The Penn Hills Eagles athletics club is looking forward to regional and national competitions

Penn Hills Eagles track and field coach Chuck Carter knows from experience that the young athletes in his program respond well to all weather conditions, and having to train and compete during the recent heat wave will not dampen their spirits in the slightest.

“The kids just like summer, there’s something special about it,” Carter said. “Adults who watch the meeting usually suffer.”

The Penn Hills Eagles Track Club hosted a meet on June 15 as a precursor to the Three Rivers Association Championships held at Slippery Rock on June 22 and 23. Athletes who qualify at the Three Rivers Association meet will have the opportunity to qualify for the USATF Regional Championship at Rutgers.

The USATF Junior National Olympics will be held July 23-28 in College Station, Texas, at Texas A&M.

Carter was pleased with the way Penn Hills hosted the race. 463 athletes from clubs across the city participated in the race. Nearly 1,800 spectators watched the event.

Carter said it was the club’s second-highest attended event.

“It was beautiful, there were no incidents,” Carter said. “We had people from all over the area. It was a diverse crowd – we had people from Mt. Lebanon, Upper St. Clair, all over the city and the suburbs. Everyone got along.”

The Penn Hills team took first place in the girls 9-10 division with 54 points, tied with Future Stars Athletics. The Penn Hills Eagles have grouped athletes by age division. Athletes ages 6-8 run together, while the remaining divisions are grouped in two-year increments.

Carter said he wants to wait and see what happens at SRU, but believes several athletes will advance to the nationals.

“When I look at the projections, I think a girl could break some records at regionals,” Carter said. “When we get to state, we’ll see what happens.”

Carter said they have been working to ensure athletes find the right training method.

“We emphasize that the kids should drink plenty of fluids and not eat fatty foods because of the sodium,” Carter said. “We split the training into Monday and Wednesday so there aren’t too many people on the track. We take breaks when we need to. If the kids get dizzy, we take longer breaks.”