Fall Sports - Season 1

 

Cougar Mountain Middle School
2024 Cross Country Handbook

 

 

WELCOME!

Dear Runners and Parents/Guardians,

Cross Country is a no-cut sport, and all students are welcome to compete. As this is a running sport, athletes should come prepared to run every day! The schedule can be found on the CMMS website. PLEASE NOTE: Times and dates may change. If this should happen, the runners will be notified as soon as possible. We ask for your flexibility and understanding.

Please read the following information that includes our expectations, procedures, and general Cross-Country information for the season. Throughout the season, we will be primarily using FinalForms to send messages and information.

We need VOLUNTEERS to help at meets. If you can help, please send us an email! Please make sure you have been approved by the district to volunteer.

Go Falcons!
-XC Coaches

ELIGIBILITY

Cross-country is a privilege. In order to participate in cross-country at Cougar Mountain you must meet the following criteria:

• Emergency medical forms must be complete in FinalForms. Please visit the website one more time before Monday as some students’ paperwork is not complete. Students will not be eligible to practice until all forms are complete.
• All students must have a current physical on file and a valid ASB card to participate in any CMMS sport.
• You must be passing all your classes & have a 2.0 or higher GPA
• Behavior in school and practice must be appropriate.
• Uniform must be complete.
• In a typical season, you must have 8 practices prior to the first race. However, this year you must have 6 practices.

Grades will be checked within 10 school days of the beginning of the season and at Mid-Trimester. If you have a failing grade or your GPA has fallen below a 2.0, you will be placed on academic probation for 10 school days. You may practice during these 10 days, but may not compete. At the end of the 10 school days, grades are checked again. If you are passing all classes with a C or better and a GPA of 2.0 or better, than you may participate in competitions. If after the 10-day probation you are still failing you are no longer eligible and will not be able to participate for the rest of the season.

BEHAVIOR EXPECTATIONS FOR STUDENT ATHLETES

As a member of any athletic team, student athletes are expected to conduct themselves according to the code of conduct set out by their coaches and the expectations outlined in the student handbook. If, during the course of the sports season, a student has been found to violate these behavior expectations they may be ineligible to participate in practice or competition for the duration of the discipline consequence. If we have a problem with your behavior in practices or at races, we will share that the behavior is unacceptable and send an email home to your family. If you accumulate 3 emails home, you will no longer be able to participate in cross country.

Remember that you are a representative of Cougar Mountain. Always be polite and thankful to the host school.

Families please note: If the behavior of a student is severe, such as physical contact, harassment, or being unsafe when running off campus, it can result in immediate removal of the team. Administration will also be involved with the communication home to families.

PRACTICE

*** Students must have 8 practices to participate in the first meet***

Practices are a very important part of your success in cross-country. It is up to you to stay focused and give 100% every day. You are the only person that can push yourself to your potential.

Practice Times

• Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, 2:45pm – 4:10pm (activity bus leaves at 4:25)
• Wednesday, 3:40pm - 5:05pm (activity bus leaves at 5:20)

Practice Information

• Tuesday is a mandatory practice if you plan to participate in our meet's on Thursday!
• Wear appropriate clothes AND shoes for practice. You need running shoes with good traction. 
• When finished dressing in the locker rooms, meet on the field for attendance. Find your attendance group
• Parent pick-up: Students will be waiting in the FRONT of the school (family pick up area) and should be picked up by 4:15 on M, T, Th, and by 5:10 on Wed.

UNIFORMS

Each runner will be issued a CMMS uniform. We only wear our uniforms for meets and picture day. Note: Students MUST bring their uniform on picture day. NO EXTRAS will be issued for students who don’t have theirs and unfortunately, they will not be in the team photo. CLEAN uniforms must be returned at the end of the season or a fine will be placed on the student’s account.

If you wear a shirt under your singlet, it should be white or black.

Shoes are the most important piece of equipment a runner will need! You should only wear running shoes. Quality running shoes are available at several retail outlets including Dicks and others. You can find great deals online if you know the size and style of shoe you want. You do not need to purchase spikes as all the courses we run on have stretches of asphalt. Try to purchase socks made of a material that breathes i.e. Duo max or Coolmax; avoid cotton socks, if they get wet they stay wet! To be best prepared for a XC Meet, runners should pack a jacket or sweatshirt, water, and a healthy snack.

