Art Siemers - Cross Country Coach - Colorado State Athletics

Art Siemers

Title:
Cross Country Head Coach
Email:
a.siemers@colostate.edu
Phone:
(970) 491-5434

Twitter | @coachsiemers | @SiemersDreamers
Instagram | @siemers_dreamers

Siemer's Coaching Career
2000-01: Head Coach Cross Country, Jefferson Academy High School (Broomfield, Colo.)
2002-05: Head Coach Cross Country/Distance, Colorado School of Mines
2005-2012: Head Coach Track & Field, Colorado School of Mines
2012-present: Head Coach Cross Country/Distance, Colorado State

SIEMERS’ BY THE NUMBERS AT COLORADO STATE (2012-Present)
On the Course...
- 21 All-America honors (4 MXC, 9 MITF, 1 WOTF, 7 MOTF)
- 21 Mountain West champions (2 MXC, 8 MOTF, 2 WOTF, 6 MITF, 3 relays)
- 81 All-Mountain West performances [34 cross country (9 WXC, 25 MXC), 47 in track & field individual events (3 WITF, 14 MITF, 11 WOTF, 19 MOTF)]
- 2 Mountain West Cross Country Champions (2017, Jerrell Mock; 2015 Jerrell Mock)
- 2 Mountain West Cross Country Athlete of the Year Awards (2017, Jerrell Mock; 2015 Jerrell Mock)
- 1 Mountain West Coach of the Year Award (2017 - Cross Country)
- 1 USTFCCCA Mountain Region Assistant Coach of the Year (2016-17, Indoor Season)
- 1 Mountain West Indoor Student-Athlete of the Year (Eric Hamer, 2020)
- 1 Mountain West Outdoor Student-Athlete of the Year (Eric Hamer, 2021)
- 1 Mountain West Cross Country Freshman of the Year (Sanne Holland, 2013)
- 2 Colorado State Women's Indoor Record Holder (Ali Kallner, 3,000m; Darby Gilfillan, 5,000m)
- 2 Colorado State Men's Indoor Record Holder (Cole Rockhold, 3,000m; Eric Hamer, 5,000m)
- 1 Colorado State Women's Outdoor Record Holder (Janelle Lincks, 3,000m Steeplechase)
- 2 Colorado State Men's Outdoor Record Holder (Eric Hamer, 5,000m; Eric Hamer, 10,000m)
- 60 NCAA West Outdoor Track Preliminary qualifiers (28 MTF, 32 WTF)
- 22 All-Mountain Region Cross Country performers (8 WXC, 14 MXC)
- 6 NCAA Cross Country Championships qualifying teams (MXC: 2013, 2014, 2016, 2017, 2018; WXC: 2021)
- 5 individual NCAA Cross Country Championships qualifiers (3 WXC, 2 MXC)
- 8 top-three team finishes on the men’s side at the MW Cross Country Championships, including the program's first-ever conference title in 2017 and four runner-up finishes
- Seven top-four team finishes (runner-up in 2012) on the women’s side at the MW Cross Country Championships

In the Classroom...
- 146 Academic All-Mountain West Awards (72 MXC, 84 WXC)
- 108 Mountain West Scholar Athlete Awards (48 MXC, 60 WXC)
- 19 USTFCCCA All-Academic Honors (9 MXC, 10 WXC)
- Three CoSIDA Academic All-Americans (four total honors)
- Two CoSIDA Academic All-District
- 17 USTFCCCA All-Academic Team awards (MXC & WXC: 2012-19; WXC 2020)
- Three-time NCAA Academic Progress Rating (APR) Top Performing Team (MXC: 2015, 2016; WXC: 2019)

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Art Siemers, a veteran coach with over 20 years of coaching experience, joined the Rams in 2012 as the head coach of Colorado State’s cross country program and the distance coach for the track & field program.

During his tenure, Siemers has elevated the Rams’ cross country and distance groups to one of the most successful sustained stretches in any sport in the history of CSU Athletics. Colorado State men's cross country finished ninth at the NCAA Cross Country Championships in 2017, marking the program's highest national finish in nearly 40 years (1978). Colorado State followed that with a ninth-place finish at the NCAA Championships in 2018, making men's cross country the first program in the history of CSU Athletics to finish ninth or higher nationally in consecutive seasons.

