Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Cross country is likely a no cut sport.

DC's school had cuts surprisingly.

Ours has cuts, but you can still attend practices and home meets if you don't make the cut. Son later told me that you can also attend away meets if your parents drive you to them.

Anonymous wrote:Cross country is likely a no cut sport.

DC's school had cuts surprisingly.

Boy or girl? And it really depends on the school. soccer and basketball for boys is extremely competitive everywhere. I do remember the coach sending out a message saying over 120 kids of one gender trying out.

That year only 1 7th grader made it, rest were 8th. We heard in previous years 2 7th graders made it.

Softball was also extremely competitive at DC's school but heard that some schools had less competitive tryouts for softball.

Name your child's school and we can give more specifics.

Our schools offers basketball in the winter

And even when they get to HS, most kids who do school teams also participate in private options, because most HS sports are single seasons. I believe that running -- which offers XC in Fall and Indoor and then outdoor track in the winter and Spring -- is probably the only sport offered year round in HS

The short answer is yes, if your kid is interested in engaging in a particular sport during middle school years, go private.

First off, MCPS only offers teams for 7th and 8th grade, so no school sport for 6th graders.

Second, even for those sports, they are only offered for one season, and it's usually a short one.

Finally, as PP said, some are super competitive teams to make -- soccer especially -- while others might be no cut (like XC) or less competitive, but again, the seasons are so short that if your kid really wants to engage in team sports on a sustained basis, MCPS MS sports won't offer that.

On the bright side, the area offers lots and lots of team sport options, some of which are crazy competitive, while others -- like MSI rec soccer -- have a place for just about everyone.

Middle-school athletics in MCPS are weak. You're gonna have to get most of that outside of the school if that's a priority for you.

At our MS boys soccer had over 120 kids try out even though it is limited to 7th and 8th grade. Needless to say it is a very limited subset of students making some of these sports.

Cross country is likely a no cut sport.

We've just moved to MoCo and our kid is joining a MCPS middle school this year. All they have for athletic options are try-out level softball (fall), cross country and soccer (spring). Is it safe to assume a very small share of kids are selected given that there are only 2 sports per season?

There is also some afterschool club futsal (i assume not try-out), but I assume that those slots are limited too.

so if I understand correctly, if my kid wants to do basketball, tennis, swimming or anything else competitively--I should find him a private team option? My kid isn't going to be a recruited athlete, but I do just want him to get some fresh air and regular exercise, ideally as part of team.