FOOD

What to eat before practice and meets:

• Avoid fried foods (they are difficult to digest) especially the day prior to and the day of a meet.
• At all times skip exceptionally greasy foods and any others that upset the system.
• During the competitive season, it is a good idea not to experiment with new foods, especially on the day of competition.
• On meet days eat sparingly. Never eat later than four hours before competition taking bland nourishing foods in moderate portions.
• Do not eat eggs on race day, as they are composed of a sulfur base that sometimes causes gas to form especially in a nervous stomach.
• Before practice also watch the lunch. In many ways this should be the same as the pre-meet meal. To be prepared for a hard afternoon practice, be especially careful not to overeat and to avoid milk at lunch.

MEET EXPECTATIONS

• When we arrive at an away meet-we will put our gear together and we expect you to be in our team area if you are not racing or cheering for the other runners.
• Warm-up/walk through - The host team will conduct a walk-through of the course. Take this seriously! Make a mental note of where the course turns, where the mile mark is and any potholes or other hazards are.
• We will warm-up as a team, but you should also do easy running prior to your race. Just before your race starts (7-10 minutes) you should run several 20 yards blasts. Try to get your heart rate up so when you start running you are better prepared for the pace of the race.
• THE RACE - we run 1.875 miles (3000 meters) to avoid traffic get out fast. Protect yourself by being aware of the other runners. Try to set a pace where you can run hard but still have some energy left for the last part of the race. After you pass the mile mark you have only .87 of a mile left and you should begin to pass as many runners get as possible.
• At the finish - run hard and lean at the finish. It is easy to get passed at the finish. As you approach the finish open your hands and get up on your toes, the race is now an all-out SPRINT!

Post-race - try to avoid sitting down until it is time to go home. It is best to run a slow cool down run to reduce the soreness in your muscles. Drink plenty of water and eat a healthy high-protein snack

TRANSPORTATION PROCEDURES FOR MEETS

All of our meets will be at other schools this year. Procedures for leaving an AWAY MEET:

• Bus Riders: We will do our best to let the runners know approximately what time the bus will be arriving back at Cougar Mountain. Students can text/call their parents when we leave the away school. Keep in mind we will be arriving back too late for the activity bus so it is important that runners have someone waiting at Cougar Mountain Middle School ready to pick them up.
• Going Home with Parent(s): When athletes have finished their race, they are free to go and MUST sign out with their coach.
• If a student is going home with someone other than their parent/guardian, they must bring a handwritten permission note signed by parent/guardian stating whom their child has permission to ride home with. No emails, texts, or phone messages/calls are permitted. It must be a signed note given to a coach otherwise; the student must ride back on the bus to Cougar Mountain Middle School. The designated adult must sign each athlete out with their coach.

We are looking forward to a great season! If you have any questions, please contact your athlete’s coach at the email below.

Head Coach: Mckay Huttle and Devin Borden

Assistant Coaches: Stephanie Mrzena, Emily Dietz, and Katie Accomazzo

 

 

Cougar Mountain Middle School
2024 JV/V Volleyball Handbook

 

 

WELCOME!

Dear volleyball players and parents/guardians,

JV/V Girls Volleyball is a cut sport. At the beginning of the season we hold two tryout days. We will use evaluation criteria to determine our volleyball players for the season. Students who make the team will be posted outside the main office and the coaches’ classrooms. At CMMS, JV/V volleyball is a great place for players with volleyball experience and background. Our school also has an intramural volleyball team that is a no-cut team. The JV/V schedule can be found on the CMMS website under the tab Student Life, Athletics, Fall Sports. PLEASE NOTE: Times and dates may change. If this should happen, the players will be notified as soon as possible. We ask for your flexibility and understanding.

Please read the following information that includes our expectations, procedures, and general JV/V volleyball information for the season. Throughout the season, we will be primarily using FinalForms to send messages and information as well as take attendance.

We need VOLUNTEERS to help serve as scorekeepers for our home matches. If you are interested, please send us an email!

Coach

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TRYOUT EVALUATION CRITERIA

Tryouts take place the first 2 days of the fall season depending on the number of participants.

Tryouts include a variety of skill drills that assess a player’s ability to pass, set, serve, hustle, and communication as well as overall sportsmanship. These scores are assessed among their grade level peers as they try out for JV or Varsity.

Each skill is rated on a 5-point scale:

5 points=Excellent/outstanding
4 points=Above average
3 points=Average
2 points=Below average
1 point=Poor or unable

Total points possible= 30

Selected players will be posted outside the girl’s locker room no later than before school after tryouts end.

