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John Carroll University Athletics

home of the Blue Streaks
Kyle Basista

Kyle Basista

Kyle Basista enters his 10th season as the leader for the John Carroll University Men's and Women's Track & Field and Cross Country programs in the 2023-24 school year. 

He was named head coach for those programs in June of 2014 after serving first as a graduate assistant (2009-2011) and then as the top assistant (2011-14).

During his time as head coach, the Blue Streaks have become a powerhouse in the Ohio Athletic Conference and a program that consistently qualifies and scores at the NCAA Division III Championships. 

Over the span of the 2022-23 academic year, the Blue Streaks backed up strong previous seasons with an excellent showing on the national stage. Following podium finishes in cross country (4th) and outdoor track & field (T-3rd), the Blue Streaks finished third in the USTFCCCA Al Carius Program of the Year standings. 

Over the course of the 2021-22 academic year, the Blue Streaks became a powerhouse program on the national stage. Following trophy finishes in cross country (4th) and outdoor track & field (2nd), the Blue Streaks finished second in the USTFCCCA Al Carius Program of the Year standings. The Blue Streaks achieved the highest national finish in program history with a runner-up effort at the 2022 NCAA Division III Outdoor Track & Field Championships. 

During a 2021 campaign dominated by COVID-19, Basista led the Blue Streaks to the program's first OAC Championship in Women's Indoor Track & Field. During outdoor season, he earned USTFCCCA Great Lakes Region Coach of the Year honors for leading JCU Men's Track & Field to a second-place finish at the OAC Championships and a 13th place effort at the NCAA Division III Championships. Meanwhile, JCU Women's Track & Field also finished 13th at nationals in May 2021. (Cross country season did not occur in fall of 2020 due to COVID-19.)

Track & Field Achievements (Indoor & Outdoor)
  • 2-time OAC Champions  
    • 2021: Women's Indoor Track & Field (program first)
    • 2019: Women's Outdoor Track & Field (program first)
  • 4-time Ohio Athletic Conference Coaching Staff of the Year honoree
    • 2022: Men's Outdoor Track & Field
    • 2021: Women's Indoor Track & Field 
    • 2019: Women's Outdoor Track & Field 
    • 2018 Men's Indoor Track & Field 
  • 2-time USTFCCCA Great Lakes Region Coach of the Year
    • 2021: Men's Outdoor Track & Field
    • 2019: Women's Outdoor Track & Field
  • 7-time USTFCCCA Academic All-American teams (Men & Women, 2015-22)
  • 317 All-OAC 
  • 247 All-Region honorees (established 2016)
  • 128 Academic All-OAC
  • 70 NCAA Division III Championships qualifiers*
  • 66 school records broken (out of possible 84: 33 indoor records, 33 outdoor records)
  • 22 Academic All-Americans
  • 27 All-Americans*
  • 21 Most Outstanding Performers at OAC Championships
  • 6 National Champions (Alex Phillip: 2023 Outdoor 5k, 10k; Alex Phillip: 2022 Indoor 3k, 5k & 2022 Outdoor 10k; Jamie Dailey: 2022 Outdoor 5k)
  • *To be updated
Cross Country Achievements
  • 3-time OAC Champions 
    • 2022: Men's Cross Country (program first)
    • 2022: Women's Cross Country
    • 2019: Women's Cross Country (program first)
  • 6-time Ohio Athletic Conference Coaching Staff of the Year honoree
    • 2022: Men's Cross Country 
    • 2022: Women's Cross Country
    • 2019: Women's Cross Country
    • 2019: Men's Cross Country
    • 2016: Women's Cross Country
    • 2015: Women's Cross Country
  • 7-time USTFCCCA Academic All-American teams (Men & Women, 2015-22)
  • 48 All-OAC 
  • 28 All-Region honorees (established 2016)
  • 63 Academic All-OAC
  • 7 NCAA Division III Championships individual qualifiers
  • 5 OAC Freshmen of the Year (established 2015)
  • 3 NCAA Division III Freshmen of the Year
  • 28 Academic All-Americans
  • 6 NCAA Division III Championship appearances
    • 2022: Men's -- 4th
    • 2022: Women's -- 19th
    • 2021: Men's -- 4th
    • 2021: Women's -- 23rd
    • 2019: Men's -- 19th 
    • 2019: Women's -- 21st
  • 3 All-Americans (Alex Phillip, Jamie Dailey, Sydney Jenko)
  • 2 National Champions (Alex Phillip in 2022 and 2021)
Basista also notched plenty of accolades during his time as an assistant and later associate head coach. In 2013, the Women's Cross Country staff was tabbed as the staff of the year by the OAC as JCU won its first Women's Cross Country OAC Championship since 1991. The Men's Cross Country squad was selected the Co-Coaching Staff of the Year in 2011, while the staff received the Coaching Staff of the Year honors on the women's side in 2009.

Beyond his coaching work at JCU, Basista serves as an Executive Committee Member on the Blue & Gold Club. He created an Alumni Running Club, dubbed the "Blue Streak Elite," in spring of 2020. He's also served as the Meet Director for the 2014 and 2019 OAC Cross Country Championships. 

A 2008 graduate of the University of Mount Union, Basista was a two-time Division III All-American and five-time OAC Champion. He currently holds the UMU school record in the distance medley relay.

Prior to arriving at JCU in the fall of 2009, Basista was the assistant cross country and track & field coach at the University of Mount Union (2008-09), where the Raider men were the OAC Cross Country runners-up and achieved a national berth. In outdoor track, he guided Ty Griffin to a D-III National Championship in the 1500 meter run.

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