PITMAN, NJ --- The College of New Jersey sophomore Joshua Santiago (Old Bridge, NJ/Old Bridge) and freshman teammate Will Nelson (Ewing, NJ/Cherry Hill East) have been named the New Jersey Athletic Conference Runner of the Year and Rookie of the Year, respectively, for the 2026 season.
 
Additionally, TCNJ head coach Justin Lindsey and his staff earn Coaching Staff of the Year honors based on a vote of the league’s head coaches.
 
Santiago and Nelson highlight the 14-member NJAC men’s cross country all-conference team. All honors were determined based on placing at the championship meet, which was conducted at TCNJ on Saturday, Oct. 31.
 
Santiago captured NJAC Runner of the Year honors after winning the conference championship with a time of 24:37 in the 8K race. The Old Bridge native led the Lions to their team title, finishing in a wide 23-second margin. Santiago’s victory anchored TCNJ’s dominant performance that saw the Lions capture six of the top eight spots. He was a Week 7 NJAC Runner of the Week.
 
Nelson earned NJAC Rookie of the Year recognition with a fifth-place finish at the conference championship, clocking 25:36. He became the fourth consecutive TCNJ runner to earn conference rookie honors, following Santiago who earned it last year. Nelson finished as the team’s third runner in a pack that took six of the top eight finishes. He is a two-time NJAC Rookie of the Week and Week 6 NJAC Runner of the Week.
 
TCNJ’s coaching staff of Justin Lindsey, Michael Walker, Lucia Garcia-Beltran, Salini Iyer, and Abigail Pfaff earned Coaching Staff of the Year honors after guiding the Lions to a commanding championship victory. TCNJ scored just 22 points for the second straight season, while placing six runners in the top eight. The team’s average time of 25:20 was 32 seconds faster than the next best average.