2026 DIX & AAA Subregion (D8,9,10) Cross Country Championships 2026

Date of Meet: Saturday, October 31^st, 2026

Location: The 2026 PIAA District 9 Cross Country Championships are being held at Francis S. Grandinetti Elementary School, 62 School Drive, Ridgway PA 15853

Registration Entry Deadline:8 P.M. on Wednesday, October 28^th, 2026. Athletes must be entered online on the pa.milesplit.com website by the principal or his/her designee. It is the responsibility of the school and coach to make certain their competitors are entered online prior to the deadline. COACHES: ONLY REGISTER 10 athletes

per varsity race. You can designate who will be running on race day. They are not to be faxed, mailed in, or telephoned in. Questions should be addressed to John Sherry at 814-274-8501, (Work), 814-594-7760 (Cell), or by email to jsherry@coudyschools.net.

 2026 DIX Cross Country Championship Schedule.

Pre-Race Schedule

8:00 am - Pick-Up Packets in Cafeteria & Course Inspection

9:00 am - Deadline for Packet Pick-Up in Cafeteria and Coaches Meeting (room off to side of cafeteria)

Girl's Championship Schedule

9:30 am - "AA" Girls Championship Race

10:15 am - "A" Girls Championship Race ("AA" girl's awards presented after start of the "A" race.)

11:00 am - "AAA" Girls  Championship Race (included D8 and D10) ("A" girl's awards presented after start of the "AAA" race.)

"AAA" girl's awards presented at 11:45am.

Boy's Championship Schedule

12:00 pm - "AA" Boys Championship Race

12:45 pm - "A" Boys Championship Race ("AA" Boy's awards presented after start of the "A" race.)

1:30 pm - "AAA" Boys Championship Race (included D8 and D10) ("A" Boy's awards presented after start of the "AAA" race.)

"AAA" Boy's awards presented at 2:15pm.

 Note: The Girls & Boys AAA sub regional race (D8, 9, 10) will be held during the DIX Championship. (*NOTE: Teams will be given a map & starting block location with their packets and teams may take their own tour of the course.)

School Classifications:

Fees: Schools will be billed by Anita Orton , D9 Secretary-Treasurer after the meet.

 Admission: - Ticket prices for the DIX Cross Country Championships will be $8.00 for adults, $4.00 for students. Tickets are available at piaad9.org

Team Parking: Signs will direct you where to park buses and vans at the school.

Course: The course is a challenging 5000-meter grass course. There are hills! Spikes of 1/4" or 3/8" are recommended.

Locker Rooms: Locker rooms will not be available for team use. Coaches are to instruct their athletes to come to the meet prepared to run. Restrooms will be available.

Coaches Info: Team packets will be issued at the meet. Registered athletic trainers will be on site. The meet will be run under the direction of two or more registered PIAA officials.

 Team Info: Coaches are not required to designate in advance which seven competitors will actually run in the race. However, only pre-registered competitors can compete. Coaches can register their team online and decide at race time which seven are running. To be eligible, an athlete must be pre-registered so that they are assigned a competitor number.

Emergency Health Care: PIAA D9 contracted athletic trainers will be present to provide emergency healthcare to participating contestants and spectators. Schools may be billed for any training supplies used by the athletic trainers for your athletes and/or team. Schools are responsible for providing their qualifiers with water!

Competitor Numbers: Every competitor must have a chest number and shoe chip in order to run. The number is to be placed on the chest/torso area. Coaches will receive a packet containing a printout of the team roster which will include the competitor number of each athlete and starting box assignments. 

Timing: We will be using the same runhigh.com timing system that has been used for many years. We are using cameras, so we will have a side still picture of each finisher at the finish

line and a video clip of each finisher. A back-up manual system is also in place. There is no need for tearing off numbers at the end of the finish chute, so runners should be able to quickly exit the chute without delay. The timing area must be kept clear except for meet workers and meet management.

Results:  All results will be posted Saturday on the pa.milesplit.com Website.

PIAA State Meet: The following number of teams and individuals will qualify for the PIAA State Championships which will be held on Saturday, November 7, 2026, at Big Spring High School in Newville, PA.

AAA: Top team plus next FIVE individual runners

 AA: Top team plus next FIVE individual runners

 A: Top 2 teams plus next TEN individual runners

PIAA State Meet information will be included in each school's team packet.

Awards: District IX will award a Championship plaque to each first-place team. Individual medals will be awarded to each State Meet qualifier. Additional medals can be ordered by contacting Aaron Straub at Elk County Catholic.

Concessions: There will be a concession stand operated by the Ridgway sports boosters.

Meet T-Shirts: T-shirts will be done by pre-order only. Mary Bowman will be sending out order forms.

Team Practices on Meet Course: Ridgway is hosting their annual cross-country invitational on Saturday, October 3^rd.This is a good opportunity to get on the course in advance of the district meet. Contact Ridgway for details. Schools may also practice on the championship course with permission after 3:30 PM on October 28^th, 29^th, and 30^th. Other dates may be requested but require pre-approval from Holly Morelli, Ridgway Site Manager. Holly's Phone number is 814-591-0986. It is important that the course be in the best condition possible for the meet. Therefore, the meet and site director reserve the right to prohibit practice on the site as warranted by weather and course conditions.

Games Committee: John Sherry, Bill Jordan, Aaron Straub, Holly Morelli, Dan Boyer. 

Meet Management: 

* Meet Director: John Sherry, Coudersport H.S. 814-274-8501

* Asst. Meet Director: Bill Jordan, District IX Assistant Cross Country Chairman

* Site Manager: Holly Morelli, Ridgway High School

* Site Coordinators: Marlin Konen, Ridgway High School

* DIX Committee Event Workers:12 plus DIX Committee Workers

* Timing and Pre-registration: Kyle Garner, Runhigh.com through pa.milesplit.com

* PIAA Registered Officials:  TBA

* Licensed Athletic Trainers: Ashley Mulcahy, Shawna Meyer, Joel Bowers