Info For New Athletes

Welcome incoming high school students and other new students!
The USC HS Cross Country Booster Board would like to welcome you to the team.  The USCHSXC team welcomes athletes of all skill levels. The program is always well-represented in local competition, and has had numerous athletes qualify for states as a team and as individuals. Multiple athletes have gone on to run at Division I, II, and III levels in college. The team also welcomes plenty of JV athletes who run for fun, camaraderie, training for another sport, or desire to try something new. No matter what their pace, all athletes are included in the team and supported by coaches and teammates alike. You can see the athletes in action and the awesome team culture in this video from one of the meets linked here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mdYnx8Y_Ov8

New runners are encouraged to attend any of the optional coach-led training runs held over the summer on Tuesday and Thursday mornings and Wednesday evenings in July.  These are a no-commitment way to check out the team and meet friendly upperclassmen.  There are also informal athlete-led group runs in June.

At any of the training runs, new runners can also learn the warm-up/cool-down exercise routines described in the summer running packet. See also the explanatory video under the warm-up/cool-down tab. Proper muscle activation and conditioning, including strong and flexible core, hips, and ankles is essential for injury prevention!

New athletes, to be connected, follow and message usc.xc on Instagram. Captains will reach out to connect you to the group chat. Also feel free to use the Contact Us tab on this site.

Required practices begin Monday-Saturday in August shortly before school starts. Once school starts, practices are held after school Monday-Friday and Saturday mornings. The first two weeks of September the team attends are big invitationals with 25-30+ teams, and it’s quite a fun atmosphere. For the first meet, the entire team runs together with no Varsity/JV distinction, as athletes are just establishing themselves. The second week, which is even bigger, has a freshman-only race as well as other races and that is a fun chance for freshmen to shine. Section races occur in September. We finish up October with a couple more invitationals (including varsity and JV races) and then WPIALS. For WPIALS, at which point only the varsity (top 8 girls and top 8 boys) attend. We always have state qualifiers and will be looking to do that again this year! There’s definitely the opportunity for freshmen to compete with the varsity squad and earn varsity letters.

Other highlights of the season coordinated by the boosters are our pre-race pasta dinners, FUNdraising activities, senior rec, and end-of-season banquet where all the runners are celebrated. There are also many moments of spontaneous team bonding!

Cross country has a learning curve both for athletes and parents! Here’s a few general tips:

1. First, if you are new to the sport, you will want to know how a meet is scored:
   Essentially, the place you get is the number of points that your team is awarded, and lowest score wins. The first 5 runners are counted. However there are a couple more intricacies- this video explains how two dual meets are scored separately at the same meet, which is how our section meets will be:
   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-MW1UrPL0PY
   Invitationals (big meets) are scored all together, with your place=your points for the team, again for the first 5 runners. Runners 6 and 7 displace just like in dual meets, but runners 8 and beyond, if they are running in the race, are “removed”, so if a 5th runner for Mt. Lebanon who finishes behind an 8th runner for USC will move up one place/point (in this example, the 5th MTL runner who was 80th to cross the line will now earn 79 points for MTL). Sometimes only 7 runners are permitted to race, so then this issue doesn’t come up. Runners are also removed from the team scores if their team doesn’t have 5+ finishers, and in that case everyone behind them also moves up.
2. Spikes are not absolutely necessary, but very helpful especially for the runners at a faster pace. Their utility can depend on the surface and conditions of the particular course. Tie the spikes tightly, running a race with one shoe is tough! The course at Cal U (site of our first meet), is a great place to wear spikes (that big hill that always seems to be muddy). On the other hand, spikes are less appropriate on a course with a lot of pavement. Locally, Fleet Feet is a great place to purchase well-fitting spikes- be sure to make your purchase plans well in advance as demand can be high especially at the start of a season.
3. Tips for athletes in their first meets:
   Get enough sleep and fuel yourself with appropriate foods. Listen to coaches and experienced athletes on how to prepare. Bring snacks with the foods that work for you. Make sure you know what time you race is and pay attention to the coaches to get your timing chip and/or race bib if needed. Go to the bathroom early and often. At the big invitational meets, bring money for shirts and snacks if desired. https://www.womensrunning.com/training/trail/first-cross-country-meet

Be ready to be proud of yourself!