Printer Friendly Version - Criscuolo Finds His Stride with Cougars’ Cross Country

Senior captain Kyle Criscuolo capped off his career with the Haddam-Killingworth boys’ cross country squad by helping the Cougars reach the top of the Shoreline Conference for the fifth year in a row this fall. Photo courtesy of Kyle Criscuolo

At first, Kyle Criscuolo viewed competitive running as a way to stay in shape for lacrosse. However, by the time he rounded the bend into his sophomore year of high school, Kyle started thinking about becoming a full-fledged runner at Haddam-Killingworth. Kyle kicked things into high gear and wound up having a great career as a member of the Cougars’ boys’ cross country team.

Kyle earned his spot on H-K’s varsity squad as a sophomore. During the next three seasons, he garnered multiple All-Shoreline Conference and All-State accolades, while helping the Cougars win three conference championships and a pair of Class SS state titles. This fall, the senior captain guided Haddam-Killingworth to the Shoreline Conference crown for the fifth consecutive year.

“I found a passion for running after being around the team atmosphere,” says Kyle, who also runs short- and middle-distance events for H-K’s indoor and outdoor track teams. “I found my place at the beginning of sophomore year when I made varsity, which I didn’t expect.”

Kyle says that he struggled with his pacing at times, but feels that he found his sweet spot during the 2018 campaign. Looking at his overall improvement, Kyle says that his fellow Cougars motivated him to perform to his potential on the pathways.

“I usually start running hard and hold that. Sometimes it works. But I figured it out towards the end of this year, and I was happy with my results,” Kyle says. “I feel I became more invested with the team mentally over time. I got to see what the team was all about, which helped me find out how much I value the team. I took my training more seriously around sophomore year, when I saw I might stand a chance on a more competitive scene.”

Kyle learned a lot from the people who preceded him as a captain. Still, Kyle wanted to carve out his own identity as a leader while working alongside fellow senior captains Nate Carlson and Seth Freeman this season.

“It was a great opportunity to be a captain and a chance to take charge, because I had great leaders before me,” says Kyle. “I didn’t want to just emulate their style, and I think I worked well with the other captains to find a balance of dedication to the team.”

Head Coach Matt Diglio is proud of Kyle for everything that he’s achieved as a runner at Haddam-Killingworth. Diglio praises Kyle for the way he went about leading the Cougars in his captain’s role.

“Kyle’s biggest contributions this fall have been as...an outstanding leader and role model for the boys team,” says Diglio. “He is always polite, respectful, kind, and extremely hard-working and dedicated, doing whatever is necessary to help the team. It has been an honor to get to know him and work with him over the past several years.”

As the seasons went by, Kyle discovered that the ebbs and flows of a cross country race often emulate the challenges one faces in life. Kyle says that running for the Cougars showed how to overcome those hurdles.

“My career with cross country had ups and downs, but the nature of the sport and the team relying on you helped me work past challenges,” says Kyle. “Every member of the team is valuable, and that helped with my philosophy of working hard.”