College Soccer Experience

Tonight was a game that determined the outcome of the season. Tonight they had to win. Tonight was the night where they had to improve their record. York High is a tough team full of many talented athletes, but lacking the knowledge of the game. Or so we thought. Walking into the locker room, you could feel the intensity of the guys. They knew that their season depended on tonight. It was their last night as freshman football players, it was their last night to make a name for themselves. They tried to play it off as if they weren't nervous, but I could tell otherwise. Dani, the injured guys, and myself had the water filled and ready to be loaded onto the bus in no time. Now it was just a matter of getting all the guys onto the bus. At 3:30 the bus arrived, and that meant game time would soon be approaching.

The big question in the pre-season was whether or not new faces could fill the shoes of the graduated seniors. Since these players were all talented in their own ways, it seemed impossible. Fortunately, all of these positions were filled with young players that had determination and

Throughout the season we had some big defeats from the tougher schools, however I was able to maintain our team’s morale throughout our wins and losses. And Fundraising. Oh boy those were tough. This year was very different from the previous with the new restrictions. However this brought out our teams creativity. These new obstacles brought pushed our team to think out of the box and work together in effort to raise money for the team.

The team bonded and practiced diligently to get better. Our team was evidently young, but we were progressing. Once the fall performance season started in August, we hit unexpected bumps in the road. Many of the girls thought that we were going to have a “rebuilding year” and lacked passion and drive. Those feelings were contagious and created a toxic environment in practice. We were plateauing instead of increasingly improving. To add to the disappointment, Taylor quit the team due to the revoking of her captainship and an injury. Suddenly, I became the sole leader of a team that was giving up. I started to feel doubt, but then I remembered my goal. I had one year left, and I was not going to let it go by unsuccessfully without trying to motivate the team, even if it felt like a fruitless attempt. I decided it was imperative that I talk to the girls about our season last year to reminisce the pure joy and accomplishment we felt when we won the State Tournament. We discussed the effort and commitment it took to be a State Champion team, and we talked about how if winning was our goal for this year, we were currently not on the right track to meet that goal. After our heart-to-heart, the team dynamic changed. The entire team was on the same page and working to progress every minute of

My freshman year we entered playoffs with a hopeful optimism that in our first year in 3A, the largest division, we could make a statement that we were here to stay. In the end, the game didn’t go our way. There were some questionable calls made but in the end, it is what it is: we weren’t good enough to win. A tough reality but often times you learn more from a loss than from a win. Sophomore

We all can recall our freshmen year, the awkward uncertainty with which we walked the halls, feeling like a foreigner in a place much bigger than what we were used to before entering high school. Some freshmen struggle to keep their heads above water, while some find a sort of lifeboat that gets them through the year. The young ladies of the CHHS Girls Frosh/Soph Basketball Team have been lucky enough to find that lifeline in each other. Oftentimes, the "Frosh/Soph" level of a school sport is seen as a mere stepping stone to bigger and better things. Because of this assumption, we as a student body often fail to praise the successes of our frosh/soph and junior varsity teams. This year, the CHHS Girls Frosh/Soph Basketball Team won league.

On February 28, 2005, I experienced one of the most exciting events that anyone could ever experience – winning a State Championship. The day my soccer team made history is a day I’ll never forget. However it is not just that day we won the title, but the whole experience of the preceding season that got us there. From start to finish, my team’s 2004-2005 season taught me that the platitude is true. You can do anything you set your mind to.

Our drills and plays are tiring, But the championship trophy was inspiring. We push through the day, hour by hour, Fighting to stand up, with all of our power. We know we are

At the young age of 7, my devotion and loyalty to the team had already grown to an emotional level. I took each outcome personally, as though I was a part of the team myself. Already enjoying the championship win of 2005, North Carolina fans like me were lucky to experience such success each year. However, my expectations rose to a level that would leave me disappointed

The volleyball season ended with a bang when varsity made it all the way to districts. The coaches were very proud of the girls and expressed their appreciation for their efforts at their banquet.

It only took us twenty minutes to be up 2-0 against a team, our main rivals Clements, we had not beaten them for twenty years and who were also former state champions. It was the best feeling ever, seeing the confusion in their faces from being down to us. All the work we had put in that year was finally translated into the field, where it truly matters. Toe to toe with a team they said we had no chance against, I beg to differ. All was going well, until early in the second half they had scored a goal. I could sense the timorous feeling beginning to rise within my teammates, but I never doubted them and knew we still had a

The team was ready, we had been working extremely hard for the past seven months for this. We were all in great shape and very rested. A few of the returning players were meeting me at my house to carpool to the final game of the state championship tournament. Everyone knew that the hard work had paid off when we won the semi-final game the preceding day.

Then when we become freshmen, we learn that we are now a part of a tradition that many great young men have been a part of. As a Fair Play Hornet I have learned that from the first High School practice until the buzzer of the last game of senior year every moment has to be cherished. Being a part of this great program is not easy because most nights we practice until eight o’clock and then go home to do chores and homework. Even with our time being strained we still persevere as a proud few that can say they accomplished a task that others could not.

This past year, I was incredibly blessed to play on a soccer team who, for the most part, was playing so that the team would have great success. I love all of my teammates and can without a doubt say that last soccer season was my favorite season. We had so much fun together and all genuinely liked each other (at least while we were in season). This aspect of my team made it so much easier to get everyone motivated towards an end goal: to go to the state tournament. This was our team goal from the very start.

A University must empower the students that attend, in order to fully prepare them for their future, and careers. In order to feel empowered, one must feel confident, and respected. In the Greenville University men’s soccer program, much like many other college sports teams, have a dysfunctional class ranking system that thrives on inequity, subsequently our program has been challenged to model a brotherhood that does not see class rankings, but rather appreciates each, and every individual regardless of their age, or class.