It's always a bitter sweet weekend at the district championship as many athletes stand on the podium and qualify for the state meet while others wrap up their high school careers.  The boys team entered the meet as 32 point underdogs to Marist in the fight for the district team title.  The athletes were relentless as they fought to close the margin the first day.  Going in to day two the form chart gap had closed to about 13 points, but it would still take a near perfect second day for CG to overcome the deficit.  Marist placed all three athletes on the podium in five events while Cottage Grove showed off more depth by doing so in nine events.  In the end, the depth wasn't enough to overcome Marist's top finishers.  The boys should be proud of how hard they fought and that they closed the margin to 6.5 points in the end.  As always, the Cottage Grove kids performed well at districts.  They put themselves in the conversation for the win when the form chart said they had no business being there.  While the girls were not expected to score as many points there were many of them that made finals and placed higher than they were predicted to.  The girls fought for podium spots even knowing that the team points were most likely not going to be enough to close the gap on Junction City.  A handful of girls had great performances that put them just out of reach of state qualifying spots.  If you had the opportunity to attend the meet you had the privilege of seeing how supportive the Cottage Grove athletes are of one another.  It was fun to hear the roar of our athletes during the meet as they watched their teammates compete.

Congratulations to our state qualifiers who will be representing Cottage Grove at Hayward Field this weekend at the State Championship:

Hayes Valley - District Champion 110 hurdles/2nd place 300m hurdles - Was a top scorer at the meet with 30 points in four events!

Carter Bengtson - District Champion and new meet record holder in the 3000m/2nd place 1500m

Ella Cardwell - 2nd place 3000m/2nd place 1500m

Rogelio Soto-Cruz - 2nd place shot put/3rd place (AQ) discus

Clayton Dewitt - 2nd place discus

Gavin Grogan - 2nd place triple jump

Lucas O'Hara - 2nd place high jump

Micah Hanke - 2nd place 800m

Makya Alsup - 3rd place (wild card) javelin

Thanks to all of you that recognize that our social media accounts, website, and shared pictures are provided as an extra courtesy.  There are a lot of extra hours spent outside of the work and coaching day prepping graphics and then going through memory cards after long days at meets so that pictures can be posted, uploaded, and made available for free.  We appreciate all the work and time Coach Tucker puts in as well as some generous students that have donated time to take pictures.  Due to not having unlimited amounts of time and energy we focus our social media coverage on top placers first, much like the actual news media does.  We also try to share additional photos that are exceptional shots.  Trying to post pictures of every athlete is simply not feasible and ultimately someone is always left out.  The extra photos are uploaded (accessible using the 2025 Track Pictures quick link at the top of the page) for everyone to enjoy.  Thank you for understanding that we have a team full of exceptional young people and not all of them will be featured in social media posts or in photos during the season.

Monday:  Practice at 3:45pm for state qualifiers.  State qualifiers should bring their uniforms to practice for the annual state qualifier graphics.

Tuesday:  Normal practice followed by 6pm state qualifier team dinner at Coach Vogel's house.  More details will be given at practice.

Wednesday/Thursday: Normal practice time

Friday and Saturday: STATE CHAMPIONSHIP at HAYWARD FIELD!  Bus leaves at 6:45am on Friday and 7:45am on Saturday. We will go over more meet details with the state qualifiers.  Championship central may be accessed using the link HERE.  The page includes information about tickets, merchandise, meet schedule, spectator shuttle, and the clear bag policy. Let's get as many spectators as we can to Hayward to support these athletes!  

Uniform Collection:  Thank you to all of the athletes that have already turned in uniforms.  Athletes that have completed the season should turn in their uniform as soon as possible.  Please place uniform items in a plastic or paper bag that is labeled with your name and return to Coach Knutson's classroom.  Labeling the bag ensures that items are checked off appropriately in the event that uniform numbers have become unidentifiable.  Please DO NOT bring uniform items to track practice. Athletes that turn in uniforms prior to May 29th will each earn five points for their squad.  Seniors need to turn in uniforms ASAP to avoid fine slips prior to graduation.

Awards Night:  Wednesday, June 4th at 6pm in the cafeteria.

The 22nd edition of the Wally Ciochetti Invitational was one of the best ever!  Athletes from 16 schools delivered 50 times and marks that are currently ranked in the top 10 in the state in the 3A and 4A classification.  The five meet records on Friday ties 2013 for the most ever at the high performance meet.  Cottage Grove athletes set over 20 personal or season bests in the meet as they head into the championship portion of the season.  Carter Bengtson was the top placer with a second place finish in the 1500m.  David Culbert (3000m), Rogelio Soto-Cruz (shot) and Clayton Dewitt (discus) had strong performances for third place finishes.  Ella Cardwell was the top finisher for the girls with her 11 second personal best and third place finish in the 1500m.

It took well over 40 volunteers to put on such an amazing meet.  We would not have had the team fundraising opportunity without our two parent volunteers Sarah Bickford and Jennifer Hanke helping to run the concession stand.  Thank you Sarah and Jennifer for your help!  James Berry coordinated most of our event volunteers and also officiated the javelin.  A number of our athletes that didn't compete also volunteered to work in various roles.  Jeff Drumm is one of the best around at timing, results, and announcing, while Garrett Bridgens is a master with the starting gun.  The meet concluded almost one hour ahead of schedule due to fantastic team work and planning.  A team effort is the reason Cottage Grove hosts one of the best 3A/4A track and field meets in the state every season!  If only we were able to offer a top notch facility to match the quality of our event.  Our track surface has asphalt showing through the track in many places.  We were literally spraying flex seal on spots last week in an attempt to repair areas prior to the meet.  Please see the link at the top of the page to see how you can contribute to the replacement of our track surface and help us continue to put on this amazing event that benefits our athletes, program, school and our community.  Even just spreading the word helps! 

Special notes for the week:

District Championship Info (Friday, May 23 and Saturday, May 24):  This is a two day championship meet that is unlike anything we have attended all season.  We will be covering a lot of information this week at practice, but some important details for athletes and families can be found below:

• A new grade report will come out on Monday.  Any athlete that is not passing five classes or has below a 2.0 GPA is not eligible.  These athletes should not plan on attending practice this week, but should be focusing every minute on fixing academic issues.  Any athlete that does not have grade issues resolved by Thursday afternoon will not be eligible to participate in the district meet.  We would like to emphasize that we have been reminding athletes of this for weeks.  Teachers are not responsible for bending over backward for athletes that have not been taking care of business in the classroom.  Passing five classes and having above 2.0 is an extremely low expectation for participation and being a student should be the priority.  

