Four Sports Stories About Bonding Fall Sports did Over the Season
Feeder programs for high school sports can be critical to a sport and the success of it. They set up the future of the program and can help the younger generation prepare for high school and the sports environment.
FHN girls softball has a successful feeder program and has many young athletes involved in it. However, the FHN baseball does not have much of a feeder program. Coach Freedline coaches both the softball and baseball teams at North and is involved in the feeder programs.
“The softball program has a good feeder program; they play in the fall and their club is in the spring,” Freedline said. “But for the boys, they don’t have feeder teams because their club seasons are in the summer and no schools around here have a boys feeder program.”
The feeder programs can help many athletes get to know their high school coach better and create more success when they get to high school. FHN sophomore and softball player Leah Fajatin played in the feeder program growing up.
“There were a lot of teams we always played on the weekend,” Fajatin said. “I got to pitch every game.”
Fajatin was able to get a lot of playing time and get more game experience. She was able to be seen by the varsity coach and be noticed.
Feeder programs are a way for schools to see the younger athletes earlier and be able to get in touch with them and help them continue to grow in the right direction for when they get to high school. They can teach them skills that they will need in high school and can make the program more successful.
As of Oct. 5, the team has made it through the season strong at 10-6, with seven seniors on the team leading and 10 new freshmen overall. There was a huge head start contrasting last year in which the team ended the season 6-8 and the year before that before 5-8.
“I got the chance to play doubles with Courtney [Epplin] this season and she gives me really good tips and advice,” sophomore Shreya Patel said. “I have more strategy now.”
The girls’ tennis season started off with a strong bond between the players. One of their many events this year started at Top Golf. Varsity Coach Zach Howard had recommended Top Golf before the season officially kicked off, which has led to many of the members feeling stronger in their ability to work as a team. This has also led to an increase in team dinners and on and off-the-court companionship.
“I think having team bonding before the season truly started helped us with any potential struggles because in the past we have had team bonding during the season,” senior Lisa Smyth said. “It’s a really great group of girls we have who fight hard and have fun too.”
The Laurel Park Dolphins is a summer swim team that goes from early June to late July with meets every Monday. The swim team consists of three age groups: 12 and under, 13-14, and 15 and up with around 80 swimmers overall. Some of these swimmers may only choose to swim during the summer, but many continue throughout the school year.
Freshman Nathan Hanson has been with the Dolphins for 10 years and swims for North.
“It’s awesome, it’s a great community, it’s a lot of fun and we do a lot of fun activities,” Hanson said. “I really enjoy the time spent with the team.”
The Dolphins are a recreational team tasked with getting people into the pool during the summer. Athletes on this do everything a normal club or school season would, except with an enhanced focus on sportsmanship. Because of this, the companionship they share between one another goes past any score.
“When being a part of a team you get to meet these new people,” freshman swimmer Eric Taylor said. “It isn’t always about [a single person], it’s more about getting to meet and create bonds with everybody else.”
The bonds created between one another during the seasons carried over to the school year.
“Like going over to North, it’s nice to know who you swim with,” Hanson said. “The familiarity helps everyone support each other better ‘cause we know each other pretty well and can support everyone in the way they need.”
Taylor agrees.
“It’s really nice to know the people on your team well,” Taylor said. “Outside of the Dolphins, I’ve known Edward [Lee] for a couple years and it’s been a positive experience overall.”
Although swim is individually focused, with teammates often competing against one another, the camaraderie between teammates has kept spirits high during the season.
“Even though we are individually competing, we still have each other. Cheering and supporting each other. It keeps the spirits
high.”
Some of the cross country team have gone on runs this year, leading to a noticeable improvement in their season. These runs have already been beneficial to the relationships between the runners as well.
“It helped us improve and bond because we were able to see each other in all types of situations whether it was a workout or an easy run, and this helped us all grow closer,” cross country senior runner Madeline Dustin said.
Though staying consistent can be hard, the team had many ways of pushing themselves and keeping up a routine.
“We were consistent every day with our running at 6:30 [a.m.] every morning,” Dustin said. “We just encouraged each other on our runs and kept a positive mindset,”
The team has already begun to notice a difference in their running since the start of the season.
“We’re running faster during our workout, and I have a feeling we will see an increase in our PRs this season,” Dustin said.
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