Emily Sullivan | Staff Writer | esullivan4@mail.smcvt.edu
Ready, set, go! St. Michael’s College just added a new sports team to the roster. Track, introduced to the public in Fall 2024, will officially start up in Spring 2026. The team is currently having an unofficial season before their grand start in the spring, and during this time the team will compete at track meets unofficially with nearby schools such as Middlebury College. The team will be attending their next meet unofficially this Saturday, Jan. 8.
Molly Peters, a coach at Saint Michael’s College for the past 19 years, has been coaching both the mens’ and womens’ cross country team along with the Nordic ski team. When asked why she chooses to continue to come back every year to coach, Peters mentions “community” and “team support”, as the friendships go much further than just on the track.
“[Introducing track] started in the athletic department as an idea, and then it went through several VPs, then through the president of the college,” said Peters. “I put a lot of time and a lot of work into it and it was just kind of a waiting game.” Peters speaks of the intensive process she has gone through getting this program started. But, the ends justify the means for Peters when she talks about the joys of seeing all the athletes share the same passion for the sport.
So far this semester, the team has been working on developing skills together in the hopes of finding their place in the NE10 conference in the near future. Students on the team can participate in a variety of events such as the 100m, 200m, 400m, 800m 1500m, 5K, 10K, 100m hurdles for women, 110m hurdles for men, 400m hurdles, steeplechase, and relays. The team has been recruiting from a number of groups on campus such as the Nordic ski team, cross country, and anyone else with the passion to run.
Bridget Shaw, ’26, also part of women’s soccer at St. Michael’s, made the choice to join the track team after enjoying the sport in her high school years and wanting to
continue. “They’re not like, super judgemental…everybody’s been super inviting,” said Shaw while talking about the community already formed by the track team and taking in new members. Shaw said she hopes that the program will continue to grow and expand in the upcoming years, while continuing to keep the same welcoming community that encouraged her to join.
Jocelyn Sommers, ’26, is the current captain of the cross country team along with a member of the new track team on campus. She speaks highly of the team’s upcoming future and wonders what the upcoming years hold for the team. “I’m excited to see us get more running events, hurdlers, jumpers, sprinters, and then maybe include throwing in the coming years,” Sommers said. She hopes to continue holding a leadership position within the new team to welcome the incoming freshmen who will be joining the team in the fall.
Matt Akins, the athletic director on campus, mentions using “community partners” as resources when questioned about where the team will be able to practice on an outdoor track. The team has plans to utilize these local tracks until the near future as ideas are still being finalized.
When asked how the community has impacted the team Akins talks about the three C’s: “Classroom, Competition, Community.” Akins speaks to how this mentality fits in with the SMC athletic community as a whole.
“There’s going to be a combination of internal and external funding, just like all our teams rely on some fundraising to enhance what they’re able to do within their programs,” Akins said, talking about how the track team will be maintaining a budget through the school.
Will this team take off running or will there be high hurdles to face? Only time can tell. The athletic department as a whole is thrilled for this new chapter of the school’s teams to begin, and can’t wait to see what comes next.