Texas Wesleyan University Men's Cross Country

Amare was hired as the first head coach of the men and womens cross country/track programs in January of 2010. During his tenure at Texas Wesleyan he has coached 34 All-Conference selections, eight NAIA All-Americans, and eight NAIA Scholar-Athletes.  His cross country teams have combined for four conference championships and five NAIA National Championship appearances while he was named Red River Athletic Conference Coach of the Year four times.  The cross country programs have also produced three conference runner-up finishes.  In a combined ten seasons, the cross country teams have sent competitors to the NAIA National Championship nine times.  Similarly, the track & field programs have sent athletes to national competition six times. Amare came to Texas Wesleyan from Northwood University where he built an impressive coaching resume. In six seasons at Northwood, Amare led the Knights to six Red River Athletic Conference Championships in men's cross country, six RRAC Championships in women's cross country, six runner-up finishes in women's track, and three runner-up finishes in men's track. Amare has coached 35 individual and four team Men's Cross Country NAIA National qualifiers as well as 36 individual and five team Women's Cross Country NAIA National Qualifiers, and 32 indvidual Men's and Women's NAIA Indoor and Outdoor Track qualifers. In total he has coached 149 RRAC individual champions, 10 NAIA All-Americans, and two NAIA individual runners-up. A native of Eritrea, Africa, Amare came to the United States at the age of eleven. A product of North Clayton High School in Atlanta, GA, he went on to Northwood University where he became the school's most decorated athlete. Amare was a 20-time All-RRAC selection and 8-time RRAC individual champion in cross country and track. He was named RRAC MVP in 2001 after winning the 1500m, 3000m Steeplechase, 5K and 10K events. Amare was also a four-time All-Region selection in cross country, a five-time NAIA National qualifer, and three-time All-American selection (one in cross country, two in track). In 2000, Amare became Northwood's first National Champion in any event when he won the marathon at the NAIA National Outdoor Track meet with a time of 2:33:36.00. In 2011 he was inducted into the Northwood Athletic Hall of Fame. Amare also gained international experience when he represented Eritrea in the 2003 IAFF World Championships in Lausanne, Switzerland. Amare completed his degree in International Business at Northwood University in 2002. He currently resides in Arlington, TX. Nat Amare at Texas Wesleyan   2014-15 - The men and women's cross country teams combined for 4 All-Conference selections, while the Lady Rams finished 4th in the SAC and were ranked as high as 19th in the NAIA.  In men's track, Oraine Wint became the program's first All-American in the 1000m (Indoor) and the 1500m (Outdoor).  The women's track & field program also sent individuals to both the Indoor and Outdoor National Championships. 2013-14 -  The women's cross country team was ranked as high as 10th nationally and finished as the Sooner Athletic Conferencr runner-up.  The team made its third straight appearance in the NAIA National meet and placed 21st.  The women's track team sent five individuals to the National Championship while the men's squad sent one individual.  Brenda Felipe became the cross country program's first All-American while also garnering the award in indoor track.  Ongelic Hill became the program's first field athlete to be named All-American when she placed 8th in the long jump at the Outdoor National Championships. 2012-13 - The men's and women's cross country teams defended their conference championships, and Amare was once again named RRAC Coach of the Year for both programs.  Jessica Davis repeated as the RRAC's individual champion in women's cross country.  Meanwhile the women's track and field team finished as the RRAC runners-up. For the second straight year, the mens track and field team finished fourth in the conference. The women's track & field team had athletes represent Texas Wesleyan at both the Indoor and Outdoor NAIA National Championships.  Jessica Davis became the first Ram to earn All-American status, gaining that recognition in the 3000m and 5000m at the Indoor National Championships and the 5000m and 10000m at the Outdoor National Championships. 2011-12 - In the program's second year, the Rams took three of four Red River Athletic Conference Championships, winning titles in men and women's cross country as well as women's track and field. Meanwhile, the men's track team improved to a fourth place finish at the RRAC meet.  Amare was named RRAC Coach of the Year for both men and women's cross country.  The Rams posted 10 All-RRAC selections while Andrew Herrera and Jessica Davis took the conference's individual cross country championships.  In Outdoor Track, Ramiro Garcia becam the first Ram to compete at the NAIA National Championship when he completed the marathon. 2010-11 -  In the inaugural season for all four programs, Amare posted three Red River Athletic Conference runner-up finishes. Both cross country teams finished second in the RRAC and sent individual runners on to the NAIA National Meet. The Lady Rams track and field team also finished second, while the men's squad placed fifth.  In cross country, the teams combined for six All-Red River Athletic Conference selections.