R.P. White named head coach of Hillsdale College track and field, cross country programs
From Hillsdale College
In its search for the next head coach of its track and field and cross country programs, the Hillsdale College athletic department found the right choice for the job close to home.
After a national search over the past month that included several strong candidates, the Chargers have tabbed current assistant head coach R.P. White to step into the top role and lead both programs.
"I am pleased to announce that after an extensive search, R.P. White has been appointed as Hillsdale's College's head track and field and cross country coach," Hillsdale College Athletic Director Don Brubacher said. "R.P.'s experience and style of leadership stood out to me in the selection process.
"His long history with the Hillsdale College cross country and track and field teams have given him a nuanced understanding of both programs, their history and the values and standards they strive to uphold. I am confident R.P. is well-positioned to build on the standards of excellence, both on and off the field of competition, that have come to be associated with the Hillsdale College cross country and track and field programs."
White replaces Andy Towne, who retired from the position in May after a successful decade in charge, and brings extensive experience to his new role, including ten seasons as an assistant with the Hillsdale College track and field and cross country programs. Starting with a part-time assistant coaching job in 2011 under then-head coach Jeff Forino, White worked his way up to a position as the assistant head coach under Towne for the 2020-21 and 2021-22 seasons.
A successful distance runner as a collegiate athlete, White has played an instrumental role in Hillsdale's achievements in cross country and distance events, closely working with both groups during his coaching tenure at Hillsdale. Since joining the G-MAC in 2017, the Hillsdale women's cross country team has captured two G-MAC titles and never finished worse than third in five championship races, while the men have never finished worse than fourth and earned a runner-up finish in 2019 in a tough cross country conference.
On the track, Hillsdale's women have won five of the last nine contested G-MAC Indoor and Outdoor Championships, with distance athletes playing an important role in those titles. The Charger men have also continued to improve over the last five seasons in the G-MAC, posting their best conference meet finish in over two decades at the 2022 Outdoor Championships this past May.
In his time with the Charger coaching staff, White has worked with national champions Amanda Eccleston (Putt) and Emily Oren, as well as All-Americans Molly Oren, Hannah McIntyre, Allysen Eads, Arena Lewis, Maryssa Depies, Caleb Gatchell and Joey Humes to help build Hillsdale's reputation as a formidable distance program.
White will take over Charger teams that look set for big things in 2022-23, with exciting recruiting classes coming in and 12 of Hillsdale's 14 athletes who qualified for NCAA DII Track and Field national meets slated to return.
"I'm grateful for the opportunity to lead the Hillsdale program, and to get to continue to work on a daily basis with the excellent coaches and athletes we have here," White said. "Our teams are full of athletes that are a joy to coach because they have great attitudes and strong personal drive, and they show up to practice every day looking to work hard and get better.
"Our goal as a program will remain the same – to recruit athletes with those traits that fit into the culture we've built, and to do our best to bring out the best in them in everything they do here."
White has deep ties to the Hillsdale area, growing up in the town and starring as a distance runner at Hillsdale High School from 2001 to 2005, earning All-State honors in cross country for three straight seasons and finishing fourth in the 3,200 meter run at the 2005 MHSAA Division 3 State Finals as a senior.
His success with the Hornets earned him a scholarship at Division I Eastern Michigan University, where he continued to excel, helping the Eagles win eight MAC championships in Cross Country and Track and Field over his four-year career, and serving as cross country team captain his senior year.
After graduating with a degree in Geography from EMU, he spent the 2010-11 school year as a volunteer assistant with the Eagles' women's cross country and track and field programs, helping lead the EMU women to their first MAC title in indoor track and field in a decade, before joining Hillsdale's staff in the fall of 2011.
"I've spent almost all of my coaching career at Hillsdale, and I've been lucky to get the opportunity to work alongside and learn from some of the best coaches in the business for a decade," White said. "That experience has made me the coach I am today and prepared me for this opportunity.
"We have two amazing coaches already in place in Jessica Bridenthal and Justin Fawley, and I'm excited to get to work with this group and to see what we can accomplish as a team in the future."
This article originally appeared on Hillsdale Daily News: R.P. White named head coach of Hillsdale College running teams
