TEMPE – The Arizona State cross country and track and field program has added former All-American Cory Leslie to the coaching staff as an assistant coach, head cross country coach Jeremy Rasmussen announced Friday.
Leslie joins Rasmussen and volunteer assistant Priscilla Schultz for the 2017 cross country season that kicks off Saturday in Flagstaff.
Leslie has five years of experience as an assistant and spent last season at George Mason University. Although he only spent one year in Virginia, Leslie left a mark on the Patriots' program and helped the men's squad win the indoor Atlantic-10 title, and the women capture the outdoor conference title. The Patriots had individual champions in the men's and women's 800-meter runs, men's 5,000, men's steeplechase, and both 4x800-meter relays during the 2017 season.
"I am extremely excited to be joining the Sun Devil family and having the opportunity to work with coach Kraft, coach Rasmussen and the staff they have assembled," Leslie said. "Arizona State is committed to putting student-athletes in a position to achieve both athletic and academic excellence, and I look forward to being a part of that."
Prior to his time at George Mason, Leslie had a successful four-year stretch as an assistant coach at Furman University in South Carolina, where he helped build the Paladins into one of the top cross country programs in the NCAA.
At Furman, he assisted head coach Robert Gary in guiding the men's and women's cross country teams to six Southern Conference titles and two NCAA Championships appearances. In 2015, the men cracked the USTFCCCA top-15 and finished 13th at the NCAA Championships.
Leslie served as a mentor to Troy Reeder and Allie Buchalski during the 2016 season. Both went on to earn All-America honors at the NCAA Outdoor Championships with Reeder finishing seventh in the 3,000-meter steeplechase, and Buchalski taking 14th in the 5,000.
He also helped the Furman men secure recruiting classes that ranked in the top-10 in the nation twice, and also put the Paladin women's recruiting class into the top-10 on one occasion.
"We went through a lengthy process and had a ton of applicants and Cory really stood out, not only in his enthusiasm and passion for coaching, but also his background is tremendous as an athlete both at Ohio State but professionally," Rasmussen said. "He started his coaching career at Furman University and helped take a program from next-to-nothing into a national contender and a nationally ranked team on a consistent basis."
The Ohio State alum's collegiate career on the track was just as impressive as his time in the coaching world.
Leslie's successful tenure at Ohio State included several All-America honors and a spot at the U.S. Olympic Trials for the London Games in 2012. He set four school records as a Buckeye in the 800-and 1,000-meter runs, mile and distance medley relay. In the classroom, Leslie earned a number of accolades, including an Academic All-Big Ten selection and four Ohio State Scholar Athlete honors.
Leslie continues to compete at an elite level, having most-recently represented the United States at the 2017 World Cross Country Championships back in March.
He has qualified two times for the U.S. Olympic Trials in the 3,000-meter steeplechase, finishing ninth in 2012 and placing eighth in the 2016 trials. Leslie took home a bronze medal for team USA at the 2014 Pan American Championships in the steeplechase.
Leslie is a native of Huron, Ohio, and graduated from Ohio State University in 2012 with a bachelor's degree in education with a concentration in leadership and humanities.
Leslie joins Rasmussen and volunteer assistant Priscilla Schultz for the 2017 cross country season that kicks off Saturday in Flagstaff.
Leslie has five years of experience as an assistant and spent last season at George Mason University. Although he only spent one year in Virginia, Leslie left a mark on the Patriots' program and helped the men's squad win the indoor Atlantic-10 title, and the women capture the outdoor conference title. The Patriots had individual champions in the men's and women's 800-meter runs, men's 5,000, men's steeplechase, and both 4x800-meter relays during the 2017 season.
"I am extremely excited to be joining the Sun Devil family and having the opportunity to work with coach Kraft, coach Rasmussen and the staff they have assembled," Leslie said. "Arizona State is committed to putting student-athletes in a position to achieve both athletic and academic excellence, and I look forward to being a part of that."
Prior to his time at George Mason, Leslie had a successful four-year stretch as an assistant coach at Furman University in South Carolina, where he helped build the Paladins into one of the top cross country programs in the NCAA.
At Furman, he assisted head coach Robert Gary in guiding the men's and women's cross country teams to six Southern Conference titles and two NCAA Championships appearances. In 2015, the men cracked the USTFCCCA top-15 and finished 13th at the NCAA Championships.
Leslie served as a mentor to Troy Reeder and Allie Buchalski during the 2016 season. Both went on to earn All-America honors at the NCAA Outdoor Championships with Reeder finishing seventh in the 3,000-meter steeplechase, and Buchalski taking 14th in the 5,000.
He also helped the Furman men secure recruiting classes that ranked in the top-10 in the nation twice, and also put the Paladin women's recruiting class into the top-10 on one occasion.
"We went through a lengthy process and had a ton of applicants and Cory really stood out, not only in his enthusiasm and passion for coaching, but also his background is tremendous as an athlete both at Ohio State but professionally," Rasmussen said. "He started his coaching career at Furman University and helped take a program from next-to-nothing into a national contender and a nationally ranked team on a consistent basis."
The Ohio State alum's collegiate career on the track was just as impressive as his time in the coaching world.
Leslie's successful tenure at Ohio State included several All-America honors and a spot at the U.S. Olympic Trials for the London Games in 2012. He set four school records as a Buckeye in the 800-and 1,000-meter runs, mile and distance medley relay. In the classroom, Leslie earned a number of accolades, including an Academic All-Big Ten selection and four Ohio State Scholar Athlete honors.
Leslie continues to compete at an elite level, having most-recently represented the United States at the 2017 World Cross Country Championships back in March.
He has qualified two times for the U.S. Olympic Trials in the 3,000-meter steeplechase, finishing ninth in 2012 and placing eighth in the 2016 trials. Leslie took home a bronze medal for team USA at the 2014 Pan American Championships in the steeplechase.
Leslie is a native of Huron, Ohio, and graduated from Ohio State University in 2012 with a bachelor's degree in education with a concentration in leadership and humanities.