In this series we take a look at state championship and runner-up coaches, their outlook on the team, the season, and 2014. Coach Jeff Sommer is in his 26th year of coaching at 24th of cross country. He has been at Estero since it has opened and has been coaching girls cross country the last ten years. This year the Wildcats picked up their fourth consecutive state championship cementing themselves as one of the most dominant programs in the state.
What kind of training did your team get in over the summer months leading into the season?The training we do in the summer months with the 3D Running Club involves lots of miles and boot camps. I believe boot camps really break up the practices. The kids love the challenge of doing different things like ladders, tire flips, sand pit work and more. Our boot camp workouts are a lot of fun but very tough.
How did you train the team in the final weeks leading up to the state meet?
The last few weeks of the season we did away with the crazy stuff and did straight running with distance and pace work. We did not want any injuries and wanted our bodies to recover. We anted to get everyone healed up and focused on the state series.
The last few weeks of the season we did away with the crazy stuff and did straight running with distance and pace work. We did not want any injuries and wanted our bodies to recover. We anted to get everyone healed up and focused on the state series.
What chances or belief did you have in your team's chance and ability to win the state title?
I felt our team had a great chance to run with the best at the state meet. We had to focus and every person on the team had to do his or her job.
I felt our team had a great chance to run with the best at the state meet. We had to focus and every person on the team had to do his or her job.
What advice or points of emphasis did you give your team prior to the race or the week leading into the state meet?
The advice we gave our team before the state meet was to trust our training and believe in ourselves. We had run all the big meets and felt we had prepared the right way.
What was the race plan for the state meet and how did you feel it was executed?
Our race plan was for each of our runners to try to beat each of their runners one for one. We wanted our number one to beat their number one. We wanted our number two to beat their number two. We knew if we all ran right it would be a dogfight with Estero and Sarasota. Sarasota’s so tough and so well coached.
Our race plan was for each of our runners to try to beat each of their runners one for one. We wanted our number one to beat their number one. We wanted our number two to beat their number two. We knew if we all ran right it would be a dogfight with Estero and Sarasota. Sarasota’s so tough and so well coached.
Who do you feel really stepped up individually the most for the team at the state meet?
My top three runners really stepped it up and we got three in the top ten. Araceli Leon was where we thought she would be, in the top five. Daley Cline ran an awesome race along with Bethany Jenkins fighting knee pain in getting the job done. My 4th, Katie Slater, and 5th, Megan Slater, were off but kept fighting to keep us in the game.
My top three runners really stepped it up and we got three in the top ten. Araceli Leon was where we thought she would be, in the top five. Daley Cline ran an awesome race along with Bethany Jenkins fighting knee pain in getting the job done. My 4th, Katie Slater, and 5th, Megan Slater, were off but kept fighting to keep us in the game.
What were your feelings and emotions when you realized your team had won or during the awards?The feelings and emotions were unbelievable as I thought Sarasota might have us beat. The team had not lost a race all year so they were really feeling the pressure; anything less than a Championship would have been a letdown.
What were the biggest challenges for this year's team?
The biggest challenge this year was to stay healthy. We had a lot of nagging injuries that would just not go away. Another challenge was to get the kids to get hungry for a win. Katie Slater and Bethany Jenkins had three state rings going into this race and I was afraid they wouldn’t be as driven as the last three times. I emphasized to them we had to keep working for a fourth. We had to forget what we had done in the past. This year was all that mattered.
How would you best describe the group of kids that you coach?
The group of kids I coach are awesome. I love them all. We fight thru all the highs and lows together. We are like one team and one family.
The group of kids I coach are awesome. I love them all. We fight thru all the highs and lows together. We are like one team and one family.
What role do your assistant coaches play with the program?
My Assistant Coach is the best there is. The kids love Ben Pignatone. His major in college was Human Performance; so he is a tremendous asset to our organization. He is mellow and I’m a screamer; so we work well together. He is young and I’m getting old. He can run with the kids and really push them. We support each other 100 PERCENT and talk after every practice discussing different workouts and things we feel the team needs. He thinks running and team 24/7 just like I do.
What role do your parents have with the program?
My parents are awesome.
They book all the rooms, set up our team dinners, put on races, raise money and do all the dirty work. Having parents step up and help takes a lot of pressure off of Ben and me so we can just focus on coaching.
My parents are awesome.
They book all the rooms, set up our team dinners, put on races, raise money and do all the dirty work. Having parents step up and help takes a lot of pressure off of Ben and me so we can just focus on coaching.
What would be the best way to describe your coaching style?
My coaching style is 100 percent Bobby Knight style; it’s my way or highway. That’s a tough philosophy to have sometimes with kids. We have small teams as they work so hard on and off the field. I have tried to calm down but it is tough to change who I am at this stage. I want one thing and that is perfection all the time and that is not possible. Our team G.P.A. is right around a 4.0 and that says a lot for kids that are up at 4 a.m. working their butts off.
Who were the leaders on your team and what was the importance to the squad?
We do not have any leaders or captains on our teams. We expect all kids to be leaders and captains in their own way.
We do not have any leaders or captains on our teams. We expect all kids to be leaders and captains in their own way.
Every state championship team seems to have a special or unique makeup that makes them state champions. What were some of those characteristics of this year's team?
Our unique makeup is that each kid really cared about each other and tried to our work each other. A 4 peat is very special and to keep adding and losing kids each year make for something really special.
Our unique makeup is that each kid really cared about each other and tried to our work each other. A 4 peat is very special and to keep adding and losing kids each year make for something really special.
What are your expectations for next year's team?
Next year is a new year and all the kids from the 3 peat and 4 peat will have graduated. We will need some new kids to step up and be leaders and to carry on the tradition of hard work and trying to get better each and every practice.
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