Rachel McFarlane Named Assistant Cross Country / Track & Field Coach

MUNCIE, Ind. - - Ball State cross country and track & field head coach Brian Etelman has announced the addition of former Michigan State standout and University of North Florida assistant coach Rachel McFarlane to the Cardinals' staff.

McFarlane, who helped guide the Spartans to back-to-back Big Ten cross country championships and was a two-time NCAA Cross Country Championship competitor, joins the Ball State staff as the distance coach.

"I am incredibly excited to have Rachel on board," Etelman said. "I believe our program is fortunate to have someone who was a huge contributor to a Big Ten Championship as a student-athlete and who has coached student-athletes to conference team championships and individual All-America awards at multiple levels. Her blend of Midwest roots and exposure to many different levels of competitive success as both a coach and athlete make her the perfect hire for us."

For the past two seasons, McFarlane served as an assistant coach at North Florida where she helped guide the Ospreys to a pair of Atlantic Sun cross country team championships (men in 2016 and women in 2017). In addition, she helped mentor the 2016 ASUN men's cross country individual champion and the 2016 and 2017 ASUN women's cross country individual champion.

North Florida also sent a runner to the NCAA Women's Cross Country Championships (2017), sent a competitor to the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships (2017 and 2018) and had a student-athlete earn NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Second Team All-America honors (2017) during McFarlane's tenure.

"I want to thank coach Etelman for this opportunity and his confidence in me to continue to build the distance program at Ball State," McFarlane said. "I am excited to return to the Midwest and work closely with a talented group of women who are hardworking and ambitious to excel in their running careers."

Prior to joining the North Florida staff, McFarlane spent two seasons as an assistant coach at Lansing Community College where she helped guide the Stars to the 2015 NJCAA Division I Women's Cross Country National Championship. LCC's student-athletes earned 13 All-America honors under her tutelage.

McFarlane began her coaching career in 2013 as an assistant for Lansing Catholic High School, a job she maintained in the two seasons she worked at Lansing Community College. At Lansing Catholic High School, McFarlane helped lead the boy's cross country program to the 2015 state title and helped mentor four individual state champions.

Prior to her coaching career, McFarlane was a three-year letterwinner in cross country (2010-12) and a four-year letterwinner in track & field (2009-10 to 2012-13) at Michigan State. A two-time NCAA Cross Country Championship participant (2011 and 2012), she helped lead the Spartans to back-to-back Big Ten Cross Country Championship titles in 2010 and 2011.

As a senior, she earned second-team All-Big Ten honors in both cross country and indoor track and field. She finished her collegiate career running the 5,000m at the 2013 NCAA Outdoor Track & Field East Preliminary Round.

McFarlane, who graduated from Michigan State in 2013 with a bachelor's degree in Kinesiology, concluded her MSU career as a program record holder in the indoor distance medley relay and the outdoor 4x1,500m relay.

"Rachel inherits a very young, talented and ambitious group of distance runners," Etelman added. "Our program has grown tremendously over the past three years. I believe our final push to develop into a championship caliber team will come from Rachel's dedication to implementing our vision on a daily basis and establishing her event area as an integral piece to our success. We are anxiously waiting to welcome Rachel to Muncie."

McFarlane holds her level 1 USATF Coach Certification

Ball State University Athletics

Rachel McFarlane Named Assistant Cross Country / Track & Field Coach

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