Historic Recruiting Class Galvanized By Henes' Care, Patience

By Theresa Juva Brown for DyeStat

What happens when some of the nation’s best high school female distance runners all join the same top-notch college team? 

Laurie Henes, head of the women’s cross country and track and field programs at North Carolina State University, will soon find out.  

“It’s amazing how it happened this year,” said Henes, who successfully recruited six highly coveted seniors to join the Wolfpack this fall, including headliners Katelyn Tuohy of North Rockland High in New York and Marlee Starliper of Northern York High in Pennsylvania.  

Tuohy, one of the most decorated high school distance runners ever, is a three-time Nike Cross Nationals champion and national record holder in the girls outdoor mile among other landmark achievements.  

Starliper, who has dominated the distance running scene in Pennsylvania, is a two-time NYRR Millrose Games girls mile champion — setting a new meet record both times — and was runner-up at Foot Locker Cross Country Nationals last fall.

The star-studded roster headed to N.C. State also includes New Yorkers Claire Walters of Fayetteville-Manlius High, a five-time NXN All-American, and Jenna Schulz of Liverpool High, who took third to Tuohy at last fall's New York state cross country championships. 

Adding to the deeply talented group are Riverview High's Alyssa Hendrix, a two-time Florida state cross country champion, and Brownsville High’s Gionna Quarzo, a Pennsylvania PIAA outdoor Class AA champion in the 3,200 meters. 

The impressive incoming class comes at the same time N.C. State will lose its top cross country runner, Elly Henes, Laurie’s daughter.

Taking 10th at the NCAA Division 1 Cross Country Championships last fall, the senior led N.C. State to a fifth-place finish to cap her collegiate cross country career. The nationals team also included former Saratoga Springs NY standout Kelsey Chmiel, who finished 22nd and earned All-America honors as a freshman.  

Although N.C. State has delivered strong performances at cross country nationals in recent years — it finished fourth in 2016 — the distance team hasn’t generated quite the same buzz as traditional powerhouses like Arkansas, New Mexico, Colorado, Stanford and Brigham Young University.  

So how did Henes assemble such a recruiting coup? She insists it wasn’t because she did anything extraordinary.  

“We don’t do this as a sales job,” she said. “We look at (their visits) as we want them to see what it’s really like here, instead of us trying to put on a flashy show for them.” 

Hendrix, the first of the six to sign with N.C. State, said Henes’ relaxed, no-pressure approach is what got her attention.  

“She was different from any other coach,” Hendrix said. “Coaches call you and say, ‘We want you, we want you.’ Coach Henes took another path, and she said, ‘I will contact you, but we won’t be all over you.’ She said, ‘You should come here because you want to come here.’” 

Henes knows firsthand what life is like at the Raleigh school. An All-American in cross country and track for N.C. State in the late 1980s and early 1990s, Henes joined the coaching staff in 1992. During that time, she also ran professionally and competed in the 1992 and 1996 U.S Olympic Track Trials. She’s married to Bob Henes, another former distance standout at N.C. State and their daughter, Elly, is a seven-time All-American as a member of the Wolfpack.  

Henes also has a strong relationship with revered coach Rollie Geiger, the director of the cross country and track and field programs and head coach of the men's team, who started his career at N.C. State in 1979. He has coached Henes, her husband and their daughter, Elly.  

“He’s the reason it’s such a family atmosphere,” Henes said. “We train hard but he knows how to keep it fun and motivate people, for sure.”  

'I felt so much at home there' 

When Starliper began seriously considering colleges, N.C. State was barely on her radar. 

Starliper chatted with Henes on the phone once and then fell out of touch as she ramped up her conversations with other schools, which included Northern Arizona University and the University of Oregon.  

When Henes and Starliper caught up again last summer, something clicked for Starliper during their phone call.  

“It just got me really excited hearing her talk about the program and the team,” she said. “She is just an amazing coach and talking to her again reminded me how great of a person she is.”  

Still, N.C. State was at the bottom of her list, she says, when she went on her official visit to the Raleigh campus. 

But it didn’t take her long for Starliper to feel a special spark with everyone she met. 

“The awesome thing I learned through the (recruiting) process, is that college is so much more than running — it’s the relationships I build and having a team I grow close with,” she said. “I think it would have been a mistake not to take the opportunity to go to N.C. State when I felt so at home there.” 

Schulz said she also immediately felt at ease with the coaches.  

“Going in, I knew I wasn’t their best recruit, but they made me feel so wanted and welcomed,” recalled Schulz.  

Walters, another top runner from New York, said she was drawn to the family-like feel she got from Henes and Geiger.  

