Cross Country
Cross Country offers both boys and girls an opportunity to hone their running skills during the fall season, while also enjoying some of Maine's great natural beauty.
Program Overview
Season: Fall
2026 Opening Date: August 17
Teams: Boys and Girls
Head Coach: Josh Wynne
Cross country is distance running with a challenging twist. The sport involves participants competing in a race of up to five kilometers over a variety of terrain, including fields, wooded trails, asphalt, and outdoor track surfaces. The top five finishers for each competing school score points with their place numbers designating the number of points earned. The school with the lowest overall team score is declared the winner of the meet.
The typical Thornton Academy cross country season consists of a series of regular season meets against SMAA competition as well as selected invitational events, such as the annual Fleet Feet Classic in Gorham. For post-season purposes, the Golden Trojans are grouped in the Class A South region; the top teams in the annual regional championship earn an opportunity to compete in the Class A state championship meet.
All practices and home meets take place at the Thornton Academy athletic facility and the nearby Eastern Trail, a recreational pathway that abuts the school’s Saco campus.
Participation in Thornton cross country is a five-day per week commitment. Generally, workouts take place on Monday through Thursday of each week with meets scheduled for Friday afternoons. Thornton Academy Middle School cross country typically begins after Labor Day and runs for an eight-week period.
Thornton Academy cross country is open to all interested participants, regardless of their level of experience. The top seven performers on the boys and girls teams are selected to participate in regional and state championship events.
