June 23, 2025
Nathan Petesch to Lead Cross Country and Track and Field Programs at Plattsburgh
Brian Savard, Assistant Director of Athletics
PLATTSBURGH, N.Y. – Nathan Petesch, the 2024 USTFCCCA Division III Men's Indoor Assistant Coach of the Year and a member of eight NCAA Division III national championship team coaching staffs at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, has been named the Head Cross Country Coach and the Director of Cross Country and Track and Field at Plattsburgh State, as announced Friday by the Department of Intercollegiate Athletics and Recreation.
Petesch brings with him a distinguished résumé as one of the top up-and-coming coaches in Division III, as he has coached five individual national champions and 60 All-Americans during his tenure as a coach. In addition to being a part of nine team national titles (2025 men's outdoor track and field, 2025 men's indoor track and field, 2024 men's cross country, 2024 men's outdoor track and field, 2024 men's indoor track and field, 2023 women's outdoor track and field, 2023 women's indoor track and field, 2023 men's indoor track and field and 2014 women's outdoor track and field), he also has served on the coaching staff of 13 teams that have made the podium at the national championship meet.
"We are extremely excited to be welcoming Nathan to Cardinal Country as our Head Cross Country Coach and Director of the Men's and Women's Cross Country and Track & Field programs," Director of Intercollegiate Athletics and Recreation Mike Howard said. "His extensive coaching experience, passion for developing outstanding student-athletes and tremendous record of success at both the conference and national levels set him apart from a very deep candidate pool. We are committed to the continued growth of our cross country and track and field programs and the high level of success to follow. I am very confident in Nathan's ability to lead that effort and to work with Coach Brett Willmott, Coach Andrew Krug and the other members of our staff to position our programs among the very best in the coming years."
"I'd like to thank the hiring committee, Director of Intercollegiate Athletics and Recreation Mike Howard and Vice President of Enrollment and Student Success Karen McGrath for granting me this opportunity," Petesch said. "The SUNY Plattsburgh community has been incredibly welcoming. The belief I've seen expressed of what is possible, both for the university and the cross country and track and field programs, is compelling. I'm excited for the staff and students in our pursuit of excellence and in continuing to build a program and people that Cardinal Country can be proud of."
Most recently, Petesch has spent the past seven years as an assistant cross country and track and field coach at UW-La Crosse, where the UWL men won 2 Al Carius NCAA Division III Program of the Year awards (2023-24, 2024-25) during his tenure with the program. Since 2018-19, four Eagle student-athletes Petesch has coached have combined for eight Division III all-time top-10 performances, and he also mentored one student-athlete to earn a professional running contract with the Hansons-Brooks Distance Project. This past year, Petesch helped the Eagles achieve the highly coveted "triple crown" on the men's side, as UW-La Crosse won national championships in men's cross country, men's indoor track and field and men's outdoor track and field. In addition to UW-La Crosse's success at nationals during Petesch's tenure on staff, the Eagles have won 10 Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) titles in cross country (six men's championships, four women's championships), 10 WIAC titles in indoor track and field (five men's championships, five women's championships) and 11 WIAC titles in outdoor track and field (five men's championships, six women's championships). UW-La Crosse has also captured four NCAA Division III Regional championships in cross country during Petesch's tenure working with the program, winning the North Regional championship in 2023 and 2024 on the men's side and in 2021 and 2024 on the women's side.
UW-La Crosse student-athletes have excelled individually on teams Petesch has coached as well. In addition to the 53 All-America honors earned by student-athletes coached by Petesch at UWL, the Eagles have combined for 76 All-WIAC selections (39 men, 37 women) and 64 All-Region honors (35 men, 29 women) in cross country in addition to 18 WIAC champions in indoor track and field (nine men, nine women) and 19 WIAC champions in outdoor track and field (nine men, 10 women) since the 2018-19 academic year.
In 2017-18, Petesch spent the year as a volunteer assistant cross country and track and field coach with the women's programs at NCAA Division I University of Wisconsin-Madison. During his one season in Madison, Wis., he helped the Badgers place 10th at the NCAA Division I National Championships and coached one All-American in cross country.
Petesch spent 2016-17 as the associate head cross country coach and assistant track and field coach at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls, where he helped guide a men's cross country runner to the national championship meet; it marked just the second time in school history a male had qualified for nationals in cross country at UW-River Falls. He also coached the women's 10,000-meter run WIAC champion that season. In 2015-16, he served as a volunteer assistant coach for cross country and track and field at NCAA Division II Fort Lewis College in addition to working as a full-time academic adviser for the college.
From 2013-15, Petesch worked as an assistant cross country and track and field coach at Wartburg College. He was a part of a coaching staff that won a women's outdoor track and field national championship in 2014 and guided student-athletes to 54 All-America honors during his time at the Waverly, Iowa-based school. In 2014, the Wartburg women also earned the Deb Vercauteren Division III Program of the Year Award He worked as a volunteer assistant coach for men's cross country and track and field at NCAA Division I Brown University in 2012 following his first foray into college coaching as a graduate assistant at Ithaca College from 2011-12.
As an undergraduate student-athlete at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville, he was a two-time qualifier for the NCAA Championships in cross country; was a provisional qualifier for the NCAA Championships in the mile (indoor) and the 10,000-meter run (outdoor); was an automatic qualifier for the NCAA Championships in the 5,000-meter run (outdoor); and was the former outdoor 5,000-meter run program record holder. Petesch also captured a WIAC outdoor track and field title in the 10,000-meter run in addition to earning two All-Region honors in cross country. Due to his excellence both in competition and in the classroom, he earned CoSIDA Academic All-America Second-Team honors in 2011 and was a two-time UW-Platteville Scholar-Athlete of the Year.
