ALBANY, N.Y. - The University at Albany cross country program and Director of Cross Country/Track and Field Roberto Vives have announced the hiring of Zach Cook as Head Coach.
"Zach [Cook] is one of the bright young coaches in our profession and has established himself as a tremendous recruiter and coach," said Roberto Vives. "He has had the opportunity to be mentored by our coaching legend, Matt Jones, the past few years and is well prepared for this new responsibility. Zach is a UAlbany Alum who definitely "bleeds purple". We are thrilled to welcome him to the Great Danes family in this new role."
Cook has served as a volunteer assistant coach for cross country/track and field at UAlbany since the 202-23 season.
"I am extremely excited to have the opportunity to work with high-character student-athletes in one of the most competitive conferences in the country," said Cook, "I appreciate the trust Coach Vives, Mark Benson, and Travis Wilson have placed in me to follow one of the most respected coaches we've had at UAlbany in Matt Jones, a longtime coach, friend, and mentor. We look forward to a new era with tremendous optimism about our program and will maintain and build upon our standard of excellence. Go Great Danes."
Recent student-athletes who have flourished with the help of Cook's coaching include Amanda Chambers, Skyler Smith, Jed Elmbarki, Steve Hines, Jacob Smith, and Hassan Abidi.
Both Chambers and S. Smith are America East medalists. In 2023, Chambers placed 40th at the NCAA Northeast Regional XC Championships. S. Smith is a 12-time America East medalist (across indoor and outdoor championships) and a four-time America East Champion, including an individual championship in the indoor 1000m in 2024.
Abidi and Hines are both America East Champions as well as regional qualifiers. Abidi is a three-time America East Champion in the 800m (indoor '25 and '24 and outdoor '25). Abidi also qualified for regionals in the 800m in 2025 where he set the program record in the event. Hines broke Abidi's record the following season at Battle Road Twilight Meet 2 to qualify for the 2026 NCAA East Prelims.
Elmbarki is a two-time America East individual champion, securing both titles in 2026 in the 3000m steeplechase and the 5000m run to be named the Most Outstanding Track Performer. Elmbarki qualified for NCAA regionals in 2026 for the steeplechase. J. Smith is a three-time America East Champion, with two individual titles in the indoor mile and the outdoor 1500m. Smith is also the program record holder in the indoor mile and the outdoor 1500m.
Last year, 2025-26, was a standout year for UAlbany distance relays. The men's indoor 4x800m relay, consisting of Mikolaj Gancarz, Isaac Graber, Jacob Smith, and Steve Hines, won gold and set an America East Championship meet record with a time of 7:28.83. The men's 4x800m also placed second at the prestigious Penn Relays, during which J. Smith ran the fastest leg of all competitors. At the Penn Relays, the women's distance medley relay consisting of Skyler Smith, Jaymee Yelton, Arianna Verardi, and Aiva Pinches broke the program record with a time of 11:31.80. Additionally, S. Smith, Yelton, Verardi, and Pinches were America East Champions in the 4x800m relay for both outdoor and indoor championships.
Cook attended UAlbany as a student-athlete from 2011-16. After graduating with his Bachelor of Arts in Communications and Media Studies in 2015, he went on to earn his Master of Science in Educational/Instructional Technology in 2016. While competing as a Great Dane, he was a member of the 2014 4x800m America East Indoor Championship relay team and was a two-time all-conference honoree.
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