The summer season always goes by fast in Summit County. While the long, warm days throughout the summer are glorious, it is not long before frost returns to car windshields and the first snow of the season blankets the area’s highest peaks.

As the first signs of fall just begin to show in Summit County, student athletes at Summit High School are busily preparing for their first games, meets and tournaments of the season.

The preparation for the prep sports season began for many teams at the end of the school year back in June. While athletic departments cannot require summer conditioning or practices, many Summit athletic teams voluntarily met throughout the summer in order to get in shape, develop team chemistry and get a jump-start on the season.

One of the major cornerstones of the Summit athletic department throughout the summer was its strength and agility program. Offered three days a week throughout the entirety of the summer, the program allowed student athletes to get stronger and faster.

“I ran the program this summer, so it was super awesome,” assistant athletic director Haleigh Lecklitner said. “They were usually busier in the earlier session in the morning. Kids would come in the morning, go to work and then come do their afternoon sessions with their teams in the afternoon.”

With all summer practices being voluntary, Lecklitner and athletic director Bob Bodor were astonished by the strong participation numbers throughout the busy summer months. Some of the programs that really took advantage of summer practices included cross-country, soccer, rugby, football, volleyball, boys and girls basketball as well as girls soccer. 

The cross-country team especially stood out to Lecklitner for head coach Mike Hagen’s ability to accommodate kids who have other obligations or commitments throughout the summer.

“I feel like they had a really good summer schedule that not only fit all their incoming freshmen, but also for the kids that maybe were going on vacation,” Lecklitner said. “I think Mike Hagen does a really good job at accommodating the kids that are going to be out of town or even working.”

As a former collegiate athlete herself and now an assistant coach for the Summit girls soccer team, Lecklitner believes that the work that has been put in during the offseason will pay dividends throughout the school year. Not only do the summer programs allow athletes to gain fitness and work on skills, but it also allows them to establish team culture. 

“I think speaking from my coaching perspective, a lot of times I do see these incoming freshmen come to the first day of tryouts or even, you know, maybe a kid transfers and they are nervous,” Lecklitner said. “… I feel like these summer programs really allow the kids to kind of make connections not only with the other kids, but also with the coaches.”

One of the programs that will be attempting to establish a strong team culture early on in the fall season is the Summit boys soccer team.

After JJ Bosgraaf served as the head coach of the Summit boys soccer team the last two falls, longtime Summit County soccer coach Julio Mora will take over the reins of the varsity program this upcoming season. 

Mora has spent the last couple of seasons coaching the junior-varsity program at the high school. Over the next several weeks, the knowledgeable and passionate coach will look to transfer his vision and expectations to the varsity program.

“He was the head JV coach last year, and he has volunteered with the program years prior,” Lecklitner said. “He has definitely been a huge aspect of the team’s culture and their successes over the last couple of years. We are very lucky to have him as the head coach.”

Summit recently added the mountain bike team to its long list of athletic offerings. Previously operating as a club, the team officially joined the high school athletic department last year, allowing riders to receive full support from the school.

“Having them a part of Summit High School athletics allows them to letter, gives them spaces for meetings if they need it,” Lecklitner said. “It gives some advertisements, some marketing for them.”

With the fall sports season officially starting on Monday, Aug. 11, the Summit athletic department has made their expectations clear. Both entering their third year at Summit, Bodor and Lecklitner are encouraging student-athletes to stay committed not only to their sport, but also to their academics.

“I think we all know that in high school sports, it all starts in the classroom,” Lecklitner said. “If they are not succeeding in the classroom aspect, then they are not going to be able to play on the field. We have a certain standard that we hold our athletes to, and it’s definitely a higher standard than anybody else.”

Bodor and Lecklitner recognize that it can be a challenge for student athletes that play multiple sports, or are involved in a variety of different activities, to attend practices/games throughout the school year. 

While the Summit athletic department loves to see student athletes lending their talents to different teams and different areas of the school, they implore student athletes to find the “best yes” for them instead of spreading themselves thin. 

“I think so many of our kids want to be part of so much, but sometimes it does get to the point where they are so burnt out by the end of the school year that they cannot even finish their spring sport,” Lecklitner said. “When you are in your sports season, your activity, you are 100% to that sport.”

One thing that the Summit athletic department is hoping to improve this prep sports season is community participation. Although they are extremely grateful for all the current coaches, volunteers and boosters, Bodor and Lecklitner believe there is still room for growth when it comes to community support.

“Getting those community members engaged or back into athletics,” Lecklitner said. “They don’t even have to have a kid at the school. They could just be excited about football. We are always looking for new faces, new volunteers, whether it is somebody who just wants to work the scoreboard for a game or somebody that wants to help with the chains at a football game.”

Summit High School will have its first home game of the fall season on Thursday, Aug. 21, when the boys soccer team hosts D’Evelyn High School at 6 p.m.

The Summit Daily News will provide season previews for each fall sports team over the next few weeks.