Coach Andrea Hernandez

Episcopal School of Acadiana’s Cross Country team never fails to impress; this is in part because of the coaching staff. Since 1972, ESA Cross Country has earned twenty-eight state championship titles. Though Coach Andrea Hernandez has only formally been a part of the coaching staff for five years, the team believes they could not do it without her. Even with little to no professional running experience, Coach Hernandez stepped up when her son's middle school coach asked for any parent volunteers. Hernandez was quick to jump at the opportunity, which is where her career as an assistant coach began. 

Both Cross Country runners and students alike question how she handles being a mom, head of middle school, Ain't No Shade coordinator, and an assistant coach for ESA’s Cross Country team. When asked how she does it all Hernandez states,“ I think it's easy to stay motivated to do it because that is where my joy comes from.” 

While being interviewed, captain of the team, Bailey Guillotte, offered a look into her relationship with Coach Hernandez. Bailey has been on the ESA Cross Country team since she was in the seventh grade, so she says she feels Hernandez is almost her mother. When asked about how Hernandez inspires both her and the team, Bailey says, “ The most inspiring thing about her is that she is very dedicated to the team; every day she wakes up early in the morning to be with us and then lives her own life at school. She is just as willing to wake up and do the work as we are, which inspires us to live our lives like hers.”