The COVID-19 year of 2020-21 brought its share of struggles off the track and course, but not on for Siemers' group. The women's cross country team placed third at the Mountain West Championships, which occurred in the spring because of the pandemic. Shortly after, the Rams heard their name called for a bid into the NCAA Championships for the first time since 2009. In Stillwater, Okla., CSU finished 23rd with a team that did not graduate a participant. The MW did not honor an indoor season, but the Rams still competed including Eric Hamer. Hamer improved his school record of the 5,000m a few times and qualified for the 5K for the NCAA Indoor Championships - the same race he was supposed to be in the year prior had it not been for COVID-19. The senior turned graduate student made the best of it by placing second with a time of 13:29.60, garnering USTFCCCA First Team All-America honors. The conference did sponsor an outdoor season, which the men turned into their third-straight conference title and second outdoor. Hamer won the 10K and the 5K to produce 20 points for the Rams and earned the MW Outstanding Performance Award. Additionally, Dawson LaRance won the 800m and Jacob Brueckman finished third in the 1,500m. The distance group sent five men and and four women to the NCAA West Prelims in College Station, Texas. Hamer advanced in both the 10K and the 5K to the NCAA Championships where he finished 14th and fifth, respectively to tally two more All-American nods.

In the 2019-20 campaign, Siemers closely mentored Eric Hamer who was named Mountain West Indoor Student-Athlete of the Year after winning the 5,000-meter race at the conference meet in addition to finishing runner-up in the 3,000m. The performances tallied 18 points en route to the men's second-straight indoor conference title. Earlier in the season, Hamer obtained the school record in the 5,000m, which also put him at No. 14 on the NCAA performance list - a spot that stayed throughout the season. Hamer's 13:43.62 mark from the prestigious Boston Opener punched his ticket to the NCAA Championships that eventually were canceled due to COVID-19, however the senior did achieve USTFCCCA All-America honors for the qualification. Hamer also squeaked into the indoor 3,000m list at No. 20 all-time for CSU.

Outside of Hamer, the long distance group had other successes on and off the running surfaces. Forrest Barton earned CoSIDA Academic All-District First Team with a 3.78 GPA, becoming the second student-athlete to obtain the honor under Siemers. Back on the track, Ali Kallner captured the school record in the 3,000m race at the Iowa State Classic. Freshman Bailee Carr ran the fifth-best time in school history in the 800m at conference, showing potential for years to come. During the cross country season, Lily Tomasula-Martin finished sixth at conference and 23rd at regionals to garner All-Region honors. The men finished second in the Mountain West, continuing Siemers' streak of all top-3 finishes. Barton led the way with a second-place finish of his own, which garnered All-Mountain West honors.

Each of the 2017 and 2018 finishes rank as the fifth-highest national finishes all-time by any currently active CSU Athletics program. In addition, Siemers' 2017 and 2018 squads are in a group of 11 in CSU Athletics history to finish in the national top 10, among currently active programs.

Men’s cross country upped the ante from its 17th-place finish at the NCAA Cross Country Championships in 2016, which was then the program’s highest national finish since the same final ranking at the end of the 2003 season. The men's team peaked at a No. 14 ranking in week seven in 2016, marking the program’s highest ranking from the USTFCCCA since 2003, before reaching its all-time peak USTFCCCA ranking of No. 8 in weeks six and seven of 2017.

The cross country program has steadily risen under Siemers’ guidance, as the 2016 men’s squad improved upon a 19th-place national finish in 2014 and a 26th-place national finish in 2013. In 2015, Siemers coached Jefferson Abbey and Jerrell Mock to All-America honors in cross country, while Darby Gilfillan had the highest NCAA finish for a CSU women’s cross country runner since 2009. CSU cross country added additional All-Americans under Siemers in 2017 and 2018, when Cole Rockhold and Eric Hamer earned recognition after leading those history-making ninth-place squads.

Abbey, Mock, and Rockhold are the first CSU All-Americans in cross country since 2004, while Abbey and Mock were the only tandem to earn those accolades in the same season since 1961 (Jerry Glyde and Jerry Schmidt). Abbey’s 13th-place finish was the fourth-best all-time for a CSU cross country athlete, and the highest since 1979 (Jon Sinclair). Mock’s 19th-place finish was the eighth-best individual finish in program history, while Hamer's 18th-place finish ranks seventh-best in CSU history.

Men's cross country won its first-ever Mountain West title in 2017, and have placed no lower than third at the Mountain West Cross Country Championships under Siemers, finishing runner-up four times (2019, 2016, 2015, 2013) and in third place twice (2014, 2012). CSU’s women’s team has finished fourth or higher five times, placing second (2012) and third (2013) once apiece and fourth four times (2019, 2016, 2015, 2014). Mock was the individual champion in 2015 and 2017 and finished second overall in 2016. Rockhold was the MW runner-up behind teammate Mock in 2017, while Hamer and Carson Hume finished second and third in 2018.

