Abington Friends School is excited to announce that Masai Pines-Elliott has accepted an offer to serve as the School’s interim Varsity Cross-Country, Indoor Track and Track & Field Head Coach for the 2025-26 academic year replacing Mark Carberry who stepped down in order to spend more time with his family.
Pines-Elliott recently completed his second year as an assistant coach in the AFS Track & Field program working primarily in the sprints and jumps disciplines where he guided a host of AFS student-athletes to career bests, new school records and Friends Schools League and Pennsylvania Independent Schools medals. Under his tutelage for two years, Rihanna Williams ‘25 added over three feet to her triple jump mark and capped her scholastic career with a PAISAA State Championship in the event in May.
A recent graduate of Arcadia University, Pines-Elliott was a four year member of the Knights’ Indoor and Outdoor Track & Field programs, earning Middle Atlantic Conference Academic Honor Roll plaudits as a senior as well as establishing school records in 60 Meters, 4×100 Meters Relay and 4×200 Meters Relay. During his collegiate career, he also competed for Arcadia in 100 Meters, 200 Meters, 400 Meters, Long Jump and High Jump.
Of his hire, Pines-Elliott said, “I am very excited and looking forward to coaching AFS Cross-Country and Track & Field this year. I come from a family of head coaches in different sports, so I understand what a good team needs to excel both on and off the track. This is a dream come true and I can’t wait to start working to help realize success at all levels. I can’t wait to continue to learn alongside my outstanding AFS student-athletes.
Jeff Bond, Director of Athletics at Abington Friends School, says, “Masai brings an infectious enthusiasm to all that he undertakes. In his short time here at AFS, he has not only helped our students improve significantly as track athletes, but he has forged impactful and meaningful relationships with them. He brings positive energy, problem solving skills and emotional intelligence to our community every day, and we are thrilled to have him leading our running programs this year.”
Pines-Elliott will be joined this fall on the AFS Varsity Cross-Country staff by assistant coaches Michele Brinkerhoff and Jess Neushwander, both of whom have extensive experience coaching distance running at the high school and club level and are former collegiate runners themselves. Neushwander returns to the AFS coaching staff after taking time off for the birth of her daughter Margot and will be entering her tenth year with AFS Cross-Country as an assistant or head coach. Brinkerhoff, a parent of two current AFS students, joins the cross-country staff after an inaugural spring season leading the AFS Track & Field distance program. She is a long-time track and cross-country club coach and director, developing two successful running organizations in Salt Lake City, Utah before relocating back to the Philadelphia area last fall. Coaching staffs for the winter and spring seasons will be shared as the seasons approach.
Preseason starts for AFS Varsity Cross-Country on Monday, August 18th. The coaches are offering optional summer training sessions on Wednesdays in July and August from 4-5:30pm at AFS.
