011 NCAA Atlantic Regionals, becoming the first runner in program history to garner All-Region First Team.  Additionally, Corelli - who competed at the 2011 NCAA Championhips for Rensselaer - also placed 12th at the New York State meet and was sixth at Liberty Leagues, earning All-State Second Team and All-League First Team. Overall, four student-athletes earned All-League honors, while three took home All-State recognition.  Academically, a combined 10 individuals were named to the Liberty League All-Academic Team and six of his distance runners were named to the Capital One Academic All-District First Teams.  Two student-athletes went on to earn National Academic All-America, including Corelli - a First Team selection. Among the success during his tenure at Plattsburgh State came in 2010-11 as student-athlete Mike Heymann earned three more All-American honors to finish his Cardinal career with seven total. Heymann finished fitth at the NCAA Cross Country Championships, sixth at the 5000-meter run at the NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships and fourth in the 10,000-meter run at the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships.  Lynch, who will also serve as an assistant coach for the Engineers indoor and outdoor track & field teams,  also sent his biggest squad of Cardinal athletes to the NCAA Championships in his Plattsburgh tenure with eight individuals competing at the 2011 NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships.  During the 2009-10 season, Lynch his student-athletes add to their success, including Heymann, who was a National All-American at the cross country, indoor and outdoor track & field nationals.  His mens cross country squad finished 28th in the nation in 2008, marking the squads first appearance at the NCAA Championship since 1999. Lynch led Plattsburgh to its best women's cross country season ever in 2007, when the Cardinals were the national runner-up in NCAA Division III. The program also set a school record with a No. 5 national ranking in the final poll and appeared in every poll during the season. The Cardinals captured their first Atlantic championship and third regional title in school history behind All-American performances from Allison Busby (6th), Toni Wiszowaty (7th) and Alyssa Recny (17th).  Additionally, Wiszowaty won the 10,000-meter race at the 2007 Penn Relays, posting a mark that ranked fourth all-time in the events history and was also an Olympic Trials qualifying time. The squad was also named an All-America Scholar Team by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association, while Lynch was tabbed as the 2007 USTFCCCA Atlantic Region Women's Coach of the Year.  Lynch received a bachelor's degree in kinesiology and sport studies from Cortland State in 2005. He was an accomplished distance runner for the Red Dragons' track squad, setting school records in the distance medley relay while participating on several indoor and outdoor SUNYAC championship teams. John Lynch was named the head coach of the Rensselaer men's and women's cross country teams in September of 2011.  He joined the RPI staff after serving as a head coach at Plattsburgh State for the past six years.