• Entries for the district meet were due on May 17th and league coaches met on Saturday at noon to iron out meet details.  At this point we are no longer allowed to add or move athletes, we may only scratch athletes from events.  There will be a handful of strategic scratches that we will be making later in the week, and we will discuss those with athletes this week.  The online version of heats and flights can be viewed HERE. See the meet program options on the left of the page once you have accessed the link.  We will also post entries at practice on Monday.

• The meet will be Friday and Saturday at Marist High School.  A full event schedule can be found HERE.  The bus will depart at 8:45am on both days.  We want to get athletes home as soon as possible on Friday afternoon, so we will not be stopping to fill up on fast food.  Please pack food accordingly.

• How does the two day format work?  Field events will be spread out over the two days with prelims and finals of those events happening on the same day.  For all field events except pole vault and high jump there will be three attempts in the prelims with the top 9 athletes advancing to finals (on the same day) for three more attempts.  The 3000m final is on Friday, and all other running event finals are on Saturday.  All running events other than the 1500m, girls 800, and both relays will have prelims on Friday.  Athletes running in prelims will need to qualify to advance to the final on Saturday.  This means that in an event with two heats an athlete must finish in the top three or have one of the next two fastest times.  

• How does the team scoring work?  We are allowed three varsity entries per gender, per event, at the district championship.  We have only entered athletes that are capable of competing at a district meet level, which means there are a few cases where we left some spots vacant.  At the district and state championships the athletes that finish in the top 8 in each event score points for their respective teams as follows: 10, 8, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1.  The team with the most points wins the meet.  At the district meet the top 8 finishers will be recognized on the awards podium (medals to the top two places and ribbons for 3-8).  

• How do athletes advance to the state championship?  Track and field is one of the most challenging high school sports in terms of qualifying for state.  Unlike many other sports there are no "play-in" opportunities for average teams and athletes, and top athletes that are in tough leagues routinely find themselves on the outside looking in.   At the district championship the top two finishers in each event final automatically qualify for the state championship at Hayward Field.  There is one at-large bid that will go to the top third place finisher from all six district meets in each event.  Additionally, an athlete may qualify if they are not in the top two, but hit an auto qualifying mark, which is not too common.  Auto qualifying marks can be found HERE. 

Varsity Lettering Criteria Reminder:  You may view the full criteria in our team handbook (linked above).  In short, athletes need to hit a certain mark or time during the season, or place in the top 8 in an individual event at the district meet.  Relays do not count toward varsity lettering requirements due to the fact that there are only five teams in the league and every team that makes it across the finish line scores.  Please note the requirement of attending both days of the district meet.  

Practice this week:  Practices will continue to end earlier this week based on event groups.  Thursday's practice will start in Coach Knutson's room (109) at 3:45pm.  

Upcoming Dates:

State Championship:  May 30 -31.  Full details about the state meet will be available next Sunday, but until then you may view the tentative schedule at the OSAA website HERE.  Athletes that are fortunate to qualify will also participate in the annual state qualifier team dinner the week of the state meet.

Uniform Collection:  Thank you to all of the athletes that have already turned in uniforms.  Athletes that have completed the season should turn in their uniform as soon as possible.  Please place uniform items in a plastic or paper bag that is labeled with your name and return to Coach Knutson's classroom.  Labeling the bag ensures that items are checked off appropriately in the event that uniform numbers have become unidentifiable.  Please DO NOT bring uniform items to track practice. Athletes that turn in uniforms prior to May 29th will each earn five points for their squad.

Awards Night:  This is still TBD, but will take place sometime after the State Championship (May 30-31).  We will push info out as soon as we know the date, time, and location.

It was a busy week for the JV athletes with competitions at Junction City and Siuslaw.  There were many athletes that ended the season with personal bests and strong performances.  The school record and second place finish from Carter wasn't the only exciting feat at Marist on Saturday.  Micah Hanke also took second place in the 800m with another sub 2 minute race.  Seth Hill (shot), Clayton Dewitt (Discus), and Lucas O'Hara (high jump) earned third place finishes with some outstanding efforts.  Makya Alsup was the top finisher for the girls with a second place finish in the javelin.  Ella Cardwell (3000m) and Carly Knutson (800m) were other top performers for the girls with fourth place finishes.  

GRADES! GRADES! GRADES!  Teachers will be submitting grades for grade checks on Friday, May 16th.  As the district meet entries are due on May 17th it is critical that all district meet competitors are grade eligible.  After the district meet entry deadline on Saturday we are not allowed to make any changes to our entries.  Athletes that are not grade eligible may have a significant negative impact on our team.  Please make sure athletes are taking care of business in the classroom.  

Monday:  While last week marked the end of the competitive season for many of our athletes we are still asking everyone to attended practice for at least the meeting portion on Monday.  We would like to recognize athletes for achievements from last week, discuss some end of season procedures, and get kids signed up to help with the invitational on Friday.  Some athletes may be competing in one or both of the remaining track meets on the schedule and we will communicate with those that should still be attending practices.  This should only take 20 minutes or so.

• Uniform turn in procedure:  Athletes that have completed the season should turn in their uniform as soon as possible.  Please place unform items in a plastic or paper bag that is labeled with your name and return to Coach Knutson's classroom.  Labeling the bag ensures that items are checked off appropriately in the event that uniform numbers have become unidentifiable.  Please DO NOT bring uniform items to track practice.    

Tuesday - Thursday:  Practices will be lighter this week as we head into the championship part of the season.  We will know as of Thursday morning who has been accepted to compete in our home invitational on Friday.  Athletes will most likely have an idea even earlier as they can already see entries on athletic.net.

Friday:  Wally Ciochetti Invitational.  WE NEED HELP PLEASE!  We are still in need of a few adults to help supervise the concession stand during the meet.  There will be athletes signed up to help, but we still need some adult supervision from roughly 3pm to 9pm.  If we can get a few people then the shifts can be shorter.  It's great if we have someone with some experience working our high school concessions, but it is NOT a requirement.  Please contact Coach Knutson if you are able to help.  We will honor all seniors that wish to be recognized at 3:30pm in lane one at the 50 yard line.  Thank you for gathering a few minutes before we start the recognition.  If all seniors choose to participate there will be 29 athletes to recognize.  Thank you for understanding that we will need to make this as efficient as possible.  

Upcoming dates:

Much more information coming about these two meets, but this will get us started.

Friday, May 23 and Saturday, May 24th - Districts at Marist:  We are still waiting on Marist to communicate about meet schedule, but you may view the schedule from LAST YEAR HERE.  Running event times are likely to be the same, but field event days and times could potentially change. We will communicate as soon as possible once we are given the schedule for this year. 

