Tim Connelly Staff

As the Notre Dame women?s cross country team continues to establish itself as one of the best in the nation, Tim Connelly enters his 15th season at Notre Dame.

The women?s cross country head coach and track and field distance mentor, Connelly has developed the Irish women?s cross country team from an obscurity when it was created in 1988 to two appearances at the NCAA Championship in the last three years.

A native of Pittsburgh, Pa., Connelly is determined to build the Irish into a power in the BIG EAST, a conference which has produced nine NCAA women?s cross country champions.

In 1999, the Irish placed first in the initial three meets of the season and established themselves as a team to reckon with in the national picture. A fourth-place finish at the District IV Championships earned the team an at-large berth to the 1999 NCAA championship meet, the second invitation in the program?s history.

The Irish raised the bar again in 2001. Combining veterans Jennifer Handley and Megan Johnson with talented rookie Lauren King, the Irish climbed to 15th in the nation. Notre Dame eventually finished fourth in the BIG EAST Conference (behind three highly-ranked teams) and earned an automatic bid to the NCAA Championship with a second-place team finish at the NCAA Great Lakes Regional.

In 1993, Connelly and the Irish women?s cross country team qualified for their first-ever NCAA championships and finished 15th.

Connelly has the Irish poised for another impressive season in 2002. Handley, Johnson and King all return to combine with a talented freshman class. The 2002 Irish women?s cross country team could be the most talented of Connelly?s tenure at Notre Dame.

During the track season, Connelly coaches the women?s middle distance and distance runners. Jennifer Handley, who will return in 2003, ended up qualifying for the 2002 NCAA outdoor meet in the 5,000 meters. Connelly also helped guide Lauren King through a remarkable rookie season, as the Toronto, Ontario, native qualified for three NCAA Championship meets (cross country, indoor and outdoor track and field) and earn All-America honors in cross country and the outdoor 1,500 meters.

A 1983 Notre Dame graduate, Connelly ran both cross country and track for the Irish. Following his graduation, Connelly served as a graduate assistant coach under Joe Piane while working toward his master?s degree in business.

In 1986, Connelly moved on to Syracuse as an assistant cross country and track coach. During his time in northern New York, he coached the men?s and women?s middle distance and distance runners and managed recruiting duties for both programs.

?We have one of the best situations in the country right now at Notre Dame,? says Connelly.

?We?ve got the ideal combination of athletics, academics and great facilities. We should have no trouble recruiting and building the best program in the nation.?

Connelly and his wife, the former Donna Southerly, are the parents of a daughter, Alexandra, and son Brendon.