Henes Named Director of Wolfpack Track and Field/Cross Country
6/14/2023 11:00:00 AM | Track, Cross Country
NC State's Laurie Henes, the only coach in school history to lead a team to two NCAA titles, will be elevated to the role of Director of Track & Field and Cross Country beginning in 2023-24, Director of Athletics Boo Corrigan announced today. She will now lead and direct the storied men's and women's Wolfpack track and field programs, while continuing her role as head coach of women's cross country.
Hall of Fame coach Rollie Geiger, who recruited and coached Henes as a student and has mentored her throughout her coaching career, will continue to serve as the Senior Associate Director and the Head Coach for Men's Cross Country.
"Laurie is an elite coach, an elite recruiter and an elite leader," said Director of Athletics Boo Corrigan. "In other words, she's a star. Her passion for the sport, our student-athletes and our University is truly remarkable, and I'm excited about this new expanded role for her."
The 2021 and 2022 USTFCCCA National Coach of the Year, Henes has led the Wolfpack women's cross country squad since 2006. In addition to winning back-to-back national titles in 2021 and 2022, the Wolfpack has garnered eight ACC women's cross country championships under her tutelage. She has been named the NCAA Southeast Region Coach of the Year and ACC Coach of the Year eight times and has coached 23 cross country All-Americans, 56 All-ACC performers and three ACC Rookies of the Year.
As women's track and field coach, Henes has mentored 31 All-Americans, nine ACC individual champions and 61 All-ACC performers.
Two Wolfpack student-athletes have won individual national titles under Henes' guidance: her daughter Elly (5,000-meter outdoor, 2021), Katelyn Tuohy (5,000-meter indoor 2023; 3,000-meter indoor 2023; cross country 2022; 5,000-meter outdoor 2022).
In addition to winning on the course, Henes has maintained the tremendous academic tradition that Geiger established decades ago with the cross country program. Since taking on the head coaching role in 2006, Henes' athletes have earned 33 All-ACC Academic honors and 19 USTFCCCA All-Academic individual awards.
"Laurie is an exceptional coach and mentor to all the athletes in the program," said Geiger. "Her dedication over the years has been imperative to the team's success, and her skillset is endless. NC State is home for the Henes family. The department is very fortunate to have Laurie leading the Pack and our teams."
As a student-athlete at NC State from 1988-92, Henes earned All-America honors in cross country as a junior and senior, and was an All-ACC performer for four straight years. She won the ACC women's cross country championship as a senior, finished fourth at the NCAA Championships and was a finalist for the Honda Sports Award for cross country.
On the track, Henes won the NCAA 5,000-meter national title at the 1991 outdoor championships. She set school and conference records while winning the indoor 5,000-meter at the ACC Championships in 1991 and finished third at the NCAA indoor meet.
As an NC State graduate student, Henes' fifth-place finish at the USATF Nationals earned her a spot on the United States track and field team in the 10,000-meter for the 1993 World University Games. She finished the season with a No. 6 national ranking in that event. During the summer of 1995, she was a member of the USA National Team that competed in the World Championships in Gothenberg, Sweden. In 1996, she was a finalist at the U.S. Olympic Trials at 10,000-meters.
In addition to her outstanding athletic achievements, Henes excelled academically, earning the ACC's Marie James Scholarship and an NCAA postgraduate scholarship. She won the H.C. Kennett Award as NC State's outstanding female athlete for the 1990-91 and 1991-92 school years.
Henes joined Geiger's coaching staff in 1992 as a graduate assistant and became a full-time assistant coach two years later. She was promoted to associate head coach in 1998. In her 15 years as an assistant coach, the women's program flourished, winning nine conference championships and capturing three top-10 national finishes, including a second-place finish in 2001. NC State women earned All-America honors 10 times and brought home the individual ACC championship twice in that span.
She is married to Bob Henes, a former Wolfpack All-American in cross country and track. They have two daughters, Elly and Jordan.
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