Siemers coached four athletes to a combined seven All-America honors in track and field in 2016-17 and was named the USTFCCCA Mountain Region Assistant Coach of the Year for the indoor season. Mock and Grant Fischer each earned Second-Team All-America honors in the 10,000 meters and indoor 5,000 meters, while Cole Rockhold was a First-Team All-American in the 3,000 meters and an Honorable Mention All-American in the outdoor 5,000 meters. Janelle Lincks earned Second-Team All-America honors in the 3,000-meter steeplechase to become CSU’s fourth-ever All-American in the event. Mock and Fischer were the first duo to earn All-America honors in the same distance event in program history – a feat they accomplished twice in 2016-17.

Rockhold and Fischer went on to add more All-America honors to their respective resumes in track & field in 2017-18, including First-Team All-America distinction for Rockhold in the mile. Rockhold also picked up Second-Team All-America honors in the 3,000 meters at that indoor meet, becoming the only athlete in the nation to attempt that double last season. Fischer repeated as a Second-Team All-American in the indoor 5,000 meters and picked up the same distinction for his performance in the 10,000 at the outdoor meet that year. Rockhold capped off his 2017-18 campaign with Second-Team All-America billing in the outdoor 5,000.

Following their stellar 2015 cross country campaigns, Abbey and Mock also became Siemers’ first track & field All-Americans at CSU in 2016. Abbey placed sixth in the 3,000 meters at the NCAA Indoor Championships, while Mock placed 14th in the 5,000 meters. Abbey was CSU’s first-ever All-American in the indoor 3,000 meters, while Mock was CSU’s first in the indoor 5,000.

Siemers has coached 49 NCAA West Preliminary qualifiers, and in 2016-17, 11 members of the distance unit were among the program-record 27 CSU qualifiers. Siemers' distance runners matched that number for the 2018 regional meet. In cross country, his men's program has qualified for the NCAA Championships in four of the past six seasons, and four individuals (five total qualifications) have qualified for the NCAA Cross Country Championships under Siemers’ guidance.

Siemers has mentored numerous standout athletes at the conference level, including a total of 74 All-Mountain West honors and 18 conference champions (including three relays) in his eight years at Colorado State. Of those honors, 31 All-Mountain West performers have come in cross country, along with 22 All-Mountain Region performers.

Siemers also emphasizes academics, leading the Rams to be recognized for their scholastic success in numerous ways. In 2016-17, three of his student-athletes – Jefferson Abbey, Alex Hess and Jerrell Mock – were named CoSIDA Academic All-America. Combined with shot putter Mostafa Hassan, the Rams had four Academic All-America honors, the most of any Division I track & field program in the nation in 2016-17. Mock repeated as an Academic All-American in 2017-18, becoming the seventh in the history of CSU Athletics to earn the honor multiple times and the first in any sport since 2006.

Siemers’ women’s and men’s cross country programs have both been recognized as USTFCCCA All-Academic in eight consecutive seasons (2012-19). Additionally, the men’s team has been recognized as an NCAA APR (Academic Progress Rating) Top Performing Team in 2016 and 2017, while the women's team had a perfect single-year APR for 2016-17 and 2018-19. The 2016-17 season was one of the most successful scholastically for Siemers’ runners, who combined for 33 Academic All-Mountain West honors (16 in cross country, 17 in track & field), 32 Mountain West Scholar-Athlete accolades (14 in cross country, 18 in track & field) and 14 USTFCCCA All-Academic individual distinctions (four in cross country, 10 in track & field).

Prior to joining Colorado State cross country and track & field, Siemers coached for 11 years at the Colorado School of Mines. He began coaching cross country in 2002 and later took over the track & field program in 2005.

At CSM, Siemers coached 21 All-Americans in cross country and led his teams to nine NCAA Division II Cross Country Championships berths. The Orediggers finished in the top five on four different occasions, highlighted by a third-place finish with the men’s team in 2009.

After taking over the reins of the track & field program, Siemers added 82 All-Americans and five national champions to his list of athletes coached. Between the indoor and outdoor seasons, his women’s and men’s teams combined for 15 top-25 NCAA team finishes. In 2009, he was voted the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference for the indoor season on both the men’s and women’s sides. In 2009-10 and 2011-12, the men’s program finished fourth in the final standings for the USTFCCCA’s Program of the Year.

Before he began coaching at the collegiate level, Siemers was the head cross country coach from 2000-01 at Jefferson Academy High School in Broomfield, Colo. In just two years, he initiated the cross country program, recruited the inaugural team and led it to the 2001 Colorado 3A State Championships.

