Basketball player Payton Skirvin doing warm up for the tournament against Tippevalley, Culver Military Academy, and Triton. Photo by: Janessa Salazar
In the winter there are six different sports that are available at Plymouth High School: boys basketball, girls basketball, swimming, wrestling, gymnastics, and cheerleading. Each sport has its difficulties but these students have shown their dedication and love for sports.
In any sport, there are awards that players or participants can earn throughout the season. Senior Hunter Stevens says that in girls basketball they can win “All Conference, All-State, Academic All-State, scholarships, records that can be broken, and championships can be won.” On the same team as Stevens, sophomore Ashley Harrell said, “I don’t play [basketball] for the awards. I enjoy it and I love my teammates.” Students may set goals to get these awards or just to improve themselves. Freshman swimmer Tristan Pearson says his goals for the season are “to improve myself and get 11 dives for NLC’s and Sectionals.” Teams at PHS also have goals as a whole and want to work on things together. Stevens says, “I do have a few personal goals that I have been working on since I have been in high school, but the team goals are what is more important. Which is to win as many games as possible and
Wrestler Chaz Scruggs getting ready to start the next round against Concord. Photo Contributed by: Rockies Wrestling
get as far in the tournament as possible.”
Having a passion for a sport may root from a parent, someone close to the athlete that has had influence on him/her, or just a love for it from a young age. Stevens says, “I have been playing basketball since little league in elementary school.” Although loving a sport does not mean that one has been playing it for a long time, junior Tyler Irwin said that he’s only been playing basketball for a year, but he “loves basketball” now and “gets to meet new people and be part of a team.”
Students might also continue their sport once they get out of high school. Stevens said, “I plan on attending Hillsdale College in Michigan with a full ride to play the sport I love.” Also, freshman Kailey Filson said that she would like to continue to be a cheerleader in college. Even though one sport can take up time, some students play more than one. Stevens says, “I play volleyball as well [as basketball]. It can be very stressful at times but it comes down to time management; having a study hall every trimester and using my time wisely.” When participating in a sport, time management and keeping up grades can be difficult. Irwin says, “[basketball] distracts me from my schoolwork because I’m usually too tired to do my homework and on game days I can’t focus.” On the opposing response Harrell said, “playing sports does not distract me from my school work. I know that my school work comes first.”
Basketball player Tommy Holloway practicing shooting while being guarded by Jarred Hurford. Photo By: Janessa Salazar
In a sport, the coaches are a big part also in how they teach their players and how they choose to become a coach. Basketball coach Ryan Bales said, “I have always loved basketball and grew up playing it quite a bit. I had some great coaches growing up in school that really got me interested in coaching someday.” He also said, “Chris Myers was my Jr. High Wrestling and High School Football Coach. I wouldn’t be teaching or coaching if it wasn’t for him!” Bales wasn’t the only one who knew what they wanted at a young age. PHS’s athletic trainer Ryan Carroll said, “I knew in high school that this was the career path that I wanted to take. I have always loved being involved in athletics and had an interest in medicine. Putting the two together into a degree in Athletic Training seemed logical.” Wrestling, like other sports, takes up time and can be hard on the student so scheduling is an important part. Wrestling Coach Phil Koops says, “[Wrestling] takes a lot of your time, by the time you shower after practice and get the boys out of the locker room it’s 3 hours of your night. Then you have all the Saturday Tournaments. You really have to enjoy the kids and the other coaches or you’ll burn out. It has to be your hobby.”
Along with the student’s personal goals each coach has goals also. These goals can be for an individual or for the team as a whole. Wrestling coach Ryan Rust says, “Our goals are different for every wrestler. Some beginners just need to focus on getting better to win their first match. Others need to focus on winning their first tournament. Others need to focus on winning a state championship.” The goals that each coach has will be different even in the same sport. Koops says, “I want to teach kids how to be mentally and physically tough. These are life lessons that will serve us all well in whatever we do.” Coaches might have goals for themselves. Basketball Coach Carl Davis said, “I think the goal for the players and myself is the same. We want to focus on the present and improve and have fun while doing it.”