LUTZ, FLORIDA- Steinbrenner High School boys cross country team slogan is ‘Gentleman. Scholar. Athlete.’
Having the traits of one plays hand in hand with the other, according to Steinbrenner boys cross country head coach Allison Szponar, and since 2017 she’s instituted a way to get her athletes to show the characteristics of all three.
“The three pillars of our team to be a gentleman, scholar and an athlete,” Szponar said. “This is one way to give back to the community and give to other then yourself. So I feel like it definitely correlates and helps when the boys are giving back to the community as a team.”
Szponar has for the last nine years has her cross country team after the last day of school, begin running with shelter dogs in hopes of adoption, finding them new homes.
What sprung the idea to become a reality was back in 2017, when one of the Steinbrenner parents saw an article and it was passed along to the team. Szponar then reached out to the Humane Society of Tampa, which from there provided training to the cross country runners in order to begin running with them over the summer.
“A team mom saw an article that was passed along to us,” Szponar said of how the idea came about. “We contacted the Humane Society (of Tampa) and the boys then received training on what they can and can’t do with the dogs. We go and pick (the dogs) up. The ones with high energy. ”
Once the Warriors’ Boss Cross team first received training back in 2017, the program has seen plenty of success on and off the course. According to Szponar, she estimated over 200 adoptions have occurred since running with the shelter dogs started.
Not only has that helped teach responsibility to the boys according to Szponar, but the team itself has also seen its fair share of trophies come their way over the years.
Steinbrenner during her tenure as head coach has won nine district championships along with three regional crowns and one state title, which came in 2019 out of Class 4A.
“I feel like this program, running with the dogs, correlates to a lot of the success we have as a cross country team,” Szponar said. “We have achieved a lot and it’s because of their commitment to the dog program.
Though Szponar felt like every year is different, she pointed out the 2019 tea, which won a state championship, as the group that demonstrated the highest level of commitment thus far.
The Warriors has a competition called ‘Champion of the Summer’ in which Szponar combines the number of hours and mileage the runners put in over June and July. Usually compiled of varsity distance runners, the winner is chosen based on the highest number of hours and miles put in during the summer months.
Szponar said the 2019 squad averaged between 40-60 hours between every runner that summer, which the teams on an annual basis run between 25-30 runners. The program ends on the first day of the new school year, which a winner is chosen.
“Every team has been different,” Szponar said. “It’s hard to compare apples to oranges. It’s really different (every year). I would say 2019 we had a great group that orchestrated it itself and they won state for us.”
In Szponar’s 13th year teaching, she’s continued to see the running program with the shelter dogs grow every summer.
“The program has grown and grown over the years. We will have upcoming 14 drivers (runners) taking out dogs,” Szponar added about the overall growth annually and the improving numbers.
Though the dogs endurance usually last more so right at the beginning in a sprint, they can’t do the number of miles the runners do overall. Szponar knows that though the dogs can help only so much, the runners do learn a sense of responsibility along with working towards team success and ultimately giving back to the community.
“Physically no, the dogs don’t do the mileage or the pace that they do,” Szponar said. “(The dogs) do help the team environment. (The runners) do get community service hours, though, It teaches them responsibility. It helps. I mean, yes, this generation finds it hard to separate their own success to the team’s success. This is something that I believe makes them step up to the plate and take on some responsibility.”
Follow High School On SI throughout the 2025 high school boys cross country season for Live Updates, the most up to date Schedules & Scores and complete coverage from the preseason through the state championships!
Be sure to Bookmark High School on SI for all of the latest high school boys cross country news.
To get live updates on your phone – as well as follow your favorite teams and top games – you can download the SBLive Sports app: Download iPhone App| Download Android App
— Andy Villamarzo | villamarzo@scorebooklive.com | @highschoolonsi
This post was originally published on this site be sure to check out more of their content.