Siemers was a student-athlete at Illinois State in both track & field and cross country. Siemers was a four-year letter winner in both sports, and counts Missouri Valley Conference titles in 1,500 meters and mile among his accomplishments. He was an all-conference and all-region performer in cross country from 1993-94 and added first-team academic all-conference distinctions each season. Following his collegiate career, Siemers placed eighth at the 1999 USATF Indoor Championships in the mile and was a 2004 Olympic Trials `A’ qualifier in the marathon.

A 1995 graduate of Illinois State University with a bachelor’s degree in both elementary education and history, Seimers went on to earn a master’s degree in education from the University of Colorado in 1999.

Siemers grew up the oldest of seven children in Bensenville, Ill., and attended Fenton High School. He and his wife Erica reside in Fort Collins. Outside of CSU, Siemers coaches the Siemers' Dreamers - a running club that features former Rams.

COLORADO STATE RECORDS
Women’s
2019-20
- Ali Kallner - 3,000 meters (indoor) - 9:26.93 (2-14-20)
2016-17
- Darby Gilfillan – 5,000 meters (indoor) – 16:22.19 (2-10-17)
- Janelle Lincks – 3,000-meter steeplechase – 10:00.02 (
Men’s
2019-20
- Eric Hamer - 5,000 meters (indoors) - 13:40.11 (12-7-19)
2017-18
- Cole Rockhold - 3,000 meters - 7:50.10 (2-10-18)
- Grant Fischer - 5,000 meters (indoor) - 13:44.24
2016-17
- Jefferson Abbey – 5,000 meters (outdoor) – 13:37.23
- Jerrell Mock – 10,000 meters – 28:11.80
- Jerrell Mock – 5,000 meters (indoor) – 13:44.65
2015-16
- Jefferson Abbey – 3,000 meters – 7:51.38
2014-15
- Ben Larson - 5,000 meters (indoor) - 13:58.85

ALL-AMERICANS
Women’s
2016-17
- Janelle Lincks – 3,000-meter steeplechase – 12th (Second Team) – 10:31.15
Men’s
2019-20
- Eric Hamer - 5,000 meters (Indoor) - Qualified for 14th (Canceled due to COVID-19)
2018-19
- Eric Hamer - Cross Country - 18th
2017-18
- Grant Fischer - 5,000 meters (indoor) - 14th - 14:21.82
- Grant Fischer - 10,000 meters - 11th (Second Team) - 29:20.73
- Cole Rockhold - Mile - Sixth - 4:00.65
- Cole Rockhold - 3,000 meters - Ninth - 8:09.85
- Cole Rockhold - 5,000 meters (outdoor) - 11th (Second Team) - 14:00.96
- Cole Rockhold - Cross Country - 32nd
2016-17
- Grant Fischer – 5,000 meters (indoor) – Ninth (Second Team) – 13:55.37
- Grant Fischer – 10,000 meters – 12th (Second Team) – 29:17.57
- Jerrell Mock – 5,000 meters (indoor) – 10th (Second Team) – 13:56.74
- Jerrell Mock – 10,000 meters – 10th (Second Team) – 29:11.27
- Cole Rockhold – 3,000 meters – Sixth (First Team) – 7:59.89
- Cole Rockhold – 5,000 meters (outdoor) – 19th (Honorable Mention) – 14:50.92
2015-16
- Jefferson Abbey – Cross Country – 13th
- Jefferson Abbey – 3,000 meters – Sixth (First Team) – 8:02.43
- Jerrell Mock – Cross Country – 19th
- Jerrell Mock – 5,000 meters (indoor) – 14th (Second Team) – 14:07.09

MOUNTAIN WEST CHAMPIONS
Women’s
2016-17
- Janelle Lincks – 3,000-meter steeplechase
2013-14
- Rachael Rudel – 10,000 meters
Men’s
2019-20
- Eric Hamer - 5,000 meters (indoor)
2017-18
- Grant Fischer - 5,000 meters (indoor)
- Jerrell Mock - 10,000 meters
- Jerrell Mock - Cross Country
- Cole Rockhold - 5,000 meters (outdoor)
2016-17
- Jefferson Abbey – 5,000 meters (outdoor)
- Jerrell Mock – 10,000 meters
- Jerrell Mock – 5,000 meters (indoor)
- Cole Rockhold – 3,000 meters
2015-16
- Jerrell Mock – Cross Country
2014-15
- Distance Medley Relay
2013-14
- Distance Medley Relay
2012-13
- Distance Medley Relay