Villanova Univeristy Athletics

Matt Valeriani is in his eighth year on the Villanova coaching staff in 2024-25. He was promoted to his current title of Associate Head Coach for Men’s Cross Country/Distance in 2024 after seven seasons as an assistant coach for the men’s cross country and track & field teams. Valeriani works extensively with the Wildcats distance runners and oversees the worldwide recruiting efforts for the men’s team.
 
Villanova has continuously excelled on a national level in recent seasons and Valeriani has helped the men’s distance group achieve particularly noteworthy success. The men’s cross country team has recorded four top-20 finishes at the NCAA Championships in the past five seasons, including a 15^th place showing in 2024 which is the Wildcats highest national finish in the last 10 years. Villanova has also won three BIG EAST team titles (2019, 2022, 2024) and three NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional titles in cross country during Valeriani’s tenure.
 
Beyond cross country, the Wildcats won indoor BIG EAST team titles in each of Valeriani’s first three seasons on the staff (2018, 2019, 2020) in addition to capturing the 2019 outdoor conference championship. Across all three seasons the men’s program has earned 30 All-America honors and produced 55 individual BIG EAST champions since Valeriani joined the staff in 2017-18.
 
One of the recent stars of the men’s distance program is Sean Dolan, a seven-time All-American and a nine-time BIG EAST champion during his collegiate career. He became the first athlete in BIG EAST history to win seven career conference titles in the 800 meters, doing so by going undefeated in his career in 14 semifinal and final races in the event at the conference championships. Dolan finished as high as second nationally in the 800 meters and twice qualified for the U.S. Olympic Team Trials in the 800 meters.
 
Valeriani has also helped mentor Liam Murphy who is a six-time All-American and has posted top 10 finishes at the NCAA Championships in both cross country and indoor track & field (3000 meters). Murphy is a three-time cross country Mid-Atlantic Region Athlete of the Year and has set the school record in the 3000 meters in addition to holding the Wildcats all-time indoor marks in the mile and the 5000 meters. Murphy qualified for the U.S. Olympic Team Trials in 2024 and advanced to the final of the 1500 meters.
 
One of the highlights of the past seven years came during the 2024 Penn Relays when Villanova’s 4xMile relay squad won a Championship of America title with the second-fastest time in world history. A lineup anchored by Murphy and which included Sean Donoghue, Charlie O’Donovan and Marco Langon posted a winning time of 15:51.91 to threaten the long-standing world record of 15:49.08 (held in part by Villanova alums Eamonn Coghlan and current head coach Marcus O’Sullivan) which has stood for nearly 40 years and rarely been threatened.
 
Valeriani has helped the Wildcats win five Championship of America distance relays, including the 4xMile three times (2018, 2023, 2024) and the distance medley relay twice (2018, 2024). Villanova distance runner Josh Phillips was the individual Penn Relays champion in the 5000 meters in 2023 in his final season of collegiate eligibility.
 
In addition to his responsibilities on campus, Valeriani is also a Mid-Atlantic regional representative for the United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA).
 
Valeriani came to Villanova after spending two years as an assistant coach at Iowa State where he worked with the Cyclones women’s distance runners. He was a part of the team’s Big 12 cross country title in 2016 when the Iowa State went on to make its eighth straight NCAA Championships appearance. During the 2015-16 track & field season, Valeriani was part of a coaching staff that helped first year collegiate distance runner Kelly Naumann qualify for the NCAA West Preliminary in the 3000 meter steeplechase and earn a bronze medal in the event at the Big 12 Championships. She went on to represent Team USA at the World Athletics U20 Championships in Bydgoszcz, Poland in July 2016 after earlier winning a silver medal at the USATF Junior Championships.
 
During his own collegiate career, Valeriani competed in cross country and the longer distance events on the track at North Carolina. He was part of the Tar Heels cross country lineup in 2013 when the team finished 17^th at the NCAA Championships. Valeriani was also in the lineup for the ACC Championships and the NCAA Southeast Regional that season prior to the national meet. During his collegiate track seasons, Valeriani competed primarily in the 5000 meters and the 10000 meters. He ran the 10K at the outdoor ACC Championships four straight years and advanced to the NCAA East Preliminary in 2013.
 
Valeriani graduated from North Carolina in 2014 with a degree in Exercise and Sport Science, concentrating in sport administration.