LSSC Gets Cross Country Head Coach

Cristy Snellgroves has been named head coach of the Lake-Sumter State College cross country team. She is the first head coach for this athletic program.

A two-time U.S.medalist in the 50-mile national championships, and a bronze medalist at the Comrades Marathon 89K in South Africa, Cristy has completed more than 130 marathons during her running career.

Christy says, “I am really looking forward to working with the talented student-athletes, staff, faculty, and administration to bring the latest coaching and training techniques with a holistic approach to athletic, academic, and personal development.”  

She comes to LSSC from the National Training Center in Clermont, where she was head track and cross country coach at PURE Athletics. In 2018, she was president of the USA Women’s Track Coach Association. She also served as the U.S. Distance Coach at the 2017 Pan American Junior Championship in Peru in 2017.

“Cristy brings a wealth of knowledge and experience in the sport, evident by her highly remarkable credentials and experience,” says Mike Matulia, LSSC athletic director. “We are extremely blessed and excited to have this type of professional leading our new program. Our student-athletes and the state’s cross country programs as a whole will benefit from her involvement in the sport.”

For LSSC’s inaugural season, Cristy wil head both the men’s and women’s cross counry teams, which make up the fourth and fifth NJCAA-sanctioned athletic programs offered by LSSC.

Well-known is the area, she has coached at Southeast High School, The Villages High School, Mount Dora Christian Academy, and The Out-of-Door Academy.

“I am extremely honored to join LSSC and have the opportunity to develop a men’s and women’s cross country program at the South Lake campus while utilizing the world-class training facilities in partnership with the National Training Center,” Cristy says. “LSSC is known as a top academic and athletic institution and what better place to implement their next sport than in Clermont, the ‘Choice of Champions’, home to Olympic and world-class track and cross country athletes.” 

This is the first sport to be added to Lake-Sumter State College since athletics came back in 1998.