FEATURE
Faith, Respect, Effort, Enthusiasm: Coaching at Principia Today
STORY BY ERIC MORSE (US’90)
BROADLY SPEAKING, THE COACHING CANON IS WELL-DEFINED AND WELL-KNOWN. You’ve got your John Woodens and Phil Jacksons, your Vince Lombardis and your … Ted Lassos.
But at Principia, the job—the purpose—of coaching is unique. Principia’s founder defined athletics as an integral part of a whole-person education. “We are told that ‘training is the act of bringing one into a fit condition,’ physically, mentally, or morally. Fitness of condition, then, is the result of a process of education,” Mary Kimball Morgan once told a gathering of Principia parents.
“Here at Principia, we want students to grow in character,” says College Athletics Director Ramiro “Coach Ro” Dominguez, “and we’re looking for students who buy into that.”
For School Athletics Director Shawn Brown (US’00, C’04), while athletics are part of a whole-person education, the inverse is also true: “All five aspects of the whole person can live in the athletic space.” He explains, “Sports give opportunities to teach and coach the moral and social components; likewise, every sport has an intellectual side, and of course the spiritual component is huge.”
Today’s names, faces, methods, and facilities have changed, but Principia’s whole-person, spiritually guided approach to athletics remains intact from the early days of the institution. At all levels, Principia coaches today are highly trained experts in their fields; many hold advanced degrees; they are students of their sports, leaders of their teams, and people of faith. Principia coaches—from Lower School PE teachers who introduce young students to movement, to College coaches preparing adult athletes for the national stage—demonstrate how today’s athletics programs are built for success on the scoreboard as well as integral to character growth and spiritual development. Or, in Brown’s words, “winning in purpose and winning in objective.”
“You have to see what real winning is.”
The objects we pursue and the spirit we manifest reveal our standpoint, and show what we are winning” (Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, p. 239:20), wrote Mary Baker Eddy, Discoverer and Founder of Christian Science. This statement serves as both a definition and recipe for winning, and it pervades the coaching philosophy at Principia.
Lee Furnace is a recent addition to the School’s athletics program, but he’s been embracing Principia’s coaching philosophy for decades. A two-sport collegiate athlete and member of two national championship teams, Furnace went on to coach wrestling and football at the college and professional levels, then created a successful nonprofit that teaches wrestling and character lessons to young people in underserved communities. He just finished his second year of teaching Lower and Middle School PE, while coaching Principia’s revived wrestling program.
“You have to see what real winning is, and what we’re winning at,” says Furnace. “You get back to the basics of what you’re here to do, and that’s to let your light shine, to get better, to work toward your goals, and get a little better every day.” Furnace adds, “We’re going to win matches this way. We’re going to win championships this way. If we don’t win the championships, we’re going to win at life with our kids.”
The proof is in the pudding: in just two years since resurrecting the program, the fledgling varsity wrestling team has sent nine wrestlers to the State meet, including two State finalists.
Together with fellow PE teachers Sarah (Jarvis) Grigsby (C’07), Cameron Bania (US’18) and Nigel Marples, Furnace is part of a team of elite athletes-turned-championship coaches who nurture Principia’s youngest athletes. The vibrant PE program is a linchpin of Brown’s plan to revitalize School athletics. “To close the gap [between Principia and its Metro League rivals], we need to start our students earlier, build their knowledge of the game and their competitive drive,” he contends. “A lot of character is learned from hard work and resilience.”
Marples played professional soccer in three countries before joining the School faculty a decade ago. Since then, he has taught in the classroom, served as Middle School athletic director, and led overachieving boys’ and girls’ varsity soccer teams to the State tournament. “Lots of teams talk about character, but at Principia it’s paramount. That sets our programs apart,” he says. “In Lower School PE, we teach ‘Panther Way’ qualities, like inclusivity, perseverance, joy, and embracing challenges. And that carries through to varsity sports in Upper School. These are unifying values that all Principia athletes connect with and that lead us spiritward—to grow spiritually.”
“They’re more than just athletes.”
College baseball coach Chris Marston (US’06) was a Principian before he took his first breath. The third-generation Principia baseball coach bears the name—and the visage—of the School’s most iconic baseball family. But the former D-II athlete has seen enough of other programs to immediately identify what sets Principia apart: “We don’t look at our students and say, ‘Oh, you’re broken and we need to fix it,’” he explains. “We see their unlimited potential, and as coaches we help mold and uncover that potential.”
