Oklahoma State University Athletics
COACH PROFILE - New Cowgirl Head Coach Rene Sepulveda
February 11, 2004 | Cowgirl Cross Country & Track
Sepulveda has a history of team and individual success. En route to winning the 2000 and 2002 Western Athletic Conference Coach of the year award, Sepulveda led the men's cross country team to a No. 20 National ranking in 2002. Sepulveda has also coached and recruited numerous All-American athletes including Mindi Pukstas, husband of Cowgirl jumps coach Zivile Pukstiene.
Roman Oravec, a 1997 recruit of Sepulveda, was selected as an All-American seven times and competed in the 2000 Olympics. Dalibor Balgac, a three-time All-American, anchored SMU's distance medley relay team to a fourth-place finish at the 2003 NCAA Indoor Championships. Clyde Colenso was the 1999 1,500 meter NCAA Outdoor National Champion under Sepulveda.
Sepulveda also coached Katie Swords, who some consider the best women's distance runner in Mustang history. Swords was a two-time NCAA champion in the 10,000 meters and runner-up in the 5,000 meters (94-95). Swords scored 40 points for SMU at the 1996 SWC meet, winning the 1,000; 3,000; 5,000 and 10,000 meter races.
Sepulveda coached the 1995 men's and women's cross country teams to a Southwest Conference championship and led the Mustangs to a 21st and 18th-place finish at the 1995 NCAA Cross Country Championships, respectively.
Sepulveda began his coaching career at the University of Oklahoma in 1988 and served as the women's cross country coach for four years. Kay Gooch, a former pupil of Sepulveda and an All-American at OU, is now the women's cross country coach at the University of Nevada-Reno. Under Sepulveda, Monique Ecker was the 1992 NCAA outdoor 5,000 meter champion.
Sepulveda graduated from Idaho State University in 1988. He was a four-year letter winner in track and cross country. In 1987 Sepulveda was an NCAA qualifier and in 1988 he won the Big Sky Conference championship in the 5,000 meters. Sepulveda qualified for the 1996 and 2000 Olympic trials with an "A" standard. He earned a Masters of Public Health in Epidemiology and Health Promotions Sciences at Oklahoma.