“I just instantly felt like if anything was wrong, I could talk to them,” she said. “It was a very welcoming environment. You need people you can trust, and I definitely felt that with them.” 

Henes says she couldn’t do her job well as a coach without her own support team at N.C. State, which she says has heavily invested in resources for student-athletes in recent years.  

For example, the athletic department has a staff of certified nutritionists, who can create individualized meal plans. Athletes also have access to sports psychologists, sports medicine physicians and physical therapists. (There is also money set aside for athletic scholarships. Henes wouldn’t disclose individual scholarship details, but noted that the NCAA allows 18 scholarships for women’s track and field, and that money can be spread out in various amounts among athletes across all events.)  

Young women runners need to know they are supported, especially now as stories of abuse in elite running programs emerge in the media.  

Former teen running phenom Mary Cain told the The New York Times last November that she was mentally and verbally abused by Alberto Salazar when she was a member of the Nike Oregon Project. In an unusual move, Cain gave up her NCAA eligibility in 2013 to pursue running professionally under Salazar.  

After Salazar repeatedly berated her about her weight, Cain says she suffered numerous injuries while trying to get thinner and became so depressed she began cutting herself and having suicidal thoughts. She left the Oregon Project in 2016. (Salazar is currently serving a four-year coaching ban from the United States Anti-Doping Agency and has also been suspended by United States Center for SafeSport, which investigates allegations of coach misconduct. The Nike Oregon Project was disbanded in October 2019). 

When Cain’s story broke, drawing national attention, Henes said she used it as an opportunity to remind her runners to ask for help if they are struggling.  

“You have to feel comfortable talking to your teammates and being able to come to my office and say, ‘Hey I’m exhausted,’” Henes said, adding that she routinely talks to her athletes about their lives outside of running. 

Tuohy’s illustrious high school career has frequently overlapped with Cain’s accomplishments at the same age. In January 2019, Tuohy ran 9:01 indoors for 3,000 meters, breaking Cain’s high school record of 9:04.  

In a recent interview, Tuohy didn’t speak directly about the pressures of immense success at a young age, but said she chose N.C. State in part because Henes and Geiger make their athletes' well-being a top priority.  

“I got a good vibe on my visit, and we had a nice talk, and I like their training philosophy. They made it clear that they’ll keep my best (interests) in mind, and they wouldn’t do anything to sacrifice my health,” she said.  

Growing bonds 

Just as important as that coach-and-athlete connection are the bonds among the women.  

Quarzo, who signed with N.C. State in November, said she was struck by how genuine the team members seemed when she visited last June. 

“They acted as they would on any regular day, instead of putting on a show,” she recalled. “I felt like a part of the team as soon as I got there.”  

And the current N.C. State women are just as excited. Chmiel said she’s looking forward to welcoming more New Yorkers — and former rivals — to the Wolfpack.  

“I used to race Claire (Walters), Jenna (Schulz) and Katelyn (Tuohy) quite a bit so I have a lot of respect for them,” said Chmiel, who finished second to Tuohy at Nike Cross Nationals in 2018.

“I know that they train and race hard. I think it’s pretty cool that we’re all going to be working together on the same team now.” 

After years of vying for top spots in the same races and attending camps with one another, the incoming six know each other well as competitors. But beyond the finish lines they’ve become friends, staying in touch through social media, FaceTime and group texts. The six also plan to pair off as a roommates for their freshmen year.   

When Starliper was contemplating her choices, Hendrix, who had already signed with N.C. State, told her to “pick a place where you think you’ll be the happiest,” she recalled.  

Hendrix was elated when her friend chose N.C. State.  

“Marlee is just phenomenal as an athlete and person,” Hendrix said.  

The young women said they were just as stunned and excited as everyone else when their incredible class started to take shape. 

“I’m just so lucky and honored to be on such a great team,” Walters said. “I know all these girls are going to be so motivated.” 

A practice in patience 

Bringing together such a driven group of runners is thrilling, Henes said, but she isn’t putting a lot of pressure on the newcomers.  

In addition to adjusting to new coaches, teammates and routines, freshmen have to get used to living away from home and keeping up with college classes. Because they are also coming from training programs in high school that vary in mileage and intensity, she plans to tailor their workouts accordingly. 

“We aren’t going to try to do something in the first three months that will negatively affect the next five years,” she said. “We have to make sure we practice the patience we need for the time it takes to develop and adjust.” 

Although initial expectations will be small, the young women continue to dream big.  

For Hendrix, she hopes to one day stand on top of the NCAA Division 1 Cross Country Championships podium with her N.C. State teammates. N.C. State has finished second in the past, but has yet to win an NCAA cross country title.  

“It’s not a matter of if we are going to win, it’s a matter of when we will win it,” she said.