A familiar face will take charge of the Hillsdale College men's and women's cross country program this fall.

The Chargers have hired Joe Lynn to step into the head role and run Hillsdale College's cross country programs, while also coaching the distance runners for the Charger track and field programs.

"We welcome Joe back to Hillsdale College!" Hillsdale Director of Athletic John Tharp said. "His track record indicates that he is one of the finest distance coaches in America, and he accomplished great things here previously.

"We look forward to seeing Joe develop one of the top cross country programs in America while also developing the hearts and minds of our student-athletes in a positive way."

It's Lynn's second stint at Hillsdale after a highly successful run as an assistant cross country and track and field coach under then head coach Andrew Towne from 2014-16. His first tenure with the Chargers overlapped with two of the best seasons in program history, as Hillsdale earned five NCAA DII podium finishes as a team and was named the NCAA DII program for the year for the 2015-16 campaign.

"I'm grateful for the opportunity to return to Hillsdale," Lynn said. "It's a special place and one that's always remained close to my heart after I left.

"Going through the interview process brought back a lot of great memories and reaffirmed in my mind how wonderful it is to be a coach here. Hillsdale has top notch facilities and great support from both the administration and the athletic department, as well as a strong group of current athletes who are hungry for more success. I can't wait to get started."

Lynn's coaching had a huge impact on Hillsdale's team success from 2014-16, as he directly coached nine NCAA Champions, 37 All-Americans, four National Athletes of the Year, six Midwest Athletes of the Year, 31 Academic All-Americans, 16 Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Champions, and two Midwest Region Cross Country Champions.

He worked directly with the most decorated athlete Hillsdale has ever produced, Chargers Athletics Hall of Famer Emily Oren, who won seven of those individual championships and was named the 2016 NCAA Division II Female Athlete of the Year.

For his work at Hillsdale, Lynn was named USTFCCCA Assistant Coach of the Year three times, and won four USTFCCCA Midwest Region Assistant Coach of the Year awards.

Hillsdale is bringing Lynn back in the hopes that he can help usher in another golden era for a Chargers cross country and track and field program that's on the rise once again. He'll work closely with current track and field coach Jessica Bridenthal and Hillsdale's track and field staff as the Chargers look to build on recent successes both in the G-MAC and nationally.

"What happened in 2015 and 2016 was a perfect storm with a truly special group, and that's always going to be a challenge to recreate," Lynn said. "That said, I think Hillsdale has a great foundation with its current group of athletes and the success they've already had, and I'm confident that if we keep advancing on the path we're already on, this program has the ability to accomplish big things at the national level in all three seasons."

Lynn returns to Hillsdale from University of North Carolina at Charlotte, where served as the 49ers' head cross country coach and assistant track and field coach for nine seasons. During his time he turned the 49ers distance program into a force to be reckoned with at the NCAA DI level, first in Conference USA and later in the American Athletic Conference.

Under Lynn's guidance, Charlotte achieved its first national ranking in men's cross country in program history and qualified for the program's first NCAA DI Cross Country Championship meet in 2020. He played a part in 20 team conference championships across cross country and indoor and outdoor track and field in the C-USA and AAC, and twice swept C-USA team titles on the men's side in 2020-21 and 2022-23.

He also led the 49ers women's cross country team to their highest ever NCAA Southeast Region ranking and season finish in program history in 2023.

Lynn arrived in Charlotte from Miami (OH) University. In his first job after leaving Hillsdale in 2016, Lynn served as an assistant track and field and cross country coach for the Redhawks and was a part of the only NCAA DI program in Ohio to have an NCAA qualifier in cross country, indoor track and outdoor track in the 2016-17 season, and coached Miami (OH)'s first female NCAA DI Cross Country National Championships qualifier since 2010.

A 2004 graduate of Aquinas College in Grand Rapids, Michigan, Lynn was a gifted runner himself in college and a member of the Saints' 2004 NAIA Runner-Up men's cross country team as a senior.

He got his first job in coaching at Grand Valley State University, where he worked from 2006 to 2011 and helped legendary coach Jerry Baltes build the Lakers into a national powerhouse, recording 20 top-10 team finishes across cross country and track in five seasons, and directly coaching seven NCAA Champions, 90 All-Americans, and 79 GLIAC Champions.

He helped the Lakers capture the first women's triple crown in NCAA history in 2010-11, winning national titles in cross country, indoor track and field and outdoor track and field, and capturing NCAA DII Women's Program of the Year honors in 2009, 2010 and 2011 from the USTFCCCA.

From 2011 to 2014, Lynn also served as the Head Cross Country Coach at the University of Missouri, recruiting six-time NCAA Champion Karissa Schweizer to the Tigers, leading the men to their first NCAA national poll ranking in over a decade, and the women's program to its highest NCAA Midwest Regional finish in nearly a decade as well.