I run XC for Caltech and it is somewhat different than what’s mentioned above, being a less competitive D3 school. You can PM me with any questions!
Not to be mean, but an 18:43 5K for a junior boy is not considered fast even for high school, much less for Div. 3. Top Div. 3 girls run that and faster. However, there are plenty of schools which allow walk-ons and sub-varsity runners to train and compete. Do your research and contact some coaches. I wouldn’t expect you’d get recruited based on that 5K time, but if you follow the other posters’ advice and run indoor and outdoor track, you might run a good enough time in the 3200 or 3000 to impress. Your marathon time seems very good, though, so a coach might like you for the 10K for track!
@TheGFG I agree, my current time is not competitive. Yeah I’m definitely a distance type guy, not likely to get much better times in the 3200. However I am a junior and am running track for the first time. I think it is reasonable to say I can get under 17:30 by the end of next XC season when I am applying to colleges. Not really looking to be recruited, I just want to make sure I am decent for going to a DIII college and won’t be in the back of the pack. A small admissions boost would be nice though.
Good luck with track in the spring! If your times do not end up being what you hope for (but you still want to have a chance to score points for a DIII college team) then you may want to try steeplechase. Some kids that love to run but don’t have the speed to be recruited try steeplechase. Because it a bit wild and not everyone wants to try it, a track spot in college might be available in that event. See if the meets your team is going to attend this spring offer that event (not many do, but I think they run steeplechase at the Eastern Relays for hs students in Louisville) and talk to your coach in advance if you want to consider running it.
To the OP, the thing is, to get an admissions boost from athletics, a student needs to be a recruit – which generally means someone who is going to make an immediate impact on a program. That is why the coach puts the recruit on his/her list to admissions etc. If a student is not a recruit, then their sport is another EC on their application. So someone who might ride the bench for soccer for 3 years, is not going to get a “boost” in admissions. I would assume that the same principle applies in college running. So, as a parent, I would suggest being cautious about thinking that being “decent” might be enough to help with admissions. Being decent is likely to be enough to get an invitation to try to walk on, but at the most selective schools, is probably not going to be enough to get an admissions boost.
Good luck, and hang in there.
One last suggestion (sorry)… don’t try to run in any more marathons between now and the end of track season. The coaches I have heard from, and from what I have learned from my own kids’ running experiences, is that marathons won’t help your track speed (including the commonly run 3200m). Possibly you could run one off-season but many HS coaches won’t like that much either. See your HS coach or team captain as soon as possible to start training, because many HS track teams have pre-season training right now. My kids’ school has pre-season training now (December) for spring track.
@OnTrack2013 is right on. My D now runs for a NESCAC after being recruited by several D3 and D1 colleges. Don’t do marathons and try to get your best times in indoor outdoor track. Since you will need to initiate contact with colleges soon if you haven’t already, indoor times are your best bet to improve.
I would suggest going to TTFRS website and look at the league championships meets for the schools you are interested. Those would be the typical times you need to at least meet to hope for recruitment. Don’t forget that you need to continue to hit the books and score well on standardized tests.
Message me if you have any questions.
For any d3 athletes out there, how much of a time commitment would participating in XC or track be? I would really love to run in college, but school would definitely have to come first.