Coaches
Nicholas McDonough
Head Coach
Nicholas McDonough was named head coach of the New York University women's track & field/cross country program midway through the 2008 indoor season. He is in his 10th season as the head coach of the NYU men's track & field/cross country program.
During his years with the men's team, McDonough has helped solidify NYU's position among the upper echelon of Division III programs.
In 2007, McDonough led the men to the NCAA Division III Cross Country National Championship after a runner-up finish in 2006. He also led the men's cross country team to back-to-back University Athletic Association (UAA) and NCAA Division III Atlantic Region crowns in 2006 and 2007.
For his efforts, McDonough has received UAA and NCAA Atlantic Region Cross Country Coach of the Year honors in each of the past two seasons, while he also earned National Coach of the Year accolades following the team's National Championship.
McDonough has produced numerous cross country and track & field All-Americans during his tenure as the men's coach, including current Violets Hany Abdallah, Bernier Lauredan, Jr., Jesse Schneider, and Ryan Williams.
On the track, McDonough’s athletes tied the program’s all-time best with a 10th-place finish at the 2007 NCAA Division III Indoor Track and Field Championships, while boasting six All-Americans in three events. :
During the 2007 spring season, McDonough led NYU to a 27th-place finish at the NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field Championships. Abdallah took home two All-America certificates, while Williams earned one. They became the first-ever Violets to earn All-America status in all three seasons (cross country, indoor and outdoor).
McDonough’s teams also produced outstanding results in their classrooms in '06-07, as the cross country, indoor and outdoor track & field teams featured 48 UAA All-Academic honorees.
McDonough came to NYU after six years as an assistant coach at Seton Hall University. While there, he coached numerous Big East Conference champions, six IC4A champions, an American record-setting distance medley relay team in 1994, and six NCAA Division I All-Americans, including two in cross country.
Additionally, McDonough has varied experience as a race manager and director, working on races such as the NYC Gotham Cup, as well as the Spring Lake Five and the George Sheehan 10k Classic, which are two of the top-50 road races in the U.S.
A 1992 graduate of Syracuse University with a bachelor's degree in political science, McDonough brought extensive professional and personal experience to the NYU program. As an athlete, he helped lead the Syracuse cross country program for four years and was named captain as a senior. On the track, he was a member of the Orangemen's 1992 Big East Championship team, anchoring the relay that clinched the meet.
As a high school runner at Christian Brothers Academy in Lincroft, New Jersey, McDonough was part of a winning DMR at the Penn Relays and competed at the prestigious Fifth Avenue Mile in New York City. He continues to train and can usually be found running with the team.
A native of Point Pleasant, NJ, McDonough resides in Interlaken, NJ.
Lauren Henkel
Assistant Coach
Lauren Henkel, one of the most accomplished athletes in New York University history, is entering her first season as the assistant coach of the Violets’ men’s track & field team. She has also returned as an assistant with the women’s program after having served two seasons (2004-06) previously.
Henkel’s main responsibilities with both programs will be to work with NYU’s sprinters and jumpers.
A four-year member of the Violets’ women’s track & field team, Henkel earned NCAA All-America honors in the high jump three times. She established 11 NYU individual and relay records, and was a nine-time University Athletic Association (UAA) champion in a variety of events.
“Lauren was quite possibly NYU’s greatest female track & field athlete ever,” said men’s head coach Nick McDonough. “Her success as an athlete and her previous coaching experience with the NYU women’s team will definitely be a big help in working with both of our programs now.”
In her first tenure as an assistant coach with the women’s program, Henkel helped produce two UAA Champions in her first year, as senior Lauren Pringle won the indoor 55-meter hurdles, as well as the indoor and outdoor high jumps, while senior Crystal Winter won the outdoor 400-meter hurdles. Henkel also helped guide the Violets to a fourth-place finish at the UAA Outdoor Championships.
In 2005-06, she was instrumental in helping Winter capture the New York State 100-meter championship, as well as the UAA outdoor 400-meter hurdles title.
A 2004 graduate of NYU’s Steinhardt School of Education with a degree in studio art, Henkel also earned many academic awards. During her distinguished career, she earned the NYU President’s Scholar-Athlete of the Year Award, the Varsity Club Freshman Athlete of the Year Award, the Dan Quilty/NIT Scholar-Athlete Award, the
New York State Women’s Collegiate Athletic Association Scholar-Athlete Award, and the NYU Alumni Association Student-Athlete of the Year Award. She also received the Ida Bodman Service Award for her work in the community.
Henkel’s versatility and excellence as an athlete extended beyond the track, as she also earned All-American and All-UAA honors as a member of the Violets’ women’s soccer team.
Also serving as the Assistant Equipment Room Manager at NYU’s Palladium Athletic Facility, Henkel has had her paintings and artwork occasionally appear in local galleries in Brooklyn, Manhattan, and the surrounding NYC areas.
Henkel, who is currently pursuing a master’s degree in sports business from NYU’s School of Continuing and Professional Studies, resides in Sunnyside, NY, and is a native of Rockville Centre, NY.
James McCarthy
Assistant Coach
James McCarthy is in his first season as an assistant track & field coach with New York University’s men’s and women’s track & field programs. He will assist head coach Nick McDonough with the program’s recruiting efforts, and work mainly with the Violets’ distance and middle distance runners.
A December 2007 graduate of NYU’s College of Arts and Science with a bachelor’s degree in history, McCarthy was a member of the Violets’ 2007 NCAA Division III National Championship cross country team. He earned NCAA All-America honors as a member of NYU’s indoor distance medley relay team in 2007, and was a NCAA qualifier in the 1,500 meters in 2006.
A former University Athletic Association (UAA) champion in the 1,500 meters (2006) and the indoor distance medley relay (2005, 2006 & 2007), McCarthy also earned Second Team All-UAA honors in the 1,500m (2007) and the mile (2006). A three-time UAA Athlete of the Week selection during his four-year collegiate career, McCarthy took sixth place at the 2007 UAA Cross Country Championship and ninth place at the 2006 UAA Cross Country Championship, securing First Team and Second Team All-UAA honors, respectively.
"James’ knowledge of our program and of NYU will be a huge help in our recruiting efforts,” McDonough said.
McCarthy, who worked as an instructor at the Newport (RI) Running Camp during the summers of 2004-06, was a two-year captain of the Red Bank Catholic High School cross country and track teams and was a four-time New Jersey Meet of Champions qualifier.
A native of Colts Neck, NJ, McCarthy resides in Brooklyn, NY,