Craig McVey joined the SHC athletics family as the first head coach of the Badger men’s and women’s outdoor track & field programs in the summer of 2012 and took over the reins of the Cross Country programs in 2013. McVey came to Spring Hill after enjoying 15 years as the associate head track & field coach at the University of Albany where he was part of 28 America East Conference (AEC) championships and three Intercollegiate Association of Amateur Athletes of America (IC4A) titles.
In 2018, McVey directed his women’s Cross Country team to a Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) title in its first season of NCAA D2 postseason eligibility as well as an appearance at the NCAA D2 South Regional Championships. His men’s program finished 4th in the conference but qualified two runners for the Regional Championships.
In his first two years at SHC, McVey developed two individual participants in the NAIA National Championship Meet with Jordan Travis earning a spot in the men’s 800-meter Run and Corinne Missi earning NAIA All-America status in the women’s Triple Jump. Away from the field in 2014, Travis was voted a Capital One Academic All-District student-athlete and Robert Treuting earned NAIA Scholar-Athlete status.
While at Albany, McVey most recently worked with distance runners and pole-vaulters where he mentored AEC champions and All-Conference steeplechasers Ricardo Estremera, Ethan Clary, Laura Cummings and Jenn Pierson. Estremera and Cummings, both school record holders, advanced multiple times to the NCAA East Preliminary Round. In the 2008-09 season, he coached two individual conference champions and seven All-Conference recipients including two student-athletes who combined to earn three All-America honors. At the 2009 NCAA Outdoor Meet, Estremera became Albany’s first All-American in a distance event.
Under McVey’s tutelage, Luke Schoen established pole-vaulting records on the men’s side for three straight seasons, clearing 17-feet, 9-inches indoors, and 17-6.50 outdoors. Schoen became McVey’s first Albany student-athlete to claim All-America honors after placing fifth at the 2008 NCAA Championships before accomplishing the same feat at the NCAA Indoor and Outdoor meets in 2009 and the NCAA Outdoor meet in 2011. Vault records for the women’s team have also been consistently re-written during McVey’s watch with Celine Cauderlier becoming Albany’s first women’s AEC champion in the event in 2010.
McVey, who also served as the head coach of the Albany men’s and women’s cross country teams, saw his men’s squad win the AEC title in 2011 while his women’s team won back-to-back ECAC University Division (I) titles in 2010 and 2011. Previously the men’s and women’s cross country coach at the College of Saint Rose (N.Y.) during the 1996-97 season, his women’s team won the New York Collegiate Athletic Conference (NYCAC) championship and the men finishing as the runner-up with Golden Knight runners claiming both individual titles.
McVey began his collegiate coaching career in cross country and track & field at Kansas State in 1983. His athletes captured 18 Big Eight Conference titles and ranked as the top NCAA combined men’s and women’s program. He became the head men’s and women’s cross country and track coach at Hartwick College (N.Y.) in 1988 where his teams eclipsed 83 school records while producing 22 New York Collegiate individual champions during his tenure.
Prior to his recent duties, McVey also coached Albany’s long, triple and high jumpers to a conference and All-East honors while also actively coaching every track and field event during his career. A native of Manhattan, Kan., McVey has been named Regional Coach of the Year on four occasions. He has also served as the director/head coach of the USA East Team that competed in the United States and Canada. In addition, he served as a games committee member for the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships for three years and was President of the NTSWCAA Track & Field Governing Committee.
McVey earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Kansas State University. As an undergraduate student, McVey was a member of two Big Eight Conference indoor track & field championship teams and a Big Eight cross country championship team.
He and his wife, Bette, have four children: Luke, Kirsten, Maggie, and Tyler.