“Skelly” as he is known to his athletes, coaches alongside cross country men’s and women’s Head Coach, Keven Syverson. Sekelsky ran cross country for the Falcons from 1996-98. The alumnus was named the team’s captain his senior season.

Prior to his start as a head coach of the Falcons, Sekelsky was an assistant coach for the program for two years under former Head Coach Don Glover. He joined the Falcon track & field team as coach of women’s distance events last year. The women’s team was crowned the 2008 NCAA Div. III outdoor National Champions in 2008.

He will use motivation and support in his effort to help the cross country women improve its conference and regional finishes in 2008. Last season the team finished sixth in the WIAC and ninth in the region.

“My goals and expectations for the season are that each athlete improves, stays positive and works hard to get the most out of their individual ability,” said Sekelsky.

He coached two-sport athlete Becca Jordahl to tremendous success in cross country and track last season. Jordahl claimed the 2008 NCAA outdoor individual title in the 5,000-meter run at the National Meet. She is a three-time All-American and holds seven school track records. Last fall she earned NCAA cross country All-American recognition when she placed fourth in the National Meet. In 2006 she also earned that honor after a 19th place finish. Sekelsky plans to help Jordahl, who was named the 2007 Div. III Midwest Region Female Cross Country Athlete of the Year, repeat her success this season.

“An individual goal [of mine] would be to give Becca Jordahl every opportunity to win the individual national cross country title, something she is very capable of doing,” said Sekelsky.

Owning over 10 years of coaching experience, Sekelsky aims to help his athletes recognize and reach their fullest potentials. “In life you set goals and try to come up with a plan to make those goals a reality. The same is true for running. Just like in life, you can have goals but you must have a plan in place to achieve those goals.”

Sekelsky already has plans for the future of the program. He hopes that guiding the women to the national meet will become a regular occurrence for the Falcons. The self-proclaimed “athlete-centered coach” not only aims to improve the women’s standing in the WIAC, but also plans to capture a conference title.

He began his coaching expedition in 1997 as the girls’ head track coach at Oakland Junior High. In 1998 and 1999 he joined the Wildcats as a volunteer track coach at River Falls High School. He began his four-year tenure at Baldwin-Woodville High School in 2000. Sekelsky coached cross country for four years and track for one. He led one runner to two school records in the one and two-mile events. From 2005-07 he lent his coaching abilities to St. Croix Central High School. While there he helped the boys’ 4x800 relay team to a school record, and two runners to records in the 1600 and 3200-meter races. In 2007, the varsity girls’ team won the Dunn-St. Croix Conference title under his assistance.

Sekelsky is a 1988 graduate of Superior Senior High School where he participated in hockey and baseball. He graduated in 1999 with a bachelor’s in health & human performance and recently received his master’s in management from UWRF. He currently works at the Baldwin Area Medical Center as the fitness and wellness director.

Scott Sekelsky