Senior Addie Johnson, the captain of the girls tennis team, gazes onto the playing court, holding the racket securely in her hands as she practices her swings, a practice she’s all too familiar with. She hits the ball successfully, watching it fly across the tennis court and outside enemy lines. Wiping off her sweat from her forehead, Johnson takes a small breather before then preparing herself to practice even more. Coming back for another year, this makes it her fourth year playing girl’s tennis, keeping her mind focused on her goals that await her in the future.
“I don’t have many goals this year, other than to keep improving my placement and my consistency,” Johnson said, “Coach Reed talks a lot about how important [my] mental game is, so I’m working on my strategy such as how I hit the balls, and the type of shot [I’m making].”
With Johnson keeping her head in the game, others tend to put all of their time and commitment to their sport as well. Sophomore Dannie Little takes part in soccer any time she has the opportunity to, playing mainly as a goalie ever since first grade. For such an important role in the game, Little finds herself constantly dedicating herself to the role.
“I think it’s really fun to just fall on the ground [to catch the ball], and use my hands physically,” Little said, “[As a goalie], it’s one of my goals to not let any ball hit the net for this year.”
Going from being a captain of the girls tennis team to being a goalie for soccer, some prefer to continue running alongside their teammates, racing towards the finish line. For the sixth year in a row, senior Ezra Bailey has been running for track and cross country ever since the start of seventh grade, his passion for the sport never ending, as he doesn’t plan on stopping any time soon. Because of this, the track runner has many hopes towards the future, especially for his lower class men and himself.
“I’m really excited for the new season, [as one of my goals is] to qualify for the state championships,” Bailey said. “I would love to lead our team this year, and try to inspire freshmen to give all they have into the sport, since our team is very young this year. [However, I think they’ll do very well in the future].”
