2024 USTFCCCA High School Cross Country National Coaches of the Year

NEW ORLEANS – One program captured a national title.

Another displayed historic dominance not seen in decades.

Jonathan Dalby and Eric Selle from Mountain Vista (Colo.) High School and Francisco “Frankie” Ruiz from Belen Jesuit (Fla.) Preparatory School were honored as USTFCCCA National High School Cross Country Coaches of the Year presented by the United States Marine Corps on Wednesday. Dalby and Selle are co-National High School Cross Country Girls Coaches of the Year, while Ruiz is the National High School Cross Country Boys Coach of the Year.

DyeStat Discussions: Jonathan Dalby & Eric Selle | Francisco “Frankie” Ruiz

Dalby and Selle oversaw an undefeated run through an entire postseason by their upperclassman-laden Golden Eagles. Mountain Vista, with five seniors and two juniors in its top-seven, won CHSAA regional and state titles and then swept the NXN slate clean, culminating in a victory at the NXN Nike Cross Nationals in Glendoveer, Oregon. Notably, the Golden Eagles beat state rival Air Academy – coached by 2023 USTFCCCA National Coach of the Year Chuck Schwartz – at both the Colorado 5A State Championships and NXN Southwest Regional Championships by an average of 54 points.

Ruiz’s Wolverines left no doubt as to their prowess at the FHSAA Championships, just like the previous seven years and 13 different times before that. Belen Jesuit captured its eighth consecutive state title – 14^th under Ruiz’s watch in totality – and have done so in resounding fashion, winning by an average of 92 points over that eight-year span since 2017.

The Wolverines were overwhelmingly ruthless in 2024: Belen Jesuit scored just 20 points at the FHSAA Championships in Tallahassee with its 1-3-4-5-7 finish and posted the lowest team score at the meet in the modern era. (St. Petersburg High School went for 18 points back in 1953). The Wolverines also notched the fastest average finishing time of all classes.

Belen Jesuit then topped the podium at the NXR Southeast Regional Championships with 94 points for a 40-point victory and eventually finished 12^th at the NXN Nike Cross Nationals.

All three coaches will be feted in December at the annual USTFCCCA Convention in Grapevine, Texas.

About the United States Marine Corps

The United States Marine Corps is proud to recognize the role of coaches, educators, mentors, and parents who inspire the fighting spirit found in current Marines and the future leaders of our force. Whether your interest lies in helping us identify high-achieving students and athletes or inviting us to help you motivate students and steer them toward success, we would like to get to know you. As you hear more about our purpose, you’ll find that becoming a Marine is a noble path and demanding journey reserved for those with the willingness to engage and determination to defeat all mental, moral, and physical requirements. In or out of uniform, it’s the fighting spirit found inside every Marine that drives them to victory.   

To learn more about the United States Marine Corps, click here.