James Goss

James Goss returns in 2019 for his ninth season as head coach of the Golden Flyers' track and field and cross country teams. An associate track and field coach at Lynchburg for six seasons, Goss has steadied both programs during his Nazareth tenure.

A native of Skaneateles, N.Y., Goss has engineered steady improvement through his first eight seasons as coach. His men's and women's track and field teams have broken 80 school records (combining both indoor and outdoor performances). Goss also serves as the Track & Field and Cross Country Chair of the Empire 8 Conference and was the past-president of the New York State Collegiate Track Conference (NYSCTC). In that role, he helped spearhead a transition to the All-Atlantic Regional Track Conference (AARTC) and still serves on that conference's executive committee.

In 2018-19, Alycia Eaton wrapped up her career with another trip to the NCAA Championships as she qualified in the long jump during the outdoor season. The Nazareth throwers earned high marks and set six new school records with a solid group of freshmen for the women's squad. Brenna Johnson earned Empire 8 Rookie of the Year honors for both the indoor and outdoor seasons. The cross country seasons were highlighted by freshman Hayley Cronin as she captured the Empire 8 individual championship.

2017-18 saw Goss guide Emily Thompson and Eaton to All-America honors. Eaton, the Empire 8 Field Athlete of the Meet, took third place in the triple jump at the NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships with a school record mark of 11.89 meters (39 feet, 0 ¼ inches). Thompson ripped off a 36:33.89 in the 10,000-meter run at the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships to take sixth place and become Nazareth's first-ever outdoor track All-American.

In addition to his improvement on the course and track, Goss has seen six student-athletes earn All-Academic accolades since 2011. Gabrielle LeBihan earned All-Academic honors for cross country in 2013, 2014 and 2015, while Robin Wagner joined her in 2015. Taylor Pierson (2013, 2014), Hannah Brackley (2015), and Nick LaBarbera (2016) all garnered All-Academic honors in track. As a team the women's cross country and track squads have earned All-Academic recognition (3.2 GPA or higher) each season, while the men's cross country team garnered the honors in 2013 and 2014.

In 2016, Goss helped guide Gabrielle LeBihan to All-Region honors for the cross country season.

His 2016 indoor season was highlighted by the Golden Flyers' first national champion as Luis Rivera placed first in the 35-pound weight throw. Rivera and Tom Sippie went on to earn All-American honors during the outdoor season in the hammer throw and 400-meter dash respectively.

He also helped guide Taylor Pierson to record-shattering distances in the long jump as she became Nazareth's first-ever outdoor field All-American in 2013, an honor she duplicated indoors in 2014. He has coached 14 state titlists and 23 Empire 8 titlists in men's track and field and 17 state champions and 33 E8 champions in women's track and field.

Before joining the staff at Nazareth, Goss excelled at Lynchburg, where he was at the forefront for many of the Hornets' track and field successes. In 2011, the Hornets sent three athletes to the NCAA Division III Track and Field Championships. In addition, both the men’s and women’s teams captured their respective team titles at the Old Dominion Athletic Conference Championships and were ranked near the top of the southeast region.

During Goss’ six seasons at Lynchburg, 15 school records were broken and 73 all-time top five performances were established. In addition, 21 Lynchburg athletes captured conference titles. Lynchburg’s women’s team was particularly strong in winning seven indoor ODAC titles and eight outdoor titles in the last 12 years. The men's team also dominated by winning 24 of 25 indoor and outdoor titles since 1998.

Before joining the Lynchburg coaching staff, Goss spent five seasons as an assistant coach at Emory University in Atlanta, specializing in sprints, hurdles and jumps. At Emory, he was part of a staff that was recognized five times as University Athletic Association Coaching Staff of the Year. He coached 20 national qualifiers, including 11 All-Americans.

Goss graduated from Lynchburg in 2001. He went on to earn a Master’s degree in Sports Administration from Georgia State. In 2011, Goss was inducted into the Lynchburg College Sports Hall of Fame.

Goss was a standout in track and field at Lynchburg, specializing in sprints, jumps and the decathlon. He won the NCAA Division III title in the long jump in 2001 and was named NCAA National Athlete of the Year. He earned All-American honors 10 times, Southeast Region Athlete of the Year five times and ODAC Athlete of the Year six times during his collegiate career.

Goss and his wife Mackenzie are the parents of daughter Brenna and son J.R.