PNW’s new track and cross country coach is working to make cross country fun again.

After two seasons of finishing in the cellar in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, Zachary Hoover is focused on building his athletes’ confidence – and on making sure they enjoy the program.

“There’s a lot of talent here, it’s just a diamond in the rough waiting to be sharpened,” said Hoover. “I want the athletes to have a very positive experience and be able to leave with great memories, friendships, growth as a person and to be more prepared for their future.

 “That means the most to me more than any other trophy or accolades,” he said.

But the approach seems to be paying dividends.

“Our workouts are better, and we’ve been placing higher at meets,” said sophomore Julio Herrera, a Criminal Justice major. “Hoover has a great mindset. He wants to connect all the athletes together and make us feel more like a family rather than a team.” 

Plus, the cross country teams have had some promising results this season – finishing fourth of nine teams at the Lewis Early Bird and second of 10 teams at the Spartan Classic last month.

“Next year … on the cross country side of things, I think we’ll have some teams that have a very strong opportunity to make it to nationals on the men’s and women’s side as well,” Hoover said.

The new coach grew up in Crown Point, where he was captain of the cross country and track & field teams, and competed at the University of St. Francis in Joliet, Illinois, where he helped lead the team to a third-place finish at the NAIA National Championship in his sophomore year and capped off a collegiate career with a First Team All-American honor in the 10k, placing fourth nationally. He also compete as a graduate student-athlete at Lewis University, where he recorded a top-10 all-time 10k mark in school history with a time of 30:24.

After completing his master’s degree in Organizational Leadership at Lewis, Hoover served as head Cross Country and Track & Field coach at Dominican University in River Forest, Illinois.

PNW’s fourth cross country coach, Hoover, said that returning to Northwest Indiana feels like he has come full circle.

“I grew up about 30 minutes away, so it really means a lot to serve the same community that got me into the sport,” Hoover said. “I’m excited to be the person that gets to …hopefully … take the team to the next level.”