Kingswood Oxford Names Alice Riley Head Varsity Cross Country Coach

Kingswood Oxford School is excited to announce the appointment of Alice Riley as the next Head Coach of the Varsity Cross Country program. Coach Riley joined the KO Cross Country staff during the 2025-26 school year as an assistant coach and quickly made a tremendous impact on the student-athletes and culture of the program.

Prior to Kingswood Oxford, she coached at Greenwich Country Day School, where she helped lead the track and field team to a conference championship and the cross country team to a second-place conference finish. A former NCAA Division III runner at Kenyon College, Coach Riley served as a team captain and earned All-Conference honors during her senior season. Her experience as both a high-level student-athlete and coach has shaped a coaching philosophy centered on hard work, community, humor, individualized growth, and a positive team culture.

Coach Riley believes cross country is unique in how it allows athletes to pursue personal goals while contributing to a larger team’s mission. She is passionate about helping student-athletes grow not only as runners, but as teammates and people, emphasizing perseverance, discipline, sportsmanship, and pride in representing Kingswood Oxford. “I want the cross country team to be a place where KO students come to work hard and grow both as athletes and as people,” said Riley. “Of course, I want us to compete for medals and win races, but what matters most to me is that our athletes learn perseverance, discipline, and sportsmanship while representing KO with pride.”

Director of Athletics Josh Balabuch shared, “Alice embodies everything we value in a coach. Her passion for the sport, genuine care for our student-athletes, and commitment to building a culture rooted in hard work, community, and humor made her the clear choice to lead our cross country program. We are excited to see the program continue to grow under her leadership.”

As she begins her tenure as head coach, Riley also expressed her gratitude to former head coaches Trish Watson and Fritz Goodman for their mentorship, leadership, and dedication to the program over the years.