David Barnett

Biography

David Barnett is in his fifth season as head cross country and distance coach with the Bears, joining Baylor in August of 2021. During the fall cross country season, Barnett saw sophomore Ruth Kimeli earn all-region honors and advance to the NCAA Championships for the second year in a row. The Kenyan native ran a 6K season-best time of 19:44.1 in a top-10 finish at the Arturo Barrios Invitational. At the NCAA South Central Regional, she finished eighth again in 20:11.4 to gain an at-large spot at the NCAA Championships. In 2024, Barnett helped then-freshman Ruth Kimeli earn all-region honors with a fourth-place finish at the NCAA South Central Regional and a berth in the NCAA Cross Country Championships. She also became the first woman in program history to record a top-10 finish at the prestigious Gans Creek Classic, placing eighth with a time of 20:12.3 that ranks in the top 20 in the meet's history. Outdoors, Kimeli led the distance crew again, qualifying for the 2025 NCAA Champions