Enters 5th Season In 2025 • 15 All-PSAC Selections
Adam Mengel was named the head coach of the men's and women's cross country programs on August 16, 2021 and is entering his third season on the ESU staff in 2023-24.
Mengel will also serve as an assistant coach for the men's and women's track and field teams, where he will work primarily with the middle and long distance events.
Despite the ESU men's and women's cross country teams being selected to finish eighth and 11th respectively in the PSAC preseason poll, the Warriors both turned in fourth place finishes at the 2023 conference championships. The men's squad matched their best performance since the 2019 championships as sophomore Landon Boyle garnered Second Team All-PSAC honors with a 21st place finish. The women's team marked the highest finish since 2017 as freshman Bri Hennett took fifth overall for the best finish by a first-year student in program history to earn First Team All-PSAC honors while Holly Chambers (26th) and Carla Bautista (29th) landed on the Second Team.
Hennett continued to re-write the record books at the Atlantic Region Championships as she notched the highest finish by freshman in school history after placing eighth to lead the Warriors to an 8th place finish. Hennett earned an at-large bid to the 2023 NCAA Division II Cross Country Championships, becoming the first freshman to qualify as an individual in program history as well as the first runner to compete at the championships since 2015. The Northumberland native placed 88th in the 6K with a time of 21:28.5 at the Tom Rutledge Cross Country Course in Joplin, Missouri.
Additionally, Hennett was a two-time PSAC Athlete of the Week, becoming the first Warrior to receive multiple weekly awards from the conference since 2017.
On the track in 2023-24, Hennett became the fourth student-athlete in program history to be recognized as the PSAC Women's Track & Field Freshman of the Year after recording runner-up finishes the 3000m and 5000m at the PSAC Indoor Championships.
During the 2022 cross country season, the men's and women's programs produced 9th and 17th place finishes at the PSAC Championships. Luke Valdevit earned All-PSAC honors in consecutive years as the graduate student finished 26th to land on the Second Team. The men's team opened the campaign in impressive fashion, claiming first place overall at the Adelphi Panthers XC Invite to capture the program's first top-finish since October 12, 2019.
In his first season at the helm of the men's and women's cross country programs, the Warriors earned 12th and 15th place finishes respectively at the PSAC Championships. Luke Valdevit shined for the men's squad by earning All-PSAC First Team honors with an 11th place finish in the individual standings. Valdevit also garnered PSAC Athlete of the Week laurels on Oct. 11 for his performance at the DeSales Invitational.
Mengel brings nine years of coaching experience to the Poconos, including a stop at PSAC member IUP for two years. He most recently served as the cross country head coach and track and field assistant coach at Indiana University East from 2018 until this spring.
Under the direction of Mengel, the Red Wolves' men's indoor track and field team captured the River States Conference championship in 2020 and finished as the runners-up in 2019. On the women's side, both the track and field team (2020) and cross country squad (2019) earned runner-up finishes at their respective conference championships. Also, three cross country runners were national qualifiers during Mengel's time.
Prior to coaching at Indiana University East, Mengel served as assistant cross country and track and field coach at Duquesne. With the Dukes, Mengel produced four A10 Conference champions in track and field, one in cross country and four NCAA Regional/National qualifiers.
Mengel began his coaching career as an assistant coach at IUP in 2012, where he helped train one PSAC champion and two national qualifiers in track and field. For cross country, the women's team qualified nationally twice, and one male student-athlete punched his ticket to nationals.
As a student-athlete at Saint Francis (Pa.), Mengel was a four-year letter winner in cross country and indoor/outdoor track and field.
Mengel is a native of Monaca, Pa. and earned his bachelor's degree in biology along with minors in math and chemistry from Saint Francis (Pa.) in 2012. He added a master's in science in education from Indiana University in 2020.
He is a certified USTFCCCA strength and conditioning coach and USATF Level 2 coach in endurance.
PSAC Overall Award Winners
2024 - Bri Hennett - Indoor Track & Field Freshman of the Year
2023 - Bri Hennett - Freshman of the Year (Cross Country)