The focus of the district meet is to advance athletes to the state championship and maximize team points.  Since the meet is two days there are some athletes that will double up in events.  This means there aren't the same number of vacancies in events as usual, and some athletes that might have attended invitationals this season may not compete at districts.  We have been communicating this with athletes throughout the season, so this should not come as a surprise.  There will be much more information to come about this meet.  Entries for coaches are due at 10am on Saturday, May 17th and there are no changes (other than scratches) allowed after that point.  It is critical that athletes share any potential scheduling conflicts with Coach Knutson NOW.  If an athlete scratches after the May 17th deadline we are not allowed another entry and the spot is lost. Please be sure to communicate with coaches ASAP if there may be any schedule conflicts.

Friday, May 30 - Saturday May 31 - State:  How do athletes advance to the state championship?  Track and field is one of the most challenging high school sports in terms of qualifying for state.  Unlike many other sports there are no "play-in" opportunities for average teams and athletes, and top athletes that are in tough leagues routinely find themselves on the outside looking in.   At the district championship the top two finishers in each event final automatically qualify for the state championship at Hayward Field.  There is one at-large bid that will go to the top third place finisher from all six district meets in each event.  Additionally, an athlete may qualify if they are not in the top two, but hit an auto qualifying mark, which is not too common.  Auto qualifying marks can be found HERE. 

It was another beautiful week for competition as the team hosted a league home meet and also had some great conditions in Florence for the Central Coast Invite.  The performance of the week came from Micah Hanke as he went head to head in the 800m with the 3A state cross country champion from Siuslaw, Clayton Wilson.  Micah showed no fear as he took the race out to a 56.5 first lap and battled to hang on.  While it wasn't enough for the win, Micah's time of 1:58.02 is the fastest 800m time by a CGHS runner in 40 years!  This is a testament to all of Micah's hard work this season which has included morning weight room sessions.  

This week will be one of the busiest of the season with three meets, two of which will include our JV athletes.  We don't typically have another JV opportunity after the JV district meet, but we have received a generous invite to join another JV level meet on Friday in Florence.  Thank you for your patience as we engage in a bit of a juggling act with our entries this week. We have several athletes that are approaching the OSAA 12 meet limit (prior to districts and state) and we need to make an attempt to guess which meets athletes may be accepted to compete at the next two weeks.  The process for entries this week requires careful planning for each athlete as well as timing with entry deadlines.  We will do our best to keep athletes in the know as soon as possible.  Our goal is to make sure each athlete gets a minimum of one meet, but many JV athletes will get two meets.  For example, an athlete may not attend the Tuesday meet because we are trying to get them into the Saturday invite.  If it looks like an athlete may not qualify for Saturday we will try to make sure they are in the Friday meet.  Due to several unique factors this season this is the first time in over 20 years that we have ever encountered a week of this kind.  Again, thank you for your patience as we try to make the best decisions for our athletes and team while also working within the OSAA rules.  

This week:

Several athletes still have not picked up pictures.  Please swing by Coach Knutson's classroom to do so.

Monday:  Many athletes already signed up for events for the Tuesday JV district meet already, but we will be sure to double check and communicate entries at practice.  Practice will end by 5pm for those athletes competing on Tuesday.

Tuesday:  JV District Meet.  Bus will depart at 1:45pm.  Athletes not competing at this meet will still have practice at the normal time.  Athletes should bring plenty of food as we will be heading directly home after the meet.  

Wednesday:  Normal practice.  Entries for Marist Invite (Saturday) are due by midnight.  Athletes will be in one of three groups on Wednesday in terms of meet entries:

1. Many athletes will know they are attending the Friday meet and will be able to sign up for events.

2. Many will know that the Saturday invite at Marist will be the meet they will compete in for the week.

3. A handful of athletes will be waiting until Thursday to find out if they made it into the Saturday meet.  If they did not qualify then they will be entered into the Friday meet.

Thursday:  We will post entries for both the Friday and Saturday meets.  Practice will end by 5pm for those athletes competing on Friday.

Friday: Almost Varsity Invitational (JV) at Siuslaw High School.  Only athletes competing on Saturday will still have practice at the normal time.  Bus will depart at 12:45pm.  Again, athletes should pack plenty of food as the bus will head straight home after the meet.  This will be the last track meet of the season for many athletes.  We are asking every athlete to attend at least the first part of practice for the team meeting on Monday, May 12th.  Results from the Friday meet might impact entries for the last two weeks.  We want to make sure nothing falls through the cracks and we would also like to continue our routine of recognizing athletes for performances after track meets.  In addition, we will need to sign athletes up to help out at our home invitational.  

Saturday: Marist Track Classic.  Bus departure at 8am. Tickets may be purchased at the gate or by using THIS LINK ahead of time.

Upcoming Dates:

Monday, May 12th:  Normal practice time.  Athletes that are no longer competing will be dismissed after the team meeting.

Friday, May 16th:  Wally Ciochetti Invitational at CGHS.  This has become one of the premiere small school late season meets in Oregon.  We will also briefly honor our seniors in front of the main stands at 3:30pm.   Forms will be distributed to seniors to fill out prior to the meet and will need to be returned to Coach Carly Tucker.  We have 29 seniors on the team this season, so thank you for understanding that this will be a brief introduction of each senior in order to keep the event moving along.  WE NEED HELP!  We don't ask much of parents during the season, but we could use some help with concessions during our meet.  We will have athletes signed up to help, but need to have some adult supervisors.  Please contact Coach Knutson if you are willing to help out. 

After an interesting trip to North Bend on Tuesday, which featured a steady 30mph wind, the team headed to Sweet Home for the 47 team Meet of Champions.  The Lions qualified more than 20 athletes that faced off against many of the top 1A - 4A competitors from around Oregon.  Micah Hanke was the top placer for the boys with his win in the 800m.  Micah's time of 1:59 currently ranks him #4 in the state in the 4A classification.  Carter Bengtson battled to a second place finish in the 3000m where the top two finishers both ran faster than the previous meet record.  Carter is currently ranked #1 in the state in the 4A classification in both the 1500m and the 3000m.  Makya Alsup and Carly Knutson were the top finishers for the girls with a 6th place finish in the javelin and 7th place finish in the 800m respectively.  Makya is currently ranked #4 in the state in the javelin.  

This week:

Team pictures have arrived.  If athletes ordered pictures they may pick those up from Coach Knutson's classroom.  We would prefer not to haul pictures out to practice where they could be lost, damaged or left behind.  

Monday:  Entries for Tuesday will be posted so athletes may double check for any possible errors.  There are some athletes that still need to take care of grade issues.  It is the responsibility of the athlete to resolve grade issues and turn a grade slip in to the office to become eligible. Practice will be done by 5:15pm for most athletes.  

Tuesday:  Home league meet. Dismissal at 2:30 and warm up at 3:10.  Field events start at 4pm and running events start at 4:30pm.  Just a reminder that athletes are expected to stay until the end of the meet. There may be a small handful of athletes that don't participate in the meet for one of multiple reasons.  Athletes are reaching their meet limit for the season and other athletes will be focusing on the Friday invitational.  We will communicate with those athletes individually.  

