Meet the Coaches

Dena McCraith  (Sprints) - grew up in Niagara Falls, New York and attended Niagara   Wheatfield High School. As a student, Coach McCraith ran track for six years and cross country for three. During that time, she was captain and received MVP honors. Her events were the 400, 4x4, 1600 and 3200.

Coach McCraith continued her studies at Brockport State University in Rochester, NY from 2001-2005. During that time she volunteered as an assistant coach for the Rochester Rookies, a track program for athletes in wheelchairs.  Her athletes were living and competing with spinal cord injuries and spina bifida. The team competed in the same events as their able-bodied peers. It was an amazing experience!

After graduating in 2005, Coach McCraith began coaching in the Buffalo area. She was an assistant coach for two cross country seasons and one indoor season, also acting as head coach for a modified, spring track team (7-8^th grade).

After moving to Northern Virginia in 2007, she began her teaching career at Poe Middle School in Annandale.  A recent graduate of George Mason University, Coach McCraith is very excited to be a part of West Potomac track and looking forward to a great season!

Jenn Dietz (Distance) –joined the West Potomac cross country and track & field coaching staff as an assistant in 2008 and became Head Coach in 2010.  The Boys Cross Country (2010) and the Girls Cross Country (2010 & 2011) team have won district and regional championships.  Last year her girls finished third at the Virginia State Cross Country Championships.  Several school records have broken by her athletes in the girls 800m, 1000m, and 1600m and girls 3200m relay.  Coach Dietz was named The Washington Post’s All-Met Coach of the Year for Girls Cross Country (Fall 2011), as well as Fairfax County Women in Sports Coach of the Year (2011-2012).  She was named NVCCTFA Coach of the Year for Boys Cross Country in (2010) and Girls Cross Country (2011).

Coach Dietz ran Varsity Cross-Country and Track for four years Virginia Tech, earning Coaches Award in 2004.  In high school (Robert E. Lee High School, Springfield, VA) she was a four time District Champion and earned All-Region and All-State honors.  She was also team captain, MVP and named her high school's sportswoman of the year as a junior.  Coach Dietz currently lives in Springfield, Virginia and works at a non-profit in Fairfax, Virginia.

Jack Coffey (Distance) - is a practicing civil litigation attorney who has served as a part time assistant coach for the West Potomac Cross Country and Track teams since 2011.  He also is a former West Potomac parent of two whose son was on the 2009 State Cross Country team who went on to run in the college ranks.  Jack is a graduate of both Washington & Lee University School of Law and University of Maryland, College Park. 

As a high school graduate of Einstein in Montgomery County, Maryland he was a member of District Champion cross country team which finished second in the Maryland Class A state championship in 1971. His 10^th place finish at the state meet was the highlight of his cross country high school career.  In high school track his two mile relay team finished fourth in the Maryland class A state meet in 1972.  Outdoors Jack was the Maryland state champion in the two mile run and was ultimately inducted into the Albert Einstein High School Athletic Hall of Fame.

At the University of Maryland Jack was a three-time varsity letter winner in cross country; and a member of 1972 ACC Championship cross country team, as well as 1973 and 1975 second

place teams.  He ran on four ACC Championship teams in indoor and outdoor track.

His post-graduate career included competitive road racing for 10 years, including for

The Washington Running Club and Adidas Mid-Atlantic teams.  He is a nine-time participant in the Boston Marathon, with a best finish of 49th place in 1980.

Don Beeby (Jumps, Administration) – was a Head Coach at West Potomac for 25 years until retirement in 2009.  He attended Fort Hunt High School, James Madison University and finished up with post graduate work at the University of Illinois-Chicago.  His early accomplishments include times of 9:58 in the 3200 after finally coming out for the track team in his junior year at Fort Hunt and then continuing on with road races throughout all of his early adult life.  Times during the non-coached post graduate years were 31:20 (10K) and 51:32 (15K). 

As a high school coach he has coached 64 team District Championships, 11 Northern Region Championships, had 23 Northern Region Runner-up teams, 2 Virginia AAA State Championships, 5 second place finishes in state championships and 3 third places finishes.  Three of his teams were nationally ranked.  The 1989 Girls Cross Country team finished their season ranked 6^th in the USA.  Coach Beeby has been Virginia “coach of the year” twice and Northern Region “coach of the year” 8 times.

