LAKE WALES, Fla - Chelsi Woodruff has been announced as the new Warner Men''s & Women's Cross Country team. 

    Chelsi comes to Warner with a true passion in coaching and helps her athletes grow and develop both on and off the track. She won NCAA D1 All-Region Honors, and specialized in the 3,000 meter steeplechase, where she earned First Team All-ACC honors, and was a two time East Preliminary qualifier. She made two appearances at the NCAA D1 Cross Country championship in 2011 and 2014, she was a member of the 2011 podium finishing team for Florida State University where they placed fourth in the nation. Chelsi was also part of FSU's triple crown achievement where they won the ACC in Cross Country, Indoor, and Outdoor track in the same year. She comes to us from Greenville, SC where she owned a performance gym with her husband and current director of Strength & Conditioning coach Pete Townley. 
    She is excited for this opportunity and hopes to continue the build and development of the Royals Cross Country program, "I am so honored to be named the new Head Men's and Women's Cross Country Coach. I cannot thank Athletic Director, Sean Hanrahan, enough for believing in me and giving me this amazing opportunity to build and develop Warner's Cross Country team. I have a true passion for coaching and helping athletes reach their full potential both on and off the track. I am so excited to jump in and help develop these runners both physically and spiritually. I am so excited to coach at a University, where I can share both my love for running and my love for Jesus simultaneously!" 
    Chelsi's will lead the Royals program with a lot of experience at all levels in the sport of Cross Country,  "I had a specific niche for training distance runners in the weight room, and I also did some private one-on-one xc & track coaching on the side, which then resulted as an Assistant XC & Track Coaching job at Greenville High School. In my first year there, the Girl's XC team went from not qualifying for State in years to placing 4th at State. I also helped coach many runners to the collegiate level (University of Tennessee, University of South Carolina, Samford University, & University, Sewanee: The University of the South). I have been a part of the sport since I was 13 years old, when I started competing myself. I have competed at a high level in this sport, as well as coached high schoolers to an elite level, so I am very eager to apply my past experience & knowledge at the collegiate level now, and I am very confident in my ability to take Warner's program to new heights!"
    Athletic Director Sean Hanrahan believes Chelsi will have an immediate impact on the Cross Country Program and will be a perfect fit for Warner University, " We have decided to focus on the Men and Women of Cross Country by naming Chelsi Woodruff as our new Head Coach of Cross Country. Chelsi has coached athletes individually for many years. She also ran her own fitness facility and was an ACC Champion at Florida State. She has an extreme passion for the sport and the ability to teach her training philosophy that won her an ACC title. She has always put God first in her training and teaching, and now she will share her dream with our Warner University student-athletes.