TEAM RULES, CRITERIA FOR
LETTERING, & TEAM CAPTAINS
Welcome to Pine-Richland Cross Country! Your Coaches have adopted these Rules and Guidelines for your benefit and for the benefit of your teammates, your Team and Pine-Richland High School. Review these Rules and Guidelines carefully, and review and discuss them with your parents. See your Coaches with any questions. Your understanding and acceptance of, and adherence to, these Rules and Guidelines are your first steps to a successful Cross Country season for you and for your Team.
Note: These Rules and Guidelines will be applied separately to the Girls Team and to the Boys Team.
I. TEAM RULES
A. Attendance: You will attend each team practice (weekdays and Saturday), meeting and function. There will be a team meeting after every meet (home and away). You will attend and participate in each competition (Meets, Invitationals and WPIAL and PIAA events) as determined by your Head Coach. Competitions may be rescheduled, in the Head Coach's discretion, and you will attend each rescheduled competition. Note that most Invitationals are scheduled for Saturday. During the Cross Country season, Cross Country is your first extra-curricular priority and all of your elective school activities (such as choir, band, clubs, NHS meetings, etc.) and all other personal, family and other activities should be scheduled to avoid any conflict with Cross Country. Your coaches will do everything possible to avoid scheduling conflicts with PSATs, SATS, and ACTS. Note that SATs and ACTs may be taken on alternate dates in neighboring school districts (some students do this anyway in order to see if the change of testing environment can help improve scores). Pine-Richland Cross Country always practices and competes regardless of weather conditions. Always come to practices and competitions prepared to run in the weather conditions of that day.
B. Punctuality: You will be on time to each scheduled, rescheduled or otherwise announced team practice (weekly and Saturday), meeting, function, bus loading, etc.
C. Buses: You will ride the bus to and from all competitions.
D. Effort and Performance: You will participate in each practice and each competition to the best of your ability and as instructed by your Coaches. This includes conscientious performance of all stretching, training, cross-training, warm-up and cool-down as instructed by your Coaches. During meets, you will stretch and complete a warm-up run with the team prior to the race. After the race, you will complete a cool-down run with your team. Athletes are to stay with their teammates during all other periods before and after races.
E. Demeanor and Conduct: You will be courteous and respectful to your Coaches, your captains and your other teammates. You will be courteous and respectful to all race officials and volunteers, other teams and the coaches of other teams. You will at all times conduct yourself as a serious, courteous, respectful, committed and disciplined athlete and representative of Pine-Richland High School and Pine-Richland Cross Country.
F. Clothing: You will wear a shirt or singlet at all times in all practices, regardless of weather conditions. You will wear Pine-Richland Cross Country Team uniforms at all times at all competitions. You will wear only Pine-Richland sweat jerseys, sweat pants, and windbreakers at all meets and all practices, except as otherwise expressly permitted by the Coaches (your Coaches intend to take into account cold or otherwise inclement weather, as well as Pine-Richland team clothing shortages, in granting exceptions to this Rule). Note that, until further notice, at all competitions: all visible accessory clothing (other than socks) must be black, socks must be white, scrunchies and hair bands must be black and no jewelry, watches, cords, plastic or metal hair clasps, or watches may be worn.
G. Electronic Devices and Other Gear: You will not carry or use any electronic, music, or communications devices (such as gameboys, CD players, iPods, and cell phones) at any practice, competition, meeting or function prior to its completion or (except as necessary to arrange transportation from school to home) on any bus to or from any competition. You will not bring to any practice or any competition sleeping bags or any other gear unnecessary or inappropriate for cross country training or competition or high school attendance.
You are expected to arrange your schedules, your habits and your attitudes as required to assure your compliance with each of the above Rules.
Participation on our team and in our competitions, and receipt of a varsity letter or a certificate of participation, are privileges, not rights. Your Head Coach will, in his discretion, determine whether you have violated a Rule and whether, for how long, and/or for what practices or events your participation privilege should be suspended or terminated. Your Head Coach, in his discretion, will determine if one or more Rule violations, or your athletic performance, will result in your not receiving a varsity letter or a certificate of participation. Your Head Coach will determine, in his discretion, whether to accept any written or unwritten excuse for violation of any rule.
You should expect that any (i.e. a single) Rule violation will result in suspension of your participation privilege for the next scheduled competition. If suspended, you will, if so instructed by your Head Coach, still be required to attend that competition and comply with all Rules associated with attendance at that competition. You should expect that more than one Rule violation will result in termination of your participation with the team. You should expect that one or more Rule violations may result in your not receiving a varsity letter or a certificate of participation.
II. GUIDELINES FOR VARSITY LETTER ELIGIBILITY: In determining eligibility for a varsity letter, your Head Coach intends to apply the following guidelines:
A. Summer Conditioning: Prior to August 14, 2005, all practices are voluntary. However, you cannot succeed in Cross Country unless you commence the season in good running condition. Our team will be weakened by each runner who fails to diligently train and attend voluntary practices throughout the summer. Your Head Coach will assess your level of running condition during August (commencing after August 14) and the first week of September and intends to award to you up to fifty points, based on your Head Coach's assessment of your level of running condition achieved through summer running. For example, if your Head Coach determines you are in the best possible condition as a result of summer running, your Head Coach may award you fifty points. Your Head Coach will award these points, and may increase or decrease the maximum awardable points, in his discretion. Keep in mind that injuries are the biggest obstacle to achieving a successful Cross Country season. Summer training, in the manner suggested by your Coaches, will help to reduce the chance of injury and the severity of injury.
