James O’Brien ’07, M’16

James O’Brien ’07, M’16 has been LVC’s Men’s and Women’s Cross Country Coach since 2008. He also served as an Assistant coach to the Cross Country team for one year in 2007. Additionally, he is an Assistant Coach for the Men’s and Women’s Track & Field Teams, working with the team’s middle distance and distance runners. A native of Warwick, N.Y., O’Brien is a product of Warwick Valley High School’s nationally-ranked Cross Country program. O’Brien was a four-year letterwinner in cross country at LVC and was a three-time team captain and the squad’s most valuable runner as a freshman. He resides in Mt. Annville, Pa. with his wife Kelly (Wenrich), also a graduate of Lebanon Valley College, and two daughters, Amya and Annabella.

Coaching Highlights:

• NCAA Qualifiers: During his tenure, O’Brien has qualified 27 athletes to compete at the DIII national championships (Cynthia “Adams” Harnish x7; Michael Harnish x4; Kelsey Patrick x4; Jennifer “Cronin” Bauer x3; Lauren Wick x2; Lauren Decker x1; Andrew Goelz x1; Nicholas Scullin x1; Keri Jones x1; Noah Griffin x1; Jordan Berger x1; Lauren Bunke x1).
• Top of the NCAA: Cynthia “Adams” Harnish won the 800-meter run at the 2015 NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships in 2:08.81, which was the fifth fastest in NCAA DIII history at the time. Michael Harnish finished as the NCAA Silver Medalist in the men’s 800-meter run at the same meet.
• NCAA Regional Champions: Jenn Cronin won the 2010 Mideast Region Cross Country Championships while Kelsey Patrick won the same event in 2013. There used to be eight regions and now there are 10 regions in the nation and their wins earned them the USTFCCCA Mideast Region Runner of the Year award.
• Middle Atlantic Conference Athletes of the Year: LVC has had nine Conference Athletes of the Year, with Kelsey Patrick earning the designation for cross country (2012, 2013), Jenn Cronin (2010) for indoor track, Cynthia “Adams” Harnish (2014) for outdoor track, Michael Harnish (2015) for both indoor track and outdoor track, Keri Jones (2019) for cross country, Lauren Wick (2021) for cross country and Noah Griffin (2023) for outdoor track. The Dutchmen have had 10 athletes earn the MAC Rookie of the Year title as well (Matt Nesmith – XC 2009; Cynthia “Adams” Harnish – Outdoor Track 2011, Dana Stockdale – XC 2011; Kelsey Patrick – XC 2012; Megan Doris – XC 2013; Lauren Wick – XC 2017; Noah Griffin – XC 2018; Julia Brewer – XC 2019; Coyla Bartholomew – XC 2022; Matthew Santana – XC 2023).
• Conference Championship Success:  At Middle Atlantic Conference Championship meets, LVC distance athletes have earned 47 individual conference champions as well as 19 relay conference champions between Cross Country, Indoor, and Outdoor Track & Field.
• Top Academic Honors:  Cynthia “Adams” Harnish and Kelsey Patrick both earned COSIDA Academic All-America honors during their career three times each. Cynthia “Adams” Harnish, Kelsey Patrick, Nicholas Scullin, Keri Jones, & Lauren Wick were awarded the Middle Atlantic Conference Senior Scholar-Athlete of the Year distinction, given to one senior in each conference sport, recognizing an outstanding combination of athletic and academic achievement. It is considered the MAC’s highest individual honor.
• Coaching Honors:  Coach O’Brien was named the United States Track & Field Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Mideast Region Men’s Assistant Coach of the Year for Outdoor Track & Field in spring 2015, the Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC) Men’s Assistant Coach of the Year for both Indoor and Outdoor Track & Field in 2024, and the MAC Women’s Cross Country Coach of the Year in 2010.