A new coach is off to a fast start with John Hopkins’s cross-country team.

Last year, the small team didn’t have a permanent coach. But that’s changed with Kylie Mathews stepping in this school year.

Coach Mathews is a fitness trainer and a former cross-country runner.  She started running long distance in middle school and then moved on to cross-country in high school. She has been running long distance for a total of 17 years.

Coach Mathews said she wasn’t a good runner when she began but became better over time.

“We didn’t have middle school cross-country at that time, but I practiced running because I loved playing soccer,” she said. “At some point, I realized that running was actually my favorite part.”

Of all the distances, cross country is the toughest, Coach Mathews said.

“It’s just long enough that you’ve got to have some real endurance, but it’s short enough that it can be quite competitively fast,” she said. “It’s so tough and I think that that’s what makes it so cool.”

Coach Mathews said she’s fostering a supportive environment where team members work hard but have fun.

“I know how scary it can feel to step up to the starting line of a race, because I’ve also been there plenty,” she said. “I also know how fun and rewarding and freeing running can feel.”

Chloe Marriott said she noticed the passion runners had for the new track season.

“The team was small but the kids on the team were committed,” she said.