Bob Marchinko returned to lead the Pfeiffer University Cross Country and Track & Field programs in the fall of 2022, bringing over 31 years of high school and collegiate coaching experience to the Falcons.
Since his return, Marchinko has elevated the Falcon programs to unprecedented championship success. Under his leadership, Pfeiffer captured back-to-back USA South Men’s Cross-Country Championships in 2024 and 2025, swept the USA South Men’s Outdoor Track & Field Championships in 2025 and 2026, and claimed the 2026 USA South Men’s Indoor Track & Field title. For his team’s outstanding achievements, Marchinko was recognized as the USA South Men’s Cross-Country Coach of the Year in both 2024 and 2025, the USA South Men’s Outdoor Track & Field Coach of the Meet in 2025 and 2026, and the Indoor Track & Field Coach of the Meet in 2026.
Marchinko’s student-athletes have excelled on the national stage at the NCAA Division III level:
- Jordan Jones (2026): Earned First Team All-American honors in both the Indoor 60-meter dash and Outdoor 200-meter dash, along with Second Team All-American honors in the 100-meter dash.
- Cross Country National Finalists: Madison Lowery (2022, 2023), Sawyer Helms (2024, 2025), Cannon Powell (2024, 2025), and Jorge Clemente-Garcia (2025) all qualified as NCAA DIII National Championship finalists. Lowery’s 2022 appearance marked the first DIII XC national qualification in Falcon history.
- Drake Stewart: NCAA DIII Outdoor Track & Field National Finalist in the High Jump.
Prior to his current stint at Pfeiffer, Marchinko served as an Assistant Coach at Catawba College starting in 2018. As a distance coach, he helped guide the 2021 Catawba Men’s XC squad to their first NCAA DII National Championship appearance in program history while coaching eight All-Region and 19 All-Conference athletes. Marchinko previously served as Pfeiffer’s Head Cross Country Coach from 2002 to 2005, earning 2002 CVAC Coach of the Year honors while leading the Men’s team to their first NCAA Division II National Championship berth.
A graduate of Kent State University with a B.S. in Physical Education, Marchinko enjoyed a standout collegiate running career at Cleveland State and Kent State, earning All-Conference honors in both sports and winning the 1991 Mid-Continent Conference XC Championship. A decorated distance runner, he is also a two-time winner of the Charlotte Marathon (2003, 2005) and champion of the 2005 Myrtle Beach Marathon.
Marchinko, a native of Jefferson, Ohio, and his wife, Wendy, reside in Salisbury. Their son, Zach, competed in Cross Country and Track & Field at UNC Charlotte, earning All-Conference USA honors four times for the 49ers.
