Nick Baker, longtime Haddonfield High School hall of fame cross-country and track coach, has died at 70

Nick Baker, 70, of Haddonfield, hall of fame cross-country and track coach at Haddonfield High School, retired teacher and dean of students, and former head of the Haddonfield Public Schools physical education department, died Saturday, Oct. 14, of lung cancer at Samaritan Hospice in Voorhees.

Mr. Baker was hired by Haddonfield in 1975 right out of Springfield College as an elementary school physical education teacher and sports coach. He moved into the high school soon thereafter and became the boys’ head track coach in 1978 and cross-country coach in 1982.

When he finally stopped coaching, just days before his death, he had collected 37 state championships, plaques in four athletic halls of fame, and the love, respect, and admiration of countless athletes, students, parents, opponents, colleagues, and others.

“Nick Baker represents everything you’d ever want in a coach, person, and a leader,” Jim Lambert, a longtime South Jersey sports writer, said in an online tribute. He is, Lambert said, “the very definition of a legend.”

Several of Mr. Baker’s runners went on to become college stars, national champions, and U.S. Olympians. He was named high school coach of the year a dozen times by track organizations and publications, including The Inquirer. The Penn Relays made him an honorary referee in April.

He was inducted into the New Jersey State Coaches Hall of Fame, South Jersey Track Coaches Association Hall of Fame, Camden County Sports Hall of Fame, and Haddonfield High School Hall of Fame. In 2019, Haddonfield named its track the Baker Track after Mr. Baker and his wife, Maureen, a former championship-winning girls’ track coach at Haddonfield.

He and his dominating cross-country teams constructed an astonishing 26-year, 251-dual meet winning streak that remains active. They won 35 sectional titles, a state record 19 in a row, and 20 state group championships.

His 2001 cross-country team won the prestigious New Jersey Meet of Champions and was ranked No. 5 in the country. His career cross-country dual meet record is 375-16.

Mr. Baker also established the school’s indoor track program, won nine indoor state titles, six indoor state relay titles, and five outdoor state championships. He created an impressive middle school cross-country program in 1997, founded the Haddonfield Invitational, and was the longtime president of the South Jersey Track Coaches Association.

In 2014, Mr. Baker told The Inquirer that his favorite time of day was always 3 p.m., when school let out, and he was free to engage with his runners. “Just having the opportunity to work with young people and their enthusiasm, to help them go after their dreams, that’s just so exciting and makes it all worthwhile,” he said.

As intense and driven as he was, Mr. Baker was collaborative with other coaches, open to new ideas, and supportive of everyone on his teams. Former runners recall him riding his bicycle around cross-country courses to keep tabs on their progress.

They talk fondly of his “WIN” motto that focused on “What’s Important Now,” and, perhaps most endearing, they remember his wide smile. “He was a fun-loving father figure for every man that went through his program,” a former runner said in an online tribute.

Mr. Baker retired as outdoor track head coach in 2004, as dean of students in 2010, and as indoor track head coach in 2014. He remained an assistant with the outdoor team and volunteer with the indoor team. He never stopped coaching the cross-country runners.

“Nick’s advocacy for the sport he adored was tireless,” his family said in a tribute. “But it was his profound impact on those around him that truly defined his life.”

Nicholas Andrew Baker was born Feb. 5, 1953, in Dublin, Ireland. He and his family moved to Mount Vernon, N.Y., when he was 5, and he ran for his state champion high school cross-country team.

He played college rugby and graduated from Springfield in Massachusetts in 1975. He was recruited by another Springfield graduate to Haddonfield. He met Maureen Stephens in college, and they married in 1976, and had daughter Courtney and son Colin.

He also coached soccer for a time, taught driver’s education, and served as interim principal for part of a year at Haddonfield. He coached his own children and gave inspirational speeches in a booming voice. He was a master strategist who preached discipline, consistency, and culture.

In 1985, his boys’ team and his wife’s girls’ team won state cross-country championships on the same day. “He was laid back but always compassionate,” his wife said. “For him, the kids always came first.”

In addition to his wife and children, Mr. Baker is survived by three grandchildren, three brothers, and other relatives.

Visitation with the family is to be from 5 to 8 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 19, and 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. Friday, Oct. 20, at Christ the King Roman Catholic Church, 200 Windsor Ave., Haddonfield, N.J. 08033. Mass is to be held at 11 a.m. on Friday.

Donations in his name may be made to the Haddonfield Educational Trust, Box 178, Haddonfield, N.J. 08033.