Jen Straub, the longest tenured coach at Davidson College, is in her 26th season with the Wildcats and 11th as the Director of Track & Field / Cross Country, which she was elevated to in 2014 after leading both women’s programs for 14 years.

Hired in 2000, Straub has overseen the program’s shift from the Southern Conference to the Atlantic 10 Conference as well as transition into the brand new Lisa and Jeff Case Track & Field Complex, which opened in 2025.

A New Era – The Atlantic 10
In addition to a program-best third-place finish at the 2017 Atlantic 10 Cross Country Championships, Straub has guided the Wildcats to new heights in track & field since joining the league in 2014, highlighted by a school-record 75.5 points in 2024.

Cross Country
In all, Straub has had nine all-conference performers on the trails, two Most Outstanding Rookies – Caroline Yarbrough ’15 & Annie Norman – and four all-academic selections, while leading Davidson two a pair of Top-5 finishes (2016, 2017).

One of the most decorated distance runners in school history, Yarbrough was a four-time all-conference performer, all-academic in 2018 and earned multiple performer of the week honors during her career.

In 2017, four Wildcats earned all-conference honors by placing inside the Top-15, including Sarah Sears, who finished runner-up, the highest by a Davidson runner at the A-10 Championships. To this day, Sears, a recipient of the league’s post graduate scholarship, holds the school record in the 5K, which was set at the 2017 Queen City Invite.

That season was also monumental in the classroom for others as Yarbrough landed on the Google Cloud Academic All-District team and Sierra Ponthier earned a distinguished Watson Fellowship.

Davidson’s Top-25 performers in both the 5K and 6K have come during Straub’s tenure, including France Whitworth, who set the 6K standard in 2023 at the NCAA Southeast Regional.

Track & Field
The Davidson women’s track & field program continues to make strides under Straub since joining the new league.

In 2024, the Wildcats recorded a program-best 75.5 team points at the Atlantic 10 Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Fairfax, Va.

In addition to a pair of former Wildcats earning Most Outstanding Track Performer – Erin Osment (2015 Outdoor) and Sarah Sears (2014 Indoor), Davidson has had a combined 26 indoor and outdoor individual champions and over 60 all-conference performers / podium finishers.

In her first season in the A-10, Straub produced her second All-American when Erin Osment placed 14th overall in the 10,000 at the 2015 NCAA Outdoor Championship. Osment ended the campaign with a new program record that she reset five times throughout the year.

Straub began her tenure in the A-10 with Osment claiming a pair of conference titles at the 2015 Outdoor Championship – winning the 5,000 and 10,000.

SoCon Success
Straub coached the Wildcats to two Southern Conference Cross Country Championships in 2003 and 2005 and was named SoCon Coach of the Year three times (2002, 2003 and 2005). She coached 12 SoCon Cross Country All-Conference team members in 14 seasons in the league.

On the track, Straub mentored nine individual SoCon Champions, two Freshman of the Year, a Most Outstanding Performer and the program’s first NCAA qualifier.

Straub helped guide Kristen Meister to the NCAA Championship in the high jump in 2007, the first national qualifier in program history. Earlier that season, Meister set the Southern Conference record in the high jump.

The following season, Straub helped provide the program with another first as Brenna Burns won the prestigious NCAA Walter Byers Scholarship. The 2007 Indoor Track Most Outstanding Performer, Burns won three individual conference titles overall.

The 2008 cross country team was designated an Academic All-America team, while Caroline Sanker earned individual Academic All-America honors. Sanker’s career was highlighted by a pair of NCAA All-Region Cross Country honors, another first for Davidson. Under Straub’s guidance, the ‘Cats placed their highest ever at the 2006 NCAA Regional Championship, claiming ninth overall behind three top-50 placed runners.

Behind steady improvement in her first three seasons at the helm, Straub broke through with a conference championship in 2003 and was back atop the league again 2005. Straub’s second championship squad, behind three All-Conference performances, edged out defending champion Chattanooga by one point.

Before Davidson
Straub began her coaching career as an assistant coach at her alma mater, Wake Forest, where she coached four cross country All-Americans, eight track & field All-Americans, as well as several All-Conference performers and individual champions in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

Both a tactical and motivational leader, Straub helped take the Demon Deacon women to two NCAA District III Championships and six NCAA appearances in cross country, including a 15th-place team finish at the 1998 championships.

Straub graduated from Wake Forest in 1988 with a degree in English.

As a student-athlete at Wake Forest, Straub earned All-America honors in cross country and led her team to a 10th-place finish at the 1987 NCAA Cross Country Championships. She won two individual ACC titles at Wake Forest, first in the 10,000 meters in 1988 and then in the 3,000 meters in 1989. Straub currently holds the outdoor 3,000-meter record and graduated with the 10,000 and indoor 3,000 school records. She was also named one of the Top-50 cross country athletes in ACC history.

Straub was inducted into the Wake Forest Hall of Fame in 2004.

Personal
She is married to Davidson golf coach Tim Straub and reside in Davidson. The couple has one son, William, and a daughter, Sydnee. Straub is a United States Track & Field Coaches Association certified coach at Level I and Level II.

Upcoming Events

Upcoming Event: Women's Cross Country at Friday Night Lights Elon Opener on Sep 4, 2026 at 8:15 p.m. (4K)

Upcoming Event: Women's Cross Country at Adidas XC Challenge on Sep 18, 2026 at TBA (5K)

Upcoming Event: Women's Cross Country at Richmond Invitational on Oct 2, 2026 at TBA (5K)

Upcoming Event: Women's Cross Country at Panorama Farms Invitational on Oct 16, 2026 at TBA

Upcoming Event: Women's Cross Country at Atlantic 10 Championship on Oct 31, 2026 at 10 a.m. (6K)

Upcoming Event: Women's Cross Country at NCAA Southeast Regionals on Nov 13, 2026 at 10 a.m. (6K)

Upcoming Event: Women's Cross Country at NCAA Championships on Nov 21, 2026 at TBA (6K)

2025 Women's Cross Country Coaching Staff

Coaching Staff

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