Lauren Floris, one of the top distance runners in Pepperdine cross country and track history, is in her fifth season as the Waves’ head coach in 2025-26.
In her first year as head coach, her runners broke the men’s 8K record in cross country and established 11 new records in men’s track. Two of her athletes have gone on to win Pepperdine Scholar-Athlete of the Year (Skyler Danley and Johnathan Flint). She has coached record-breaking times in the women's 100, 200, 800, 1500, and 5K meters. Her tutelage also includes new top milestones in the men's 100, 200, 400, 800, 1500, mile, 5K, and 10K meter races.
Floris, whose maiden name is Lodge, set five school records for the Waves between 2008-12. Since graduating, she’s been a head cross country coach and assistant track coach at Orange Lutheran High School in 2015-16 and an assistant coach at California Baptist University from 2016-19.
She had an exceptional career with the Waves both in racing and in the classroom. Floris earned three-time West Coast Conference All-Academic first team honors, was a four-time WCC Commissioner’s Honor Roll recipient and was a Pepperdine Scholar-Athlete. She and teammate Chelsea Wishard are the last two members of the women’s cross country team to earn All-WCC honors back in 2010. Floris placed fifth at the 2010 WCC Championships.
She set school records (that are all still active) in the women’s 5K in cross country and in the 3,000 and 5,000 meters and the steeplechase in outdoor track.
In 2018, Floris founded Up + Running, which coaches distance runners online and produces a podcast about the latest news in distance running. She began competing in marathons in 2013, which culminated with a spot in the 2020 U.S. Olympic Trials.
She graduated from Pepperdine in 2012 with a degree in accounting, and later earned a master’s degree in kinesiology from California Baptist in 2017. She has Level 1 coaching certification from USA Track & Field.
Floris is a native of Hopkinton, Massachusetts. She is married to Henri Floris, a fellow Pepperdine graduate who also ran for the cross country and track teams. They have two daughters, Lavinia and Marigold.