Wednesday:  Normal practice.  Entries for the Friday Central Coast Invite will be posted.  We will be able to bring a larger group of athletes to this meet compared to the last couple of invites.  

Thursday:  Practice will be done by 5:15pm for most athletes.  

Friday: Central Coast Invite (Siuslaw HS).  Bus will depart at 12:45pm.  Athletes should pack plenty of food as we will not be stopping to eat on the way home.  NO PRACTICE FOR ATHLETES NOT ATTENDING THE MEET.

Saturday:  Centennial Invitational.  This meet will be dropped from the schedule.

Upcoming Dates:

Week 10 will be the final week of the season for many athletes.  Fortunately, we have scheduled two opportunities for athletes to compete during week 10.  

Tuesday, May 6th: JV districts at Junction City.  This is called JV districts because it includes all the teams from our league.  Unlike some of the other JV league meets, teams don't typically bring varsity level athletes to compete.  

Friday, May 9th: Almost Varsity (JV) Invitational.  This will be the last competition of the season for many of our athletes.  

Saturday, May 10th:  Marist Track Classic.  

The weather couldn't have been any better as we hosted our first home meet and traveled to the John Oliver Invite.  While they most likely don't see the web updates here we would still like to extend a thank you to all the volunteers that make our home meets possible.  We don't like to ask parents to work events so that they can enjoy watching their athletes compete. If you happen to have the opportunity at our next home meet to thank our meet workers and officials please do so.  The John Oliver Invite featured 20 teams that included a mix of 5A and 6A schools as well as some top teams from the smaller classifications.  There were several athletes that finished on the podium for the Lions.  On the boys side Clayton Dewitt and Hayes Valley recorded 3rd place finishes in the discus and 110m hurdles.  Distance runners paced the girls team with Carly Knutson placing 6th in the 800m and Ella Cardwell placing 11th in the 1500m.

There are a few more people that we need to thank.  We are lucky to have Travis Vaughn travel with the team to take photos, and he has done some phenomenal work.  His pictures are posted on our social media sites as well as in the cloud via the 2025 Track Pictures link above.  Pictures from the Friday meet should be uploaded early in the week.  Also, Coach Tucker and Mr. Hutchins generously offered to travel to Florence early Saturday morning to pick up a pole vault pit.  It took two trucks with large trailers to haul the pit back to CGHS.  While it is not brand new it is still a significant upgrade from what we had and it eliminates some safety issues we had with our old one.  A HUGE thank you to those two for giving up half of their day off to help our program.  Thank you to Coach Basting and Easton Hutchins for helping with the unloading and assembly process once the pit was back at the school.  We are fortunate that our good relationship with other programs such as Siuslaw High School afforded us the opportunity to purchase the used pit from them at an exceptional price.  One last thank you that we don't want to forget is to our food service staff.  They had sack lunches ready to go for every athlete that was traveling to the meet last Friday.  There is a lot of work and planning that happens behind the scenes to provide a positive, safe and healthy experience for our athletes.  

This week:

Monday:  Entries for Tuesday will be posted so athletes may double check for any possible errors.  Grades will be pulled on Monday as well, which means any ineligible athlete (not passing five classes or below a 2.0) will not be entered for Tuesday's meet.  It is the responsibility of the athlete to resolve grade issues and turn a grade slip in to the office to become eligible. Practice will be done by 5:15pm for most athletes.

Tuesday:  League meet at North Bend.  Bus will depart at 12:00pm (This is during lunch, so please plan accordingly).  Students will be released at 11:25 so that they have time to get lunch.  A small handful of athletes that don't attend the meet will still have practice if they are healthy.  There are some athletes that have had a large event load recently that we know will get in to the upcoming Saturday meet.  Pulling them from the Tuesday meet will allow them to get in a workout and better prepare for Saturday and beyond.  We will not be stopping for food on the way home.  Thank you in advance to all parents that are at the school to pick up athletes when we return. 

Wednesday:  The last middle school home meet.  Athletes should be dressed for practice and report at 2:00pm.  We will have a quick team meeting and then get in a warm up and give job assignments. We hope to have athletes done with helping at the middle school meet by 7ish.  Entries are due at 8pm for the Saturday Meet of Champions.  This meet is unique in that it doesn't limit entries, but the accepted entries are based on quality of marks.  It is a 50 team invitational and they draw the line at the top 24 entries for most events (fewer in the PV and HJ).  There will be some events where we don't have any athletes accepted and others where we may have four.  We should know who will be accepted to compete sometime Thursday morning.  

Thursday:  Normal practice and we will inform athletes if they have been accepted to compete on Saturday.  We will also start event sign ups for athletes that will be competing at the April 29th home meet.  

Friday:  NO SCHOOL.  Practice at 3pm ONLY for athletes that have been accepted to compete at the Saturday Meet of Champions.

Saturday:  Meet of Champions.  Bus will  depart at 7:15am.  We will stop for food on the way home.

Upcoming Dates:

Tuesday, April 29th:  Home meet. Athletes will be dismissed at 2:30pm and warm ups will start at 3:10pm.

Friday, May 2nd:  Central Coast Invite.  We will be allowed up to three competitive athletes per event.

Saturday, May 3rd:  Centennial Invite.  This meet is on the schedule for a couple of athletes.  However, based on health, performance, and fitness, we may or may not have athletes attend this meet.  We will be communicating with the individuals that might be attending this meet.  

UPDATE: 2025 John Oliver Invitational - Schedule

Field Events (3 attempts, top 9 to finals)

2:30    Girls- Discus, Pole Vault, Long Jump (Triple Jump will follow)

2:30     Boys- Shot Put, Javelin, Long Jump (Triple Jump will follow), High Jump  

Opening Heights for PV - (G) 6’6” and (B) 8’6”

Opening Height for HJ - (G) 4’2” and (B) 5’2”

Running Events (Slowest heat to fastest. This will be a rolling schedule so the times are estimates) 

3:30    G 4X100 Relay 

3:40    B 4X100 Relay 

3:50    G 1500 

4:10    B 1500 

4:30    G 100 

4:45    B 100 

5:10    G 400 

5:25    B 400 

5:45    G 100H 

6:00     B 110H 

6:15    G 800 

6:35     B 800

6:55    G 200 

7:10    B 200 

7:30     G 300 IH 

7:45    B 300 IH 

8:00    G 3000 

8:20    B 3000 

8:50    G 4X400 

9:05    B 4X400 

9:15    Awards

It was another productive week for the team with the first league meet, hosting a home middle school meet, and traveling to the 27 team Roseburg Invitational.  Thank you to all of our athletes that helped work events during the middle school meet.  Not only did they help to make the meet possible, but they were able to support our young middle school athletes in the process.  Roseburg featured some top tier competition on Saturday and CG had some strong performances.  Carter Bengtson's time of 4:04 in the 1500m for third place is the fastest time by a CGHS athlete in over 40 years.  Clayton Dewitt threw a season best in the discus for a 4th place finish.  Carly Knutson was the top placer for the girls with a four second personal best and third place finish in the 800m.  Emmy Bickford ran a league leading time in the 300m hurdles for a fourth place finish.