On paper, Marston’s counterpart on the College softball diamond couldn’t seem more different. While Marston has bled Principia baseball from the day he was born, new Principian Grace Burrows was playing basketball at Missouri Baptist University only a few years ago. But she is 100 percent aligned with Principia College’s coaching mission. “We focus on the whole person, seeing everybody in God’s image, and loving everyone like God would,” says the college basketball star who, just two years out of school herself, was handed the reins of a softball team … with a roster of just two players.
It took Burrows only three years to turn Principia College softball into a competitive program. She credits Principia’s welcoming environment with attracting athletes who are humble, selfless, and willing to put in the work. Her approach to coaching showed results on the stat sheet as well as school transcripts: her team boasted four Academic All-District athletes and set a school record for runs scored in a game (24). Just a few hours later, they broke that record by scoring 29 runs.
Another new face rewriting the Principia College record books is head track and field coach Justin Halley. In his first year as head coach, Halley led a team that featured 13 SLIAC All-Academic Team honorees, four athletes who competed at the national level, and the 2026 SLIAC Indoor Track Athlete of the Year.
Like his colleagues, Halley sees athletic accolades as one part of a bigger picture. “I want [the student-athletes] to understand that achieving a personal best is amazing and we’re going to celebrate it. But if it doesn’t happen, that’s okay too.” Halley continues, “What I really enjoy is working with the kids who are struggling, making time to talk and figuring out what I can do to help. Do they need to take time away from practice to focus on academics? The key to success is building that relationship and understanding that they are more than just athletes.”
The School has its own turnaround artist in boys’ basketball coach Jay Blossom. The St. Louis Sports Hall of Fame coach came out of retirement to sign with Principia and made history in short order, winning Principia’s first boys’ basketball State Championship, then back-to-back State Championships, and quickly achieving a national top 10 ranking. Well-known for his success on the basketball court, Blossom is also a former U.S. Government teacher who prioritizes academics and character development in his coaching. “We emphasize academics,” he says. “Everything we do serves education, and we have high standards for the kids to meet. Frankly, I get more out of seeing my players go on to have a family and be productive members of society than winning on the court.”
Blossom’s character-first approach and embrace of the whole person were immediately evident to Brown, who saw firsthand as the basketball coach “fell in love with this place,” as Blossom puts it. “He was only going to give me 15–30 minutes and say, ‘Thanks, but no thanks,’ but we ended up talking for two hours. And then we talked for two hours every day for a few weeks,” Brown recalls. “Because what Principia is trying to do in terms of winning in objective and winning in purpose—building kids up and preparing them to be better human beings in the world—convinced him. We’re character educators, and that’s a coach’s first and foremost job.”
“Letting our light shine on a bigger scale.”
Principia’s administrators hear the chatter. “Principia has changed,” people say. But Directors Dominguez and Brown say nothing could be further from the truth. Success on the scoreboard simply proves the effectiveness of Principia’s longstanding approach when applied to a growing community.
Dominguez enjoys watching Principia transform student-athletes in real time. “When I talk to transfer students, they’re hungry for our whole-person concept,” he says. “They often say, ‘I didn’t feel supported at my old school.’ Whereas at Principia, the environment is loving and supportive. There’s a genuineness that makes us unique in higher education.”
And that environment provides a pathway to success, according to College volleyball coach Alana Hinson (C’24). “From professors to coaches, at Principia, everyone wants you to succeed. And whether the students are Christian Scientists or not, they are looking to explore how their faith will play a central role in their life. That’s huge for people who want the space to do so in their own manner. And Principia is great at encouraging spiritual growth.”
On the wrestling mat, Coach Furnace’s philosophy has a distinctly Principian ring to it. “I tell my kids to wrestle FREE: that stands for faith, respect, effort, and enthusiasm. ‘Wrestling FREE’ allows them to be free from self-doubt and from focusing solely on outcomes. It frees them from anxiety and all the things athletes deal with. And we always bring it back to faith. Faith is first.”
Blending a diversity of coaching talents around a singular purpose sows the seeds of success, says Halley. “[The coaches] all have different styles, but similar philosophies. Everybody embraced us with open arms here. It’s been amazing,” he beams. “Having that environment is crucial to building a strong program.”
For Brown, this chapter of Principia’s story is proof of what he’s long known to be true. “We don’t need to reinvent the wheel. Winning in objective and winning in purpose, and doing both of those things well, is our calling card. We’re letting our light shine on a bigger scale.”
