First Ever KSAC Cross Country Preseason Games Event Hosted By Karns City

PUnless credited otherwise, photos Courtesy of Karns City – Above the Cross Country Games participants

(Article by Central Clarion Wildcats head coach, Nicole Oakes)

On Friday, August 8th, way off the beaten path at the beautiful Petroleum Valley Youth Fields in Chicora, the first, of what will hopefully become an even bigger yearly event, the Keystone Shortway Athletic Conference (KSAC) Cross Country Preseason Games Event was held.

The event was organized by Karns City Head Coach Rob Pennington and Assistant Coach Megan Slaugenhoup. The idea is one that Coach Pennington has been tossing around the last several years.

On Friday, we had 28 athletes representing three of our current KSAC Cross Country teams, and four school districts, the Karns City Gremlins, the North Clarion Wolves and the Central Clarion Wildcats, with athletes from Clarion Area and Clarion-Limestone.

Starting at 9AM the kids started in the same way that each of the teams typically starts their practices – doing dynamic stretches. Each team took turns sharing a warm up that their team typically does.

All of the athletes, and the coaches for that matter, learned some new ones to add to their routines. Just as Coach Rob said as he opened the day, “We make each other better and better competition means that each team’s successes continue to grow”.

After everyone was well warmed up, the kids got their first chance to really have fun together, while also letting their competitive side show, playing several rounds of Sharks and Minnows, with the catch that “Sharks” could only tag “minnows” that were not from their home cross country team.

For the rest of the day, all of the athletes were split into four teams that each had at least two athletes from each cross country team.

First up for the newly created teams, was a plank – stilts walking game. In groups of three, athletes stood on two wooden planks, that they then had to synchronize by picking up and taking a step in order to move forward.

The next game was a variation of a scavenger hunt and hide and seek. Each team was assigned an object, and 15 of that object were hidden over the campus of the youth center. Teams had to stay together but explore the grounds to find their 15 hidden items. The athletes were reminded that they were to stick together and could only go as fast as their slowest team member.

After a morning of fun, it was time to get back to learning. “Coach Eric Laughlin “Coach E” Head Coach of PennWest Clarion University Cross Country spoke to the athletes, sharing many valuable insights.

First, Coach E shared about his beginnings in the sport of cross country. He told the kids that he never really had it in his mind to be a runner, intending to be a football player like his family legacy.

Doing a mile run for the physical fitness exam in gym class changed that. Coach E told the kids that he was where they were, as he was a runner that graduated from Clarion Area High school. Coach E had many running accolades that he was encouraged to share with the kids, mentioning that at one point he was even able to run representing the United States.

Coach E then Shared with the kids about the idea of running in college. Though unable to approach athletes until they are high school juniors, Coach E explained that he starts looking at athletes during their junior and sophomore years. Specifically, he mentioned tho the students that he watches how they interact with their teammates, and the respect that they show to their parents and coaches.

Coach E Cautioned the kids about their social media accounts, stating that he is supposed to and does monitor those for athletes he is interested in recruiting and thos currently on his team.

Coach E brought recent Karns City graduate Brooke Rumbaugh along with him.

Brooke did not perceive herself as a runner in high school, with her primary focus being on volleyball at the time. She and Coach E talked about the summer training packet that she is following and that she has learned to have confidence that she can do much more than she thought and the importance of consistiency.

Coach Rob’s daughter, Coach Rebecca Pennington, is the head of the Men’s and Women’s Cross Country Teams at Chatham University, an NCAA Division I program. She explained some of the differences between her program and their requirements versus those of Coach E because of the different college classifications.

Coach Pennington, herself a Karns City graduate, had a very impressive running career post high school, again inspiring the kids what small town athletes are capable of. She talked to the kids about the Name-Image-Likeness (NIL) deals and the opportunities that those are now bringing to college athletes.

She mentioned her team’s impressive 3.79 GPA.

Coach Pennington also touched on the cautions about what are posted on social media stating that they are looked at and she even contacts athletes at times via instagram.

Both Coach E and Coach Rebecca encouraged all of the kids to explore all of their options, visit multiple colleges if they are considering running at the next level and to make an effort to talk to the coaches.

After hearing from the coaches, the athletes enjoyed a smorgasbord lunch.

One of the nicest parts of this time was seeing the kids starting to mix sitting and talking with kids from the different teams.

After lunch it was back to games, the next two games required kids to get quite close to one another.

During the first game, athletes were all standing on a beam and were challenged to flip the order they were standing without anyone falling off. While none of the teams were 100% successful, as the game went on, more and more strategies emerged.

For the next game, all members of a team had to stand on a single platform, then one at a time swing across to another platform a few feet away, each time someone’s feet hit the ground the team was issued a time penalty. The kids certainly seemed to enjoy swinging like Tarzan.

Finally, the first ever KSAC Preseason Cross Country Games, was rounded out with a slightly adapted relay race. With varying running distances, teams had to strategize and play to the strength of each runner on their team.

For all of their hard work during the day, everyone had ice cream sundaes, and spent the last chunk of time making memories with new friends.

Roxanne McFarland commented, “My kids told me on the way home that they had a lot of fun and they definitely want to do this again next year…they also confessed they thought there would be a lot more running! haha!”

Congratulations to all the participants and a big thank you to all those who worked so hard to make the 2025 KSAC Preseason Cross Country Game a success!!

(Thanks to Coach Oakes for this article and Karns City and North Clarion Distance Coach, Roxanne McFarland for their photos!!)