This week:

The apparel order arrived last week.  Several athletes still have not picked up the items they ordered.  Athletes may stop by Coach Knutson's room during the school day or pick up items after practice.  You will notice this time of year that we will be ending practice earlier on some days.  With the meet schedule being so busy the athletes need time to recover.  The focus on practice days will be more event specific as well as time in the weight room for low impact strength work.

Monday:  Entries for our home league meet on Tuesday will be posted at practice.  It is the responsibility of the athletes to check the entries and communicate with coaches about adds or changes.  Practice will end by 5:15pm for most athletes.  There may be some athletes that choose to stay longer to work on specific event skills or finish up practice in the weight room.

Tuesday:  Home league meet. Dismissal at 2:30 and warm up at 3:10.  Field events start at 4pm and running events start at 4:30pm.  Just a reminder that athletes are expected to stay until the end of the meet. 

Wednesday:  Our entries are due Wednesday evening for the Friday John Oliver Invitational.  We hope to get quick confirmation as to who will be accepted and will let athletes know as soon as possible.  We're most likely looking at 1-2 athletes per event depending on the event.

Thursday: Practice will be done by 5:15pm.  Athletes should start event sign ups for the Tuesday meet the following week.

Friday: John Oliver Invitational.  The bus leaves at 11:25am.  NO PRACTICE FOR ATHLETES NOT ATTENDING THE MEET.  Athletes that attend invitationals are expected to come prepared with all that they need to be successful.  We have had a wave of athletes forgetting spikes, equipment, and not being prepared with food.  These expectations have been made clear in practice, but thank you for your help reinforcing these expectations at home.  We will be prioritizing athletes that have shown they are able to take care of these responsibilities when submitting entries for future meets.  If availability of food is a challenge please communicate with a coach and we can find a way to assist you.  

The 1500m will be one of the premier events at this meet and the boys race will most likely feature three to four athletes that are sub 4 minute runners.  If you're planning on making the trip to watch the meet you won't want to miss seeing Carter in this race!  Information is limited right now on athletic.net, so here is what we know at this time:  

Field events start at 2:30pm

Track events start at 3:30pm

Admission is $5 for adults and $3 for students.

Saturday: No meet! Enjoy the full weekend!

Upcoming Dates:

April 22nd: Sky-Em League Meet at North Bend.

April 23rd:  Home middle school meet (high school athletes will help host again).

April 26th:  Meet of Champions in Sweet Home.  

What a weekend!  If you thought the Oregon Relays felt a little like a marathon you wouldn't be wrong.  The team spent just over 26 hours at Hayward Field this weekend, but the tradeoff was an experience for many of our athletes that is complicated to put into words.  The unique format allowed athletes to compete at one of the best track and field venues in the world in an environment that is unlike any other.  The evening sessions were electric and if you were there Friday evening to see Micah Hanke run the final leg of the 1600m sprint medley you witnessed something special.  The team was in 5th place and over four seconds behind first place when Micah got the stick, and by the time he finished the 800m leg Cottage Grove had won the heat by over three seconds.  Under the flashing lights at Hayward Field, music blaring, and the announcer shouting out "Cottage Grove coming down the home stretch" over the PA system, it was a magical moment for Cottage Grove track and field athletes and fans.  

Once again, Coach Tucker put in hours of taking pictures and creating graphics for the kids.  Pictures from the Oregon Relays and other meets this season are accessible using the 2025 Track Picture link above (password: GoLions24).  Thank you to Coach Tucker for all of his work in creating the images that will be lifetime mementos for the athletes.

As one part of our team was competing in Eugene we also had a handful of athletes volunteering to help serve food at the Family Relief Nursery Gala.  Thank you to all of you that helped!  We appreciate those volunteers taking the time to give back to our community and represent our program and school in a positive way.  We will have another opportunity for service as our athletes help to host the middle school home meet this week.  

Things are really going to start rolling this week as we enter the part of our season where there are often two meets per week for some athletes.  Thank you for taking a moment each week to read through this so that you are in the know.

This week:

Monday:  Many athletes signed up last week for events they would like to participate in on Tuesday at Junction City.  We will post those entries and give athletes an opportunity to make adjustments or sign up for additional events.  It is the responsibility of all athletes to make sure to confirm entries with the coach on Monday at practice.  There are a small handful of athletes that will not attend the meet on Tuesday after having a long weekend at the relays.  We will communicate with those athletes on Monday.  Athletes will also be given picture packets if they would like to order team pictures (see Wednesday).  

Tuesday:  Track meet at Junction City.  The bus will depart ON TIME at 1:45pm.  Only athletes competing will be traveling to the meet. Athletes should be prepared for inclement weather and there are no covered stands at Junction City.  We will be bringing two large team tents, but it could be sloppy.  Athletes should also bring food as we won't be stopping to eat on the way home.

Wednesday:  Team pictures AND home middle school meet.  Team pictures will be at 1:30pm (Gym or turf depending on weather).  Athletes need to be dressed in jacket and sweats for the pictures.  If athletes are wanting to purchase individual pictures then they may determine how they dress for that.  Immediately following pictures athletes should be prepared to help host the middle school meet.  Our athletes have a number of jobs during the meet which includes running the field events.  Athletes should be dressed for the weather and we hope to be done by 7ish.  Entries for the Roseburg meet are due by 11pm.  We will confirm with kids who will be attending this meet.

Thursday:  We will start event sign ups for our home meet the following Tuesday.

Friday:  Practice will be light and most athletes will be done by 5:15pm.

Saturday:  Roseburg Invite.  The bus will depart ON TIME at 8:30am (CORRECTED 4/7).  This meet allows each team two entries per event per team, but we will only be taking athletes that are capable of competing at an invitational level.  Limited entries mean that many athletes will only be competing in one event.  We will plan on stopping for food on the way home from this meet.

Upcoming Dates:

April 15th:  Home meet

April 18th:  John Oliver Invitational

UPDATE: DEPARTURE TIMES FOR OREGON RELAYS - FRIDAY 8:50AM AND SATURDAY 7:20AM.

We were fortunate to have four days of wonderful weather for practice over spring break and participating athletes continued to build on their fitness foundations.  Athletes that attended all week received five points each toward their squad scores, and athletes that were at practice on Wednesday also participated in a fun squad competition.  Squad points have been updated and you may view the current squad scores using the link above.  This week will be unique in that there is only one meet, but it is a big one.  A quick outline of the week is below along with a Q and A section about the Oregon Relays.

