Earlham College

Derick Lawrence, a two-time U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Regional Coach of the Year and veteran collegiate head coach, will mark his third season as Earlham's head men's and women's cross country coach in 2021-22. He will also serve as an assistant coach for the Quakers' track and field programs.

In 2019, his first season at the helm, Lawrence guided the Earlham men's cross country team to a third-place finish in the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference (HCAC) Championship, matching the best finish since Earlham joined the conference in 2010-11. Three runners - Noah Scherf, Cade Orchard, and Austin Burt - earned All-HCAC honors, while two more runners were Honorable Mention selections. 

The Earlham women's cross country team finished fifth at the 2019 HCAC meet, one spot below the Quakers' best-ever showing in the conference championship.

Both programs received U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) All-Academic Team recognition for posting a 3.10-or-higher team GPA, emphasizing Lawrence's commitment to seeing his student-athletes achieve both athletically and academically.

Lawrence came to Earlham after five seasons as head cross country coach at Albion College (2014-2018).

Under his guidance, Jessica Shaw became the first-ever (male or female) cross country All-American for the Britons Cross Country program by placing 30th overall at the 2016 NCAA Division III Cross Country Championships. The following year, Andrew Bill became the first men’s cross country All-American in school history with a 39th place finish at the 2017 NCAA Division III Cross Country Championships. In 2018, Cassandra Vince made it three All-Americans in a row and achieved the best finish at a national meet for the Britons Cross Country program by placing 10th overall. The men's squad continues to climb in the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association, finishing second as a team two years in a row and breaking into the United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association Division III ranking at one point during the 2017 and 2018 seasons. In addition, the men’s squad has finished in the top 5  of the Great Lakes Region two years in a row in 2017 and 2018. 

On the track, Lawrence guided Cassandra Vince to two NCAA Division III all-time top 10 performances in indoor track and field during the 2019 season in the 3,000 meter (6th all-time with a 9:31.07) and 5,000 meter (4th all-time with a 16:27.99) runs.  Vince became the first Albion female distance runner to achieve an All-American performance when she placed 5th in the 5,000-meter run at the 2019 NCAA Division III Indoor Track and Field Championships. During the 2016 outdoor track and field season, Lawrence guided Jessica Shaw to become the first female distance runner to a national qualifying performance in the 10,000-meter run. 

A 2007 graduate of DePauw University, Lawrence guided the Trinity University men’s and women’s cross country teams to Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference championships and berths in the NCAA Division III Championships in both his years at the helm. He was selected the South/Southeast Region Women’s Coach of the Year in 2012 and 2013 after the Trinity women’s squad captured back-to-back regional titles and later went on to finish 12^th and 20^th place at the NCAA Division III Championships, respectively.  Both the men’s and women’s squads captured SCAC cross country championships for the first time in school history in Lawrence’s first year as head coach in 2012 and achieved back-to-back titles in 2013. Lawrence was only the second coach in SCAC history to sweep both Coach of the Year honors in back-to-back seasons since DePauw’s Kori Stoffregen achieved the feat in 2005 and 2006. The women’s squad won both titles in a unique fashion by achieving a perfect score of 15 points in both years (placing its five scoring runners in first through fifth place) marking the first and second-ever perfect scores in SCAC women’s cross country championship history and only the third ever perfect score in conference history (Lawrence was a member of the DePauw men’s team in 2005 that achieved this feat). The Trinity men’s squad finished second in the regional and 32^nd in the NCAA Championships during the 2012 season, becoming the first team in men’s program history to qualify for the championships.

In all, Trinity has produced one regional individual champion, 19 all-region, two individual conference champions, and 32 all-conference performers in cross country during Lawrence’s first two years as head coach. As an assistant track & field coach, Lawrence trained a runner who qualified for the 10,000-meter run in the NCAA Division III Championships. Lawrence helped guide the men’s track & field program to back-to-back SCAC titles in 2013 and 2014 along with the women’s team to a 2013 conference title.

Lawrence arrived at Trinity as an assistant cross country and track & field coach in 2010. The Tigers produced the 2010 SCAC women’s cross country Newcomer of the Year, the 2011 SCAC women’s cross country individual champion and Runner of the Year, four individual women’s qualifiers to the NCAA Division III Championships, and 11 all-region performers in cross country during the 2010-2011 campaigns.

