Varsity tennis player and senior Erin Reitz recalls her most memorable moment in the time the team travelled to Jefferson City to compete. Faced with the higher ranking teams in the area, almost every player lost their match. However, the players weren’t upset by the team’s nearly unanimous loss. Instead, they took to fostering a positive sentiment.

“It was all about growing closer as a team. We cheered each other on and supported each other regardless of what the score was,” Reitz said.

It was not the euphoria of victory nor the disappointment of defeat, but the joys of companionship with her teammates that remained the most impactful memory of Reitz’s athletic career. The memories with her teammates were the most memorable.

“That’s what high school sports should be all about,” Reitz said. “Making relationships and growing as a team.”

For senior and varsity basketball player Tevin Tipton, the most memorable moments of his sports were made during his practices, as they continually encouraged him to push himself to physical extremes.

“When your teammates are going through the same thing next to you, it makes a memory that’s unforgettable,” Tipton said.

While varsity soccer player and senior Carter Redford has four seasons of memories to choose from, his most memorable one is from this past season, when the team won the conference title in a moment of high stakes.

“It was the final minute of the last overtime and we had a free kick,” Redford said.

Redford went in for the free kick, but the ballwasoff-target,hittingthepostinstead. Fortunately, one of Redford’s teammates, sophomore Tanner Jones, was in the right place at the right time. Jones kicked the rebounded ball back towards the goal and scored.

“This moment was so awesome because I just remember how happy and excited we all were,” Redford explained. “It was just the perfect feeling and experience of what high school sports is all about.

Also having been an athlete for all four years, senior Emily Pettig is a varsity track runner and varsity cheer member. With more than just a few experiences to reflect on she settles on a particularly notable sentiment from both.

“The feeling that you get after you finish a race or the feeling that you get after you finish performing — that is what is most memorable to me,” Pettig said.

Senior Natalie White, also a varsity track athlete, recalls a special memory made during her freshman year. It was during that season that she advanced to the sectional level with her four-by- eight teammates.