This week:

• Monday:  Athletes that missed practice over the break will be spinning the conditioning wheel as a group starting Monday.  Each missed day is worth two spins of the wheel and we will not do more than four spins per practice day.  Athletes will also be informed Monday if they might compete at the Oregon Relays.  A new grade report will be printed on Monday.  Any athlete that has an F or is below a 2.0 GPA needs to report to academic Wednesday school unless they present an updated grade slip to the office prior to Wednesday.  Athletes below a 2.0 will not be eligible to compete until grade issues are resolved. **Forecast is calling for a possibility of thunderstorms in the afternoon.  Please be sure you're signed up for our remind group in order to receive any updates with practice changes.  Thank you for texting @cgtrack25 to 81010 to sign up if you have not done so already.

• Wednesday:  We will be doing some event sign ups for the Sky-Em League JV meet that will be happening the following week on Tuesday, April 8th.  All athletes are eligible to compete at this meet, but we may have a few varsity level athletes stay back to practice instead.  Signing athletes up in advance gives us the opportunity to post entries and have athletes proofread in order to avoid any mistakes.  This will be the first meet where athletes will have more choice as to which events they will participate in.  

• Thursday's practice will conclude at 5pm for athletes NOT participating in the Oregon Relays.  There will be a team meeting in room 109 at 5pm with all athletes that will be attending the meet.  We will finalize event info and go over schedule, warm up, and check in procedures.  Competing at Hayward Field is much different than at any other venue.

• Friday and Saturday:  The Oregon Relays.  Departure times:  FRIDAY 8:50am and SATURDAY 7:20am.  Athletes not attending the meet will NOT have practice on Friday.  Please see the Q and A section below to learn more about how this unique relay meet works.

• Saturday April 5th:  We will need 10-12 athlete volunteers to help serve food at the Family Relief Nursery Gala from 4:30 to 9pm at the Cottage Grove Armory.  Our program has provided help for this event for the last two years and our athletes have been given rave reviews for their service.  It's a great opportunity to give back to our community and represent our program in a positive way.  There will also be squad points up for grabs!  Athletes should do their best to dress in all black and dinner will be provided for them.  We will have sign ups this week at practice.

OREGON RELAY Q and A:  Don't worry if this information seems a bit overwhelming, there is no other meet on the schedule like this one.

Q: How does this meet work?

A: The Oregon Relays is one of the premier meets on the west coast featuring almost 200 teams from multiple states. There are two main ways to participate:

1. Qualify as an individual by hitting a meet entry standard which is extremely difficult to do.  Only two individual athletes on our team would meet the qualifying standards this year if this is how we participated.

2. Get invited as a team.  Cottage Grove has been invited this year as a result of our program being competitive at a high level within the 4A classification.  This allows us to enter some individuals using a slightly lower criteria and also allows us to enter a number of relay teams.  

Q:  Which athletes will be participating for CGHS?

A:  We hope to have 30+ athletes accepted (this is more than we anticipated) with around 10 athletes in individual events and the other 20+ having the privilege of participating in the relay portion of the meet.  We have done our best to maximize participation so that some of our athletes might have a once in a lifetime opportunity to compete as a high school athlete at one of the best track and field venues in the world.  We are allowed to enter up to eight athletes for each relay event in our relay "pools."  Once entries have been locked on March 30th we are no longer allowed to make any changes to any relay pool.   Athletes will be notified on Monday at practice if they have been entered as an individual or included in any of the relay pools.   Final decisions on which four of the eight from each relay pool will actually race will depend on several factors this week such as ability, health, number of events per athlete, and work at practice.  We will make every effort to let athletes know if they will be top four in each relay as early as possible after entries are accepted on April 1st, but alternates will need to travel and be ready to warm up at a moment's notice if needed to compete.   We have made an attempt to plan out relay entries so that if someone is an alternate in one relay event they will get an opportunity to race in at least one other relay.  For example, Zoey may be an alternate in the 4x400m relay pool, but she will race in the 800m Sprint Medley.  It is our goal to get everyone that is in a relay pool into at least one race.  Any athlete that is scheduled as an alternate, but might not race at all will be informed ahead of time and given the option to not attend if they would prefer not to.  Alternates are extremely important at events like this because illness and injuries happen and substitutions prevent us from having to scratch events.  Scratching events at a meet like the Oregon Relays can prevent us from being invited back in the future.   

Q:  Why aren't our fastest athletes entered in every relay?

A:  Athletes are limited to four events over the two days and there are too many relays for us to enter our "A" team in every event.  This is the beauty of a relay meet as we are able to take advantage of depth and maximize participation.  It is a long season and we are trying to protect the long term health and safety of our athletes by not stacking them in multiple events this early in the season.  More importantly, we're trying to maximize participation and give athletes an opportunity to race at Hayward Field.

Q:  Does an athlete need to be at the meet all day on both days?

A:  Athletes that are entered should be at the meet on at least the days when they compete or are included in a relay pool.  Athletes should travel with the team to the meet each morning as they are required to have bib numbers to enter the facility.  If athletes don't travel with the team and are showing up throughout the day it creates a nightmare for the coaching staff trying to coordinate to meet athletes at the front gate to get them their bib numbers.  Athletes that are done competing and are no longer in a relay pool for the rest of the day/meet are free to leave with their parents if they have checked out with a coach.  There may be a handful of athletes that could show up later on Saturday if they already have their bib numbers, but we can  communicate with those athletes individually.

Q:  What if an athlete is entered but can't attend?

A:  This would be an unfortunate missed opportunity for an athlete.  When the entries are posted on Monday any athlete that will not be able to attend should let Coach Knutson know immediately.  An athlete scratch in one event can cause a ripple effect that can impact other events.

Q:  What is the meet schedule?  When will each athlete race?

A.  The tentative meet schedule can be found HERE.  We will make every effort to make sure that athletes know exactly what events and at what time they are competing in prior to the meet.  Thursday's practice will end with a team meeting for those competing in the meet so that we are all on the same page and any potential last minute changes have been communicated.  However, please understand that track and field is a sport and things can change at the last moment due to factors beyond our control such as illness and injuries.  We don't anticipate huge shifts, but a late scratch in one event can cause a change in another event.  Just like a basketball coach can't predict when and how much an athlete might play in a game, we can't promise that changes won't happen.

Q:  Where can I find spectator and ticket information?

A:  A direct link to ticket and spectator information may be found HERE.  If you are new to attending an event at Hayward Field we highly recommend reading through the details carefully.  

Upcoming Dates:

April 9th (1:30pm): Team pictures.  We will hand out picture packets on Monday of picture day week.

April 9th (until 7:30pm):  The high school team will be helping to host the home middle school meet.  We are responsible for running the field events and need our athletes on site until the middle school meet ends.  