Petesch, who has USATF Level I certification, earned his Bachelor of Science in biology and geography from UW-Platteville in 2011 and his Master of Science in exercise and sport science with a concentration in human performance from Ithaca in 2012.
Petesch brings with him a distinguished résumé as one of the top up-and-coming coaches in Division III, as he has coached five individual national champions and 60 All-Americans during his tenure as a coach. In addition to being a part of nine team national titles (2025 men's outdoor track and field, 2025 men's indoor track and field, 2024 men's cross country, 2024 men's outdoor track and field, 2024 men's indoor track and field, 2023 women's outdoor track and field, 2023 women's indoor track and field, 2023 men's indoor track and field and 2014 women's outdoor track and field), he also has served on the coaching staff of 13 teams that have made the podium at the national championship meet.
"We are extremely excited to be welcoming Nathan to Cardinal Country as our Head Cross Country Coach and Director of the Men's and Women's Cross Country and Track & Field programs," Director of Intercollegiate Athletics and Recreation Mike Howard said. "His extensive coaching experience, passion for developing outstanding student-athletes and tremendous record of success at both the conference and national levels set him apart from a very deep candidate pool. We are committed to the continued growth of our cross country and track and field programs and the high level of success to follow. I am very confident in Nathan's ability to lead that effort and to work with Coach Brett Willmott, Coach Andrew Krug and the other members of our staff to position our programs among the very best in the coming years."
"I'd like to thank the hiring committee, Director of Intercollegiate Athletics and Recreation Mike Howard and Vice President of Enrollment and Student Success Karen McGrath for granting me this opportunity," Petesch said. "The SUNY Plattsburgh community has been incredibly welcoming. The belief I've seen expressed of what is possible, both for the university and the cross country and track and field programs, is compelling. I'm excited for the staff and students in our pursuit of excellence and in continuing to build a program and people that Cardinal Country can be proud of."
Most recently, Petesch has spent the past seven years as an assistant cross country and track and field coach at UW-La Crosse, where the UWL men won 2 Al Carius NCAA Division III Program of the Year awards (2023-24, 2024-25) during his tenure with the program. Since 2018-19, four Eagle student-athletes Petesch has coached have combined for eight Division III all-time top-10 performances, and he also mentored one student-athlete to earn a professional running contract with the Hansons-Brooks Distance Project. This past year, Petesch helped the Eagles achieve the highly coveted "triple crown" on the men's side, as UW-La Crosse won national championships in men's cross country, men's indoor track and field and men's outdoor track and field. In addition to UW-La Crosse's success at nationals during Petesch's tenure on staff, the Eagles have won 10 Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) titles in cross country (six men's championships, four women's championships), 10 WIAC titles in indoor track and field (five men's championships, five women's championships) and 11 WIAC titles in outdoor track and field (five men's championships, six women's championships). UW-La Crosse has also captured four NCAA Division III Regional championships in cross country during Petesch's tenure working with the program, winning the North Regional championship in 2023 and 2024 on the men's side and in 2021 and 2024 on the women's side.
UW-La Crosse student-athletes have excelled individually on teams Petesch has coached as well. In addition to the 53 All-America honors earned by student-athletes coached by Petesch at UWL, the Eagles have combined for 76 All-WIAC selections (39 men, 37 women) and 64 All-Region honors (35 men, 29 women) in cross country in addition to 18 WIAC champions in indoor track and field (nine men, nine women) and 19 WIAC champions in outdoor track and field (nine men, 10 women) since the 2018-19 academic year.
In 2017-18, Petesch spent the year as a volunteer assistant cross country and track and field coach with the women's programs at NCAA Division I University of Wisconsin-Madison. During his one season in Madison, Wis., he helped the Badgers place 10th at the NCAA Division I National Championships and coached one All-American in cross country.
Petesch spent 2016-17 as the associate head cross country coach and assistant track and field coach at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls, where he helped guide a men's cross country runner to the national championship meet; it marked just the second time in school history a male had qualified for nationals in cross country at UW-River Falls. He also coached the women's 10,000-meter run WIAC champion that season. In 2015-16, he served as a volunteer assistant coach for cross country and track and field at NCAA Division II Fort Lewis College in addition to working as a full-time academic adviser for the college.
From 2013-15, Petesch worked as an assistant cross country and track and field coach at Wartburg College. He was a part of a coaching staff that won a women's outdoor track and field national championship in 2014 and guided student-athletes to 54 All-America honors during his time at the Waverly, Iowa-based school. In 2014, the Wartburg women also earned the Deb Vercauteren Division III Program of the Year Award He worked as a volunteer assistant coach for men's cross country and track and field at NCAA Division I Brown University in 2012 following his first foray into college coaching as a graduate assistant at Ithaca College from 2011-12.
As an undergraduate student-athlete at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville, he was a two-time qualifier for the NCAA Championships in cross country; was a provisional qualifier for the NCAA Championships in the mile (indoor) and the 10,000-meter run (outdoor); was an automatic qualifier for the NCAA Championships in the 5,000-meter run (outdoor); and was the former outdoor 5,000-meter run program record holder. Petesch also captured a WIAC outdoor track and field title in the 10,000-meter run in addition to earning two All-Region honors in cross country. Due to his excellence both in competition and in the classroom, he earned CoSIDA Academic All-America Second-Team honors in 2011 and was a two-time UW-Platteville Scholar-Athlete of the Year.
Petesch, who has USATF Level I certification, earned his Bachelor of Science in biology and geography from UW-Platteville in 2011 and his Master of Science in exercise and sport science with a concentration in human performance from Ithaca in 2012.
