NEW ORLEANS – Indiana State cross country and track and field alumnus Rick Sluder was named the 2025 USTFCCCA National High School Cross Country Coach of the Year, as announced by the organization earlier in the week.
 
Sluder currently serves as the head cross country coach at Columbus North (Ind.) HS, where he led the Bull Dogs to the 2025 IHSAA Boys Cross Country State Championship. Columbus North's 58 points at the IHSAA Cross Country Championships, which was contested at the LaVern Gibson Championship Cross Country Course, was the lowest score at the state meet since 2003 and the 71-point margin of victory was the highest since 2010.
 
Columbus North also earned team titles at the Southern Showcase and Nike XC Town Twilight, the latter of which was also held at LaVern Gibson. Sluder also led his program to an NXR Midwest Regional title in Terre Haute, with Columbus North finishing eighth at the Nike Cross Country Nationals.
 
Sluder earned 12 letters between cross country and track and field at Indiana State from 1996-2000 and still ranks among the top 10 in program history in the indoor (ninth, 14:34.79) and outdoor (seventh, 14:25.31) 5000m. The Sycamores won the 1996 and 1998 MVC Cross Country Championship, and the 1997 MVC Outdoor Track and Field Championship during his time in Terre Haute.
 
Follow the Sycamores
For the latest information on the Sycamore Track & Field and Cross Country teams, make sure to check out GoSycamores.com. You can also find the team on social media including Facebook and Twitter. Fans can also receive updates on Sycamore Athletics by downloading the March On App from the both the App Store and the Google Play Store.