Last week ended with a flurry of team activities with our first meet, team potluck, and some of our throwers competing on Saturday.  The team faced some wet and windy conditions in Florence, but still competed well given the circumstances.  The team potluck would not have been such a success without all the generous contributions.  The team extends an enormous thank you to all who prepared and brought food, it was a fun night of food, team building, and squad competitions.  You can check out the updated squad standings using the 2025 Squad Points link in the quick links section above, it's a tight competition!  On Saturday at the Harvey Lewellen Throws Invitational our discus team of Clayton, Rogelio and Justyn combined marks to take first place in the discus with Clayton also winning the individual discus title.  Makya was also an individual champ in the javelin.  

This week:

Monday- Thursday (March 24 - 27):  Practice time is 9am to 11am.  Practices are required and absences will be treated the same way that we do with any other missed practice (two spins of the fitness wheel for each day missed).  We understand that some families may leave for spring break, but we maintain the same standard for all athletes.  There is no need to notify coaches of absences this week; athletes are either at practice or they aren't.  Athletes, please enter the facility through the gate at the track and you may then access the locker rooms through the gym door at the track. 

Friday (March 28th) - NO PRACTICE.  Enjoy a long weekend!

Upcoming Dates:

April 4-5: The Oregon Relays at Hayward Field features top competition and we won't know what entries have been accepted until April 1st.  We expect to have about 15-20 athletes attending.

April 5th:  We will need 10-12 volunteers to help serve food at the Family Relief Nursery Gala from 4:30 to 9pm at the Cottage Grove Armory.  Our program has provided help for this event for the last two years and our athletes have been given rave reviews for their service.  It's a great opportunity to give back to our community and represent our program in a positive way.  There will also be squad points up for grabs!  More details to come at practice.

April 9th (1:30pm): Team pictures.  We will hand out picture packets on Monday of picture day week.

Despite some wet and cold conditions on Friday the squad meet was a success with an abundance of positive energy and teamwork.  We will reveal the squad meet scores at practice on Monday and squads will continue to earn points as the season progresses.  Thank you for taking the time to read through important information for the week, especially if you are new to the program this year.  We are excited to compete at our first meet this week and also for our annual team potluck on Friday (details below).

• A remind message was sent out Sunday, March 16th in an effort to remind everyone to check the website weekly updates.  If you didn't receive the message you will want to make sure you're registered for our team Remind group.  Please text @cgtrack25 to 81010

• Just a quick reminder that if an athlete is sick and not at school you DO NOT need to communicate with a coach.  There is an attendance report each day that coaches can see for this information.  Thanks for helping to avoid the unnecessary wave of messages.

• We had several athletes show up on the grade check list last week.  Just a reminder to parents and athletes that we can't expect instant grading from teachers when students turn in late or missing work. Athletes should get school work taken care of early in order to give teachers an opportunity to grade work. Athletes that were below a 2.0 on the last progress report and have not resolved grade issues by practice time on Tuesday (3/18) will not be competing on Thursday.  Entries are due by Tuesday evening and we won't be entering ineligible athletes for the meet.  

• The apparel deadline was last Friday.  The order will be placed ASAP and we will distribute items as soon as they arrive.  

• Monday/Tuesday: We will be checking in with athletes about entries for the meets this week.  Official entries will be posted on Wednesday at practice and athletes are responsible for checking those.  We have entry limits for this meet, but we are going to try and take as many athletes as possible.  This means that some athletes may not get their first choices for events, but it's better than staying home.  

• Wednesday, March 19th: Uniform checkout starting at 3:15pm in the main gym entry.  Athletes will be issued a team uniform that will consist of at least a jacket and jersey.  Athletes may choose to check out shorts and pants if they wish, or they may use their own if they have items that are solid black (no stripes or other decor).  Pants that have the CG logo such as the ones ordered through the program may also be used.   Team uniforms are for meets only and should not be worn to school, at practice, or in any other situations outside of competition. 

• Thursday, March 20th: First meet at Siuslaw High School.  The bus will depart ON TIME at 12:45 (Transportation department updated).  Athletes not dressed and on the bus will be left at school.   Just a few reminders about the meet this week:

  1. 1. Parents and athletes should get in the habit of checking the meet info section for each meet at athletic.net. The Meet Schedule (athletic.net) link at the top of the page will take you directly to the CGHS info at athletic.net.  The meet info section is typically the same place the coaches find details about the meet.  For example, the meet this week is charging admission and the details are all in the meet info section for the Siuslaw Icebreaker at athletic.net.  You will also find the field and track start times listed there.  If you are not familiar with athletic.net please take a moment to watch the video tutorial linked HERE that we've created to help you out.  

     2. There is no practice on Thursday for athletes not competing except for a small handful of throwers that are staying back to prep for the throwing meet on Saturday.

     3. As outlined in our team handbook, we only take athletes that are going to be competing.  Injured athletes will stay home to focus on rest and recovery.

     4. Athletes should be in full uniform when they get on the bus.  Uniforms will be checked out on Wednesday at practice.

     5. In order for meets to run as efficiently as possible they most often run on a rolling schedule, which means that we can't tell you exactly what time athletes will compete.  While we understand this can be frustrating it becomes easier to predict as you get more practice.

     6. Just a reminder that relays are fluid and we will be rotating athletes throughout the season.

     7. We will NOT be stopping for food on the way home, so athletes should plan to bring plenty of food and snacks.

• Friday, March 21st is our team potluck and squad competition night in the school cafeteria.  We will end practice by 5pm so that athletes have time to get home and back if they need to.  We DO NOT require team activities outside of practice or competition, but athletes usually like to attend these.  The potluck only works if we have a team effort and last year was amazing.  If you are able to bring something to the potluck please click THIS LINK and let us know what that might be.  We're just trying to avoid 20 crock pots of baked beans :)  The activities should conclude around 8pm. 

• Saturday, March 22nd is the Harvey Lewellen Throws Invitational.  There will be a small handful of throwers attending this and they will be notified early in the week by the throwing coaches.  Some of the entries may depend on the outcome from our Thursday meet.  The bus will leave CGHS ON TIME at 7:15am (transportation updated). 

Upcoming Dates:

March 24-27:  Spring break practices will be from 9am to 11am.  No practice on the 28th.

April 4-5: The Oregon Relays at Hayward Field features top competition and we won't know what entries have been accepted until April 1st.  We expect to have about 15-20 athletes attending.

April 9th (1:30pm): Team pictures.  We will hand out picture packets on Monday of picture day week.

It was a fantastic first week as we worked to build the foundation for another successful season!  Thank you to everyone that showed up to the meeting on Friday.  If you were not able to make it please be sure to familiarize yourself with the information from our week 1 update below if you have not already.  Here are some reminders for the week as well as some upcoming dates to make note of.