ELIGIBILITY

Volleyball is a privilege. In order to participate in JV/V volleyball at Cougar Mountain you must meet the following criteria:

• Emergency medical forms must be complete in FinalForms. Please visit the website one more time before the first practice as some students’ paperwork is not complete. Students will not be eligible to practice until all forms are complete.
• All students must have a current physical on file and a valid ASB card to participate in any CMMS sport.
• Behavior in school and practice must be appropriate. Students who receive multiple referrals in a season may be ineligible if a progress plan is implemented and not followed.
• Fees are paid to the bookkeeper.
• In a typical season, you must have 8 practices prior to the first game (including tryouts).

School administrators and coaches will monitor grades of student athletes and find best ways to support them academically.  Student athletes who are struggling academically will meet with administrator/athletic director to find a way/develop a plan to improve grades while staying active in middle school sports.

PRACTICE

Practices are a very important part of your success in volleyball. It is up to you to stay focused and give 100% every day. You are the only person that can push yourself to your potential.

• Wear appropriate volleyball clothes for practice. When finished dressing, meet in the main gym for attendance. Once you have been checked in, you will begin warming up which indicates that you should start running the warm up.
• Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, 2:45 – 4:00 (activity bus leaves at 4:10)
• Wednesday, 3:40 - 5:00 (activity bus leaves at 5:15)
• Parent pick-up: Students will be waiting in the FRONT of the school and should be picked up by 4:15 on M, T, Th, and by 5:15 on Wed.
• NOTE: For safety reasons, we ask that parents park in the parent pickup line.

UNIFORMS

Each player will be issued a CMMS uniform. We only wear our uniforms for matches and picture day.

Note: Students MUST bring their uniform on picture day. NO EXTRAS will be issued for students who don’t have theirs and unfortunately, they will not be in the team photo. CLEAN uniforms must be returned at the end of the season or a fine will be placed on the student’s account.

State regulations do not allow paint or glitter on body, face, or hair. Ribbons are allowed.

Volleyball players must have their own volleyball shorts, tennis shoes (non-athletic sneakers are not permitted). Knee pads are recommended but not required. Quality gear is available at several retail outlets including Dicks and others. You can find great deals online if you know the size and style you want.

MATCH EXPECTATIONS

• When we arrive at an away match-we will report to the gym as a team. There, we will place our belongings in the designated area and wait for instructions from the host team before reaching for volleyballs/warming up.
• Warm-up/walk through – The host team will state expectations and information important to the matches for that day. Take this seriously and listen with purpose.
• We will warm-up as a team. Depending on time we will likely practicing serving as well as passing and setting after appropriately stretching and preparing for physical activity.
• THE MATCH  – We will rotate between starting with Varsity and Junior Varsity games depending on the match. While the first team plays, it is important that the waiting team is supporting their fellow teammates and behaving appropriately in the gym.

Post-match AWAY games – We will gather as a team and make sure we have all our belongings before departing. It is important to stay for the duration of the second match if you played in the first match because we are showing support for our fellow teammates. For example, if varsity plays first, they are expected to stay for the JV match as well.

Post-match HOME games – For home games, both JV/V are responsible for cleaning the gym, including putting away equipment and nets. After debriefing, players may leave. This may mean that players stay until 5:45–6:00 p.m. for home games.

TRANSPORTATION PROCEDURES FOR MATCHES

Procedures for leaving an AWAY MATCH:

• Bus Riders: We will do our best to let the players know approximately what time the bus will be arriving back at Cougar Mountain. Students can text/call their parents when we leave the away school. Keep in mind we will be arriving back too late for the activity bus so it is important that runners have someone waiting at CMMS ready to pick them up.
• Going Home with Parents/Guardians: When athletes have finished their match, they are free to go and MUST sign out with their coach.
• If a student is going home with someone OTHER than their parent/guardian, they must bring a handwritten permission note signed by parent/guardian stating whom their child has permission to ride home with. No emails, texts, or phone messages/calls are permitted. It must be a signed note given to a coach otherwise; the student must ride back on the bus to CMMS. The designated adult must sign each athlete out with their coach.

Procedures for leaving a HOME MATCH:

• Players are expected to help clean the gym by putting away volleyballs, scorekeeping materials, and the nets/poles.
• Matches will end too late for the activity bus, so players must be picked up by a parent/guardian.
• Going Home with Parents/Guardians: Players may leave after the match AFTER cleanup is complete. They must check in with their coach before departing.
• If a student is going home with someone OTHER than their parent/guardian, they must bring a handwritten permission note signed by the parent/guardian stating whom their child has permission to ride home with. No emails, texts, or phone messages/calls are permitted. It must be a signed note given to a coach; otherwise, the student must ride back on the bus to CMMS. The designated adult must sign each athlete out with their coach.