WILLIAMSTOWN, MASS. -- "I am extremely pleased to announce that
Dusty Lopez has accepted the position as the next Head Cross Country Coach at Williams," stated Williams Athletic Director Lisa Melendy. "He stood out among a nationally talented field for both his expertise in coaching distance runners and in his ability to build meaningful relationships with athletes. Dusty brings with him a wealth of experience from across NCAA Cross Country, Track and Field. We are thrilled to have him take over the reins of a program he has already done so much to build, both as a former-scholar athlete and as an assistant coach."
"I want to thank the search committee of Kris Herman, Nate Hoey, Paula Thoms, and Tommy Verdell for their time and thoughtful input into the process."
Dusty Lopez is a 2001 graduate of Williams, where he earned a B.A. in history in 2001. A four-year letter winner in cross country and track & field for the Ephs, Lopez was a captain his senior year. He earned All-America honors in cross country in 2000, won the NESCAC 10k, and was the 5k New England DIII champion.
In 2001 Lopez was an All-American in 10k (2nd) and 5k (4th). He also briefly held the school record for 10k, until Neal Holtschulte broke it a couple of years later.
Lopez's coaching resume includes coaching at NCAA DI and NCAA DIII schools and began with a two-year graduate assistant opportunity at Syracuse University.
In his first coaching stint at Williams as an assistant coach (2005-07), Lopez helped coach national cross country champion Neal Holtschulte and NCAA 5k/10k outdoor and 5k indoor champion Caroline Cretti.
Team performances during Lopez's first three years coaching at Williams included the women winning the NESCAC and NCAA Regional titles and posting a third place finish in each, while finishing second and eighth at the NCAA championships. The Eph men in NESCAC were 1st and 2nd; NCAA Regional: 1st, 4th; ECACs: 1st, 1st; and 7th at the NCAA Championship.
After Williams, Lopez spent five years as head coach at Webster University (St. Louis) where he coached the cross country and track & field teams for men and women. In 2011, the women's cross country team won the first conference championship in program history.
Lopez's last stop before returning to Williams for the second time was as an assistant with the men's cross country and distance teams at the University of Michigan, most recently under head coach (and past Olympian) Kevin Sullivan.
Lopez and his wife Caitlin (a former Eph softball player) have three daughters and they reside in Williamstown.