• A remind message was sent out Friday evening around 6pm.  If you didn't receive the message you will want to make sure you're registered for our team Remind group.  Please text @cgtrack25 to 81010

• As discussed at the parent meeting, while practice is scheduled until 6pm some athletes do finish up earlier based on their event group.  There will always be a coach on site until 6pm.  Thank you for making sure your student athlete is picked up from the school so that coaches don't have to stay later than 6pm.

• A reminder for anyone interested in ordering apparel for the season that forms and money need to be turned in to Lena Twyman in the main office by Friday, March 14th.  If you prefer to pay with a card please call or see Mrs. Twyman to place your order.  A copy of the order form can be found using the link HERE.

• The last page of our team handbook (linked above) should be signed and turned in to Coach Knutson in order to compete at our first meet on March 20th.  If you're new to track and field please be sure to read through the handbook as there is a lot of information that can help the first time athletes and families.  

• Squad meet this week!  What are squads? We use squads to create a positive team culture, practice teamwork, and give athletes an opportunity to exercise leadership.  Athletes on the team are divided into four squads with two captains leading each squad.  On Friday during practice we will have our annual squad meet where athletes will compete in some traditional and non traditional track and field events.  Anyone is welcome to come out and watch.   The meet will be scored and the scores will be the starting point for our season-long squad competition.   Throughout the season and at our team potluck we have multiple competitions where squads can continue earning points.  The winning squad at the end of the season gets their name on the squad champion plaque.  Here is how the opening week will work:

Monday - Results of captain voting will be announced at practice.

Tuesday -  The captains will meet after practice in Coach Knutson's room to draft squads.

Wednesday/Thursday - Captains will meet with squads during practice to decide on squad names and decide which events athletes will compete in on Friday.

Friday - Squad Meet: We will start at 3:45 like usual, but we won't be done until closer to 6:30pm.

• The weather looks to get cold and wet by the end of this week, so please encourage athletes to plan accordingly with sweats and jackets or long sleeves.

• Grade checks will happen on Monday.  If an athlete has an F in any class they will be required to attend academic Wednesday school after school.  If an athlete fixes the grade prior to Wednesday they must submit a grade slip showing that the grade has been raised.  Athletes that are not passing five classes or have below a 2.0 will be immediately ineligible until they show they have resolved the grade issues.  Again, it is the responsibility of the athlete to turn in a grade slip when they have fixed their grades.

• Our team potluck and squad competition night is on March 21st following practice.  A food sign up will be posted with next week's update.  Team events outside of practice or meets are never required, although athletes usually don't want to miss events like this.  Last year this event concluded about 8pm.

• Reminder that we will have practice on Monday through Thursday of spring break from 9am to 11am.  No practice on Friday, March 28th.

Welcome to Cottage Grove Track and Field 2025

We are excited to get rolling with another season!  Last year was another one of the best track and field seasons in school history and we can't wait to build on that success.  Our goal is to provide a positive experience while developing skills to become successful athletes, students and people.  Each year we have 80-100 student athletes with a wide range of experience and skills.  We do not cut any student athletes from the program and expect each athlete to show up every day ready to put in the work required to improve.  While many perceive track and field to be an individual sport, we place an enormous emphasis on the team aspect.  We are excited for what each individual will be bringing to our team this year!  Here is a bit of information that will get us started. 

Please be sure to share this information and website link with other family members.  If you have additional questions after reading this please communicate with your student athlete first, and encourage them to talk with the coaches.  One of our goals is to help develop responsible young adults by promoting communication between coaches, athletes and parents.  By including the student athletes in this process it helps to develop responsibility, and also cuts down on excessive texts, phone calls, and emails.  Also, please feel free to have questions ready for the parent meeting on Friday, March 7th.

On our first day of practice athletes will be given hard copies of a few items, but we want to make sure and keep parents/guardians in the loop.  Below is some information as well as links to some resources that will help you through the season. 

1.  This website will be updated weekly on Sunday afternoons.  Thank you for bookmarking this site and making it a habit to check here for weekly updates!  This website is the best resource for week to week details during the season.

2. We push out more time sensitive information using several methods in addition to the website, so please be sure to follow us where it is most convenient for you.

• Sign up for remind this year for text reminders and updates.  You can sign up by texting @cgtrack25 to 81010 (There were issues with the remind code initially, but the problem should be resolved now.)

• Facebook: CG Track and Field/Cross Country

• Instagram: cgtrackandfieldxc

3.   A link to a copy/printable version of our detailed schedule is here. TIMES/DATES ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE (Updates were made as recently at 2/24).  The most up to date schedule is always online at athletic.net (see #5 below). Please look over the details on the printable version regarding which athletes participate in each meet.  The weekly update on the website will provide more details as we approach each meet.

4.   There will be a parent meeting on Friday, March 7th at 6:30pm in the gym.  All spring sports will meet briefly and then we will have a track and field meeting.  Please make every effort to attend as we have some new information for this season.

5.   Athletic.net is the website that hosts all high school track and field meet results.  This is often the best place to find a time schedule for every meet.  Sometimes meets have live results and other times they are posted shortly after the meet ends.  Keep an eye out for a video tutorial that will be posted here soon if you are not familiar with how to use athletic.net.

6.  Our team expectations are handed out to athletes on the first day of practice, but here is the link as well.  This document is loaded with information and includes a Q and A section.  Athletes are required to return the signed sheet before competing in the first meet.  There has been an influx of athletes that believe they will be participating in two sports this season, yet very few have communicated with Coach Knutson.  This does not work well during the spring in most cases.  Please see the dual sport section in the team handbook and contact Coach Knutson with questions.

7.  We will check out uniforms to each athlete for the season, but they also have the option to purchase additional apparel.  Order forms will be available for athletes to purchase personal apparel, but it is not required.  Money and the order forms should be returned to Lena Twyman in the main office by Friday, March 14th.  Forms will be available at practice and a digital copy may be accessed HERE.  After the deadline on March 14th, the items will be printed and shipped to the high school for pickup within 3-4 weeks. 

8.  There will be no practice on Friday, March 28th, but we will have practice on the first four days of spring break and practice time will be at 9am. Please see team expectations if you will not be able to attend. Any questions or concerns regarding practice attendance will be addressed at the parent meeting.

Important upcoming dates in addition to meets:

March 7th: Parent meeting at 6:30pm in the gym.

March 21st: Team potluck and Squad Competition following practice.

That should be a good start for now.  We're also looking forward to addressing any other questions or concerns at our parent meeting on the 7th.  Thank you for all you do to support the student athletes as well as the Cottage Grove Track and Field program.

Go Lions!

Ricky Knutson

Head Track and Field Coach

ricky.knutson@slane.k12.or.us