Coach Matt Koenigs
Entering his seventh year at Everett Community College, Head Cross Country and Track & Field Coach Matt Koenigs quickly built the EvCC distance running program into one of the Nation’s best.
His Women's Cross Country teams have won five consecutive Northern Region Cross Country Championships (2007-2011) and in that same period of time have the longest active streak among women’s teams of podium finishes at the NWAACC XC Championship (2nd in 2007 & 2008, 3rd in 2010 and 1st in 2009 and 2011). The NWAACC Cross Country Titles in 2009 and 2011 were the first two NWAACC Women’s Team Championships in school history. In 2009, the Trojan Women brought home the school’s first NWAACC Title in any sport and did so in dramatic fashion where their 23 points represent the 5th lowest point total in NWAACC Championship history.
His Men's Cross Country teams have enjoyed a similar degree of success, winning six consecutive Northern Region XC Championships (2006-2011) while also placing 2nd at the NWAACC XC Championship in four consecutive years from 2007-2010. In 2011, his Men’s team won its first NWAACC Title where their 21 points represent the lowest point total ever recorded by an EvCC team at the NWAACC XC Championship.
The top 3 NWAACC finishes by both the men's and women's XC teams in 2007 ended a 23-year drought, beginning in 1984, without a podium finish at the NWAACC Meet by either program. In 2009, the Trojan Cross Country team also earned the school's first ever NWAACC Combined Cross Country Championship, which is awarded to the school with the lowest combined men's and women's team score; in 2011 the Trojans also won the last NWAACC Combined XC Championship ever to be awarded as beginning in 2012, Combined Titles have been eliminated as a Championship awarded by the NWAACC Conference.
In his six years, the Track & XC programs have seen 49 All-American, 83 All-NWAACC and 49 N. Region First Team performances while also producing seven individual NWAACC Champions. Koenigs’ NWAACC Champions include 2011 XC Champion Bereket Piatt, 2009 10,000m Champion Megan Hall, 2010 & 2011 1500m Champion Seth Pierson, 2010 10,000m Champion Kelly Talkington, 2012 800m Champion Kaitlin Fisher and four-time NWAACC Champion Shawna Schooley (2009 & 2010 XC, 2010 3k Steeple & 2010 1500m). Under direction of Coach Mary Parker, the Trojan’s Field events program, which started back up in 2011, earned its first NWAACC Title in nearly 30 years when Janell Alyea won the 2012 Discus title. Koenigs’ programs have also produced six individual champions at the Northern Region Cross Country Championship in Taneal Detschman (2007), Yon Yilma (2008), Emmanuel Contreras (2009), Bryton Reim (2010 & 2011), Shawna Schooley (2009 & 2010) and Katie Strong (2011).
In Cross Country, Koenigs has received Coach of the Year honors three times at the NWAACC level and on six different occasions in the Northern Region. In 2011, he was named the NWAACC Men’s Cross Country Coach of the Year after previously being selected 2007 and 2009 NWAACC Women's XC Coach of the Year. He was selected Northern Region Men's Coach of the Year in 2007 & 2009 and as Northern Region Women's Coach of the Year in 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2011.
Coach Koenigs enjoyed a successful running career prior to beginning his coaching tenure at EvCC. A standout runner at Marysville-Pilchuck High School, in 1998 he was the District 1600m champion and placed 6th at 4A State on the Track in the 1600m (4:21.98) and the 3200m (9:23.99). Koenigs was the Wesco 4A District Champion in Cross Country in 1997 and competed at the High School State XC Meet on three occasions. Also a successful swimmer, Koenigs placed 7th in 1998 at 4A State Swimming in the 500yd Freestyle (4:56.43). He competed collegiately for Western Washington University where he ran track and Cross Country for the Vikings from 1998-2000 focusing on the 1500m and 3000m Steeplechase. His athletic career, having been recently revitalized, is back on track and has expanded to include triathlon and multisport. Koenigs was the age group National Champion at the 2012 National Aquathlon Championship where he qualified to represent Team USA at the 2012 World Championships in Auckland, New Zealand.
After earning his BA in Business Administration at WWU in 2002, Koenigs matriculated to the University of Washington School of Law. Graduating from law school and passing the bar examination in 2005, Koenigs chose to forgo a legal career to pursue his passion of coaching distance runners. Says Koenigs of his decision to give up a potential legal career: "Life is too short to do something that you don't enjoy. I love running and I love coaching; the choice for me was an easy one."