B. Practices: You will receive one point for each practice (on or after August 15, 2005) and each meet you attend.
C. Meets (other than Invitationals, WPIAL, and PIAA): You will be awarded one point for every runner (whether from Pine-Richland or another school) you finish ahead of during any meet (other than Invitationals, WPIALs, or PIAAs) one or more runners. For example, if you win a dual meet and Pine-Richland and its opponent each finish at least 15 runners, you will receive 29 points (14 points for finishing ahead of 14 other Pine-Richland runners and 15 points for finishing ahead of all 15 runners of the other team).
D. Invitationals: If you run in the WPIAL Championship race you will be awarded two points for each runner you finish ahead of. For example, if the race has 200 finishers, and you win the race, you will receive 199 points. If you run in the JV race at an Invitational (and the JV race is the same distance and run on the same course as the varsity race), your time will be compared to times in the varsity race and you will receive the number of points you would have received had you run that time in the varsity race. For the Tri-State Coaches JV meet at Schenley Park, JV times will be compared to the varsity times for the Central Catholic Invitational and you will receive the number of points you would have received had you run your JV time in the Central Catholic Invitational varsity race; provided that the races are run on approximately the same courses and provided that Central Catholic Invitational releases comprehensive results for the Central Catholic Invitational varsity race.
E. WPIAL Qualifying (District 7 Championship): If you run in the WPIAL Championship race you will be awarded two points for each runner you finish ahead of. For example, if the race has 200 finishers, and you win the race, you will receive 298 points.
F. PIAA (State Championship): If you qualify for the PIAA Championship, you will, in the absence of rules violation, receive a varsity letter.
G. Time Requirements:
For Girls: You should not expect to receive a varsity letter unless you run 5000 meters in 22:30 (22 minutes, 30 seconds) or faster in an Invitational or WPIAL Championship.
For Boys: You should not expect to receive a varsity letter unless you run 5000 meters in 19:00 (19 minutes, 0 seconds) or faster in an Invitational or WPIAL Championship.
H. Rules Violation: Your Head Coach will determine, in his discretion, whether one or more rules violations will result in point deduction in lieu of, or in addition to, other disciplinary action.
Your Head Coach intends to award varsity letters to the athletes (a) who achieve the Time Requirement and (b) who are among the top seven in points (after taking into account any point deductions) and/or qualify for the PIAA Championship and (c) whose rules violations, if any, do not justify withholding of a varsity letter (to be determined in the sole discretion of the Head Coach). Your Head Coach reserves the right, in his discretion, to award more or less than seven varsity letters.
III. GUIDELINES FOR SELECTION OF TEAM CAPTAIN:
A. Selection: Team captain(s) for each season will be recommended to the Head Coach by majority vote of team members who have either (a) earned at least one Pine-Richland Cross Country varsity letter and/or (b) received Pine-Richland certificates of participation for Cross Country for two or more years. The vote will be supervised by the Head Coach and will take place after the end of the prior season, at the time and place designated by the Head Coach. The selection will be made by the Head Coach. The Head Coach intends to accept the team members’ recommendation if he believes the selection is based on proper application of the Criteria for Selection (see
section C below).
B. Number of Captains: The team will have one or more captains, as specified by the Head Coach.
C. Criteria for Selection: The following factors should be considered in choosing the team captain:
- Sportsmanship
- Leadership
- Dedication
- Work Ethic
- Initiative
- Character
- Compliance with, and respect of, coaches, teammates, and team rules
- Years of participation in Cross Country and/or Track (as a runner)
- Athletic achievement in Cross Country and/or Track (as a runner)
Note that running performance is only one of the criteria. The Team Captain(s) is/are not necessarily the best runner(s). However, the Team Captain (or at least one of the Team Captains, if there are two team captains) should be capable of competing for Pine-Richland at the varsity level in invitationals and at WPIAL championships (top 7).
D. Responsibilities of Team Captain:
- The Team Captain will lead team in warm-up, cool down, stretching, practices and meets, all as directed by the coaches.
- The Team Captain(s) will advise the Head Coach of all informal practices, such as any Sunday practices and off-season practices, scheduled by the Team Captain(s) or otherwise held by the Team. The Team Captain(s) will be responsible for organizing and coordinating, and constructing a calendar for and taking attendance at, informal off-season practices. Team Captain(s) will be responsible for reporting the progress of all of these practices. All off-season practices are voluntary. However, the schedule must be approved by the Head Coach.
- The Team Captain will attend and be on time to ALL team functions (practices, meets, meetings, and bus departures). An injury is not an excuse for missing or being late to any team functions.
E. Discipline: The Team Captain will be familiar with all Team rules and address any Rules violation by any team member directly with that team member and will report to the Head Coach the violation and the team member's response to the Team Captain.
E. Removal and Replacement: The Head Coach, in his discretion, may remove and replace the Team Captain. The Head Coach intends to replace the Team Captain for failure to meet any Criteria for Selection and/or for any violation of Team Rules.
Pine-Richland School District
Administrative Office
702 Warrendale Road
Gibsonia, PA 15044-9534
(724) 625-7773
© 2004 Pine-Richland School District
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