As an athlete, striving for perfection is the ultimate goal and often an unobtainable one. However, for former Adams State men’s cross country runner Phil Castillo, perfection was secured during the 1992 NCAA Division II Cross Country Championship in Slippery Rock, Pa. As the 30th anniversary of Adams State’s perfect score at the NCAA DII Championships approaches, Castillo’s highly-decorated running career will be honored as he will be inducted into the RMAC Hall of Fame with the 2022 class.
Castillo became the Grizzlies’ ninth individual cross country champion in program history following his showing at the 1992 championships. At that event, he led Adams State to its first NCAA Division II Cross Country title, finishing first among the Grizzlies’ “perfect score” team. Castillo closed the race with a 32:24, leading a pack of five Adams State scorers and recording a perfect 15 for the Grizzlies in the team standings. Although all seven of ASU’s runners claimed the top-seven spots, in cross country, scores are taken from each team’s top-five finishers.
While accomplishing a perfect score is no simple feat in the cross country world, the ’92 Grizzlies prepared to do so all season long. In a training style implemented by legendary head coach, Joe Vigil, the Grizzlies trained and competed all season with the mentality that the first seven runners needed to be within an arm’s distance of each other at all times. While certainly an unprecedented style of competition, the results speak for themselves. The 1992 Adams State cross country program remains just one of three teams to win a NCAA title with less than 20 points.
After earning nine All-America honors throughout his Adams State running career, Castillo moved on to a decorated career in the United States Army, where he served his country for over 20 years. During his time with the Armed Forces, Castillo continued his running career, competing in the 2000 Olympic marathon trials. Upon the conclusion of his running career in 2003, he continued to travel the world as an Army officer and began coaching cross country and track and field while stationed in Germany.
Castillo’s career has seen man progressions over the years but after completing more than 20 years of military service, he took over the cross country program at North Pole High School in North Pole, Alaska. While there, he was able to coach two of his daughters to top-30 individual finishes at the 2020 ASAA/First National Bank Alaska Cross Country Running State Championships.
Not just a trailblazer on the cross country course, Castillo committed time to educating his peers at Adams State about Native American culture. A member of the Acoma Pueblo, he was paramount in bringing attention to the Native American culture within the Alamosa, Colo., community as an ASU student-athlete. His efforts were crucial in helping Adams State complete a mascot change from the Indians to the Grizzlies, as they are now known. In 2018, Castillo was inducted into the Adams State Hall of Fame, 23 years after his career as a student-athlete at the university.