Prior to joining the Trinity staff, Lawrence was a graduate assistant coach for two years at his alma mater. He helped DePauw produce two cross country and six track & field NCAA All-American performances. In addition, Lawrence mentored one cross country and seven track and field SCAC champions. Lawrence helped guide the women’s cross country program to 26^th and 20^thplace team finishes at the NCAA Division III Cross Country Championships in 2008 and 2009, respectively.  The women’s track & field program finished 16^th and 18^th at the 2010 Indoor and Outdoor NCAA Track & Field Championships, respectively.

Lawrence got his start in the coaching profession as a volunteer assistant with the Indiana State University men’s cross country and track and field teams. The Sycamores placed as high as third in the Missouri Valley Conference Cross Country Championships during his tenure. While at Indiana State, Lawrence assisted in hosting the 2007 NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships at the La Vern Gibson Championship Course. He earned a Master of Arts in recreation and sport management from Indiana State in 2010.

Post-collegiately, Coach Lawrence has trained a group of marathoners. Two marathoners, Mitch Klingler and Mackenzie Chojnacky, qualified for the 2020 U.S. Olympic Trials at the June 2019 Grandma’s Marathon in Duluth, Minnesota. Klingler qualified with a time of 2:17:22, while Chojnacky qualified with a 2:42:34 in the marathon. 

He received the Bachelor of Arts in kinesiology (emphasis in exercise science) from DePauw in 2007. As a student-athlete, Lawrence achieved All-SCAC cross country status in 2006 and turned in the school’s eighth-best all-time performance in the 10,000 meters, during the 2007 track campaign.

Lawrence holds a Level 1 Coaching Education Certificate from USA Track and Field and a U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association Endurance Event Specialist Certification. During the 2013 cross country season, Lawrence was the South/Southeast Region Women’s Cross Country Representative and a member of the NCAA Division III Cross Country Executive Committee.

A native of Cincinnati, Ohio, Lawrence graduated from Elder High School in 2003, helping the Panthers finish 7^th in 2000 and 14^thin 2001 at the Ohio High School Athletic Association Division I State Cross Country Championships.

COACHING HONORS

• Two-time NCAA Division III South/Southeast Region Women’s Cross Country Coach of the Year (2012, 2013)
• Two-time SCAC Conference Women’s Cross Country Coach of the Year (2012, 2013)
• Two-time SCAC Conference Men’s Cross Country Coach of the Year (2012, 2013)
• USTFCCCA NCAA Division III South/Southeast Region Women’s Cross Country Representative (2013-2014)
• USTFCCCA NCAA Division III Cross Country Executive Committee (2015-present)

ATHLETE HONORS

• 12 NCAA Division III All-Americans
  • Cross Country - 5 (2008, 2009, 2016, 2017, 2018)
  • Track - 7 (400 meter Hurdles, 800 meters (indoor & outdoor), 1,500 meters, Mile (indoor), 5,000 meters (indoor and outdoor)
• Four NCAA Division III Women’s Cross Country Championship team berths
  • 2008 - 26th
  • 2009 - 20th
  • 2012 - 12th
  • 2013 - 20th
• One NCAA Division III Men’s Cross Country Championship team berth
  • 2012 - 32nd
• Two NCAA Division III South/Southeast Region Women’s Cross Country Team Championships (2012, 2013)
• One NCAA Division III South/Southeast Region Women’s Cross Country Individual Champion & Athlete-of-the-Year (2013)
• 51 All-Region Cross Country Individual Performances (2008-2018)
• Four Conference Women’s Cross Country Team Championships (2008, 2009, 2012, 2013)
• Two Conference Men’s Cross Country Team Championships (2012, 2013)
• Four Conference Women’s Cross Country Individual Champions (2009, 2012, 2013, 2018)
• 26 Conference Track & Field Individual Champions (2010-2014)
• 20 NCAA Division III USTFCCCA All-Academic Individuals (2010-2014 Cross Country, Track)
• Three NCAA Division III USTFCCCA All-Academic Teams (2012, 2013)
• One NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship Recipient (2011)

ALL-TIME BESTS OF ATHLETES

Updated: August 2, 2021