Other than coaching, Coach Beeby is also responsible for the direction of the “Running Is Elementary” track meet in April and May.  The annual meet has drawn over 700 athletes the last two years and continues to be an important community event.  He is married to Shannon and they have five children.

Caitlin Keen (Throws) -  from Northeastern Pennsylvania.  She participated in basketball and track and field for four years in high school. During her high school track career, Coach Keen qualified for districts all four years in the shot put and discus. Her junior year she placed 5^th in shot put at her district meet.

After graduating high school, Coach Keen attended East Stroudsburg University (ESU) for Health and Physical Education. While at ESU she was a member of their Indoor and Outdoor Track and Field team all four years. In addition to throwing the shot put and discus at ESU, Coach Keen began throwing the hammer and weight. These quickly became her favorite and best events.   She qualified for the hammer and weight throw every year for the Division 2 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference meet.  She currently is among the top 10 hammer throwers to compete for ESU.

After college, Coach Keen coached the throws at her high school in Pennsylvania. She was an assistant coach there for one year. The summer after her first year coaching she was hired by Fairfax County Schools to teach Health and Physical Education at Carl Sandburg Middle School. The move to Northern Virginia to teach cut her coaching career in Pennsylvania short, which in turn allowed Coach Keen to become a throws coach for the West Potomac Wolverines Track and Field team.

Ron Schaefer (Pole Vault) -  is a 1985 Grad of Mt Vernon High School. He was 4 sport lettermen and a member of the 1983 MVHS State Championship Football Team. Coach Schaefer was the 1982 High School National Champion in the Triple Jump and Runner up in the Long Jump. In 1983 Schaefer was a High School All American and Washington Post All-Met Selection in the 50 yd. Dash  (5.3). After High School he attended the University of Maryland on a Track and Field Scholarship. He ran 6.2 (55m),  10.3 (100m), 48.1 (400m) At the pits he jumped  24‘ 8” (LJ) and 50’ 8 (TJ).  Today he enjoys spending time with his wife/ family and coaching his 3 boys Brett, Brad and Connor.  Ron is very active with FHYAA and has been to just about all the Running Is Elementary track and field meets in the spring.

James Harkless (Jumps) -Been a part of NOVA's elite coaching fraternity since 1990.  Competed at National Championships in 800m, Earned numerous All-District, Region, and State Honors (both on Track and Scholastically).  Two-Time State Champion on 4x800 meter relay team. State runner up in 1000m (National ranked), All-Met Honorable Mention in 1000m, All-Met 4x800 meter relay, Regional and State Champion 4x400 m relay, Penn Relays Championship of America 4x800 relay participant, and HS team ranked second in the country senior year.   . 

Coach Harkless has been in numerous coaching situations and has always been a member of successful coaching staffs at TC Williams 1990-1991 & 1993-1997 and was the Head Coach in 2005.  During that time TC was at its’ pinnacle of success, winning numerous team and individual region and state championships. In 2001 through 2004 and again in 2006 through 2010 he joined coaching staff at Thomas Edison.  Both the Boys and Girls won teams won numerous district championships while he was on staff.  Coach Harkless has been on staff since 2010 and continues to work in the jumps and sprints while being a married man and raising several children.

Bob Woods (Hurdles) - graduated from Coronado High School in San Diego, where he was a multiple sport athlete, lettering in football, basketball, track and golf. He initially attended Tufts University where he competed on the indoor track team for two years, running high hurdles and the 4x400.  The second summer Bob entered the U.S. Naval Academy, where he competed on the varsity lightweight crew team for three years. His first assignment upon graduation from USNA in 1983 was physical fitness instructor at Aviation Officer Candidate School.  Subsequently, he was the collateral-duty physical fitness officer for multiple operational commands during his naval career as a Surface Warfare Officer. Since retiring from the Navy, Bob has been an active coach and commissioner in the Mount Vernon and Fort Hunt Youth Athletic Associations. This is Bob's second year helping coach the hurdlers. He is married to Dana Woods, and they are proud parents of three West Potomac Wolverines: Pace 2012, Marjorie 2014, and Avery 2016.