Hawaii Preparatory Academy veteran coach Lupe Diaz was recently named a state winner in the second annual High School Coach of the Year awards program for cross country. The announcement was made by U.S. Track &Field and the Cross Country
Hawaii Preparatory Academy veteran coach Lupe Diaz was recently named a state winner in the second annual High School Coach of the Year awards program for cross country. The announcement was made by U.S. Track &Field and the Cross Country Coaches Association.
One boys coach and one girls coach from each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia were honored for their successes during the 2015 fall season.
State-by-state winners were selected based on their team’s performances throughout the season. Among the factors taken into consideration were team score, placement at the state championships, margin of victory, performance against rankings, individual championships, and how the team’s performances stacked up to previous years.
Diaz, a math teacher at Hawaii Prep since 1981, has coached boys cross country for Ka Makani since 2001. His teams won three consecutive BIIF championships. The first came in the 2013-2014 season as co-head coach with Kimo Higgins. That team still played in Division I. As the solo head coach, Diaz has one the previous two BIIF and State Division II championships.
“I share this award with all of my dedicated runners—past and present—whom I have had the privilege of working with over the years. I owe it all to them,” Diaz said. “There are too many of them to name, but I share this honor with all of my “muchachos.’”
