My most rewarding experience was coaching the Strathcona County Special Olympics Soccer "A" team to a 2nd place finish. The SCSO organization allows children, adolescents, and young adults with mental disabilities to partake in sports. Personally, I have always been an advocate for everyone to have an opportunity to be involved in sport. Therefore, I decided I could use my soccer knowledge to make the players' experience enjoyable.…
It had been a rough week in my life. I was sick and couldn't figure out what was wrong.. There were many blood tests done and yet the doctors could not figure out what was causing my breathing problems. I run cross country so breathing is a vital factor in how I perform. Saturday came along and it was time for the Culver Military Cross Country Invitational.…
My freshman year, the Mount Si High School Swim Team had its first official season. I was one of 15 girls on the team. Hardly anyone knew we existed in the community and at the high school. The fall of my junior and senior year, managing the swim team became my project. I was promoted to team captain.…
As the powerful Colorado River churned beneath me, as it has for centuries, and the relentless sun peaked over the top of the North Rim, I could not help but feel astounded. I was in a timeless place: a place disconnected from the society I had left behind miles ago. Down here, in the lowest section of the Grand Canyon, it was just me, my friends, and the heat. Always the heat. We had started our journey, a run from the Grand Canyon’s North Rim to the South Rim, at 4 AM in a futile attempt to avoid the skyrocketing temperature and finish before the sun became the determining factor in the success of our venture.…
Cross country and track should have better uniforms and sweats. Recently the volleyball and basketball teams got brand new uniforms and they weren’t even that old. The sweats are getting worn out, few of them have holes in pockets or doesn’t have a zipper anymore. Uniform shorts don’t have the rope to tighten the waist size. The sweats aren’t even waterproof anymore.…
Jessica Statsky, the writer of the essay, “Children Need To Play, Not Compete,” describes how children’s sports have been changing in recent times. She speaks of how the parents and coaches near fanatical criteria being imposed are negatively affecting many of the children involved with the sports. The concerns she feels derive from the potential dangers that children in the age ranges of six to twelve are exposed to in all organized sports activities. The dangers she covers are the physical well-being, mental health and anxiety, drop-out rate, and the stresses created by the adults involved in the sport. Statsky’s first observation is the physical risks that young, growing children are being exposed too in sports programs.…
During track season, my seventh grade basketball coach thought that it would be a great idea if I joined the track team and competed in the 400 meter event. I attended every practice and I was motivated and convinced that I could win first place. However, on the first track meet that I attended, I was in last place. I was so far behind that the girl in first place passed me up.…
I believe that interscholastic athletic programs are an extension of the classroom. Although academics come first in the secondary school system, the lessons that can be taught and learned from athletics cannot be duplicated anywhere else in the school environment. Sportsmanship, teamwork, and perseverance are just a few of the multitude of life lessons that can be learned through involvement in high school athletics. My expectations for our programs are lofty, not necessarily in term of wins and losses but in terms of building programs, being passionate about our sports and in doing things the right way, all the time. The wins and losses will take care of themselves.…
Throughout school, I have been very involved with extracurricular activities and helping the community. In high school, I was part of the Varsity Softball Team for four years. I received All State Academic in 2014 and Second team All District. I played on the Junior Varsity Basketball Team for two years and on the varsity level for one year. I participated on the Varsity track team one year.…
Throughout my four years of high school, the seaside community of Narragansett, Rhode Island, has encouraged and nurtured the growth of its youthful inhabitants as students and individuals. The supportive environment and abundant opportunities available for students to pursue their passions and help others consequently benefits the community as a whole. As an athlete, and more specifically, a runner, I have aspired to motivate and encourage young athletes to enjoy the fun and friendships that emerge from being a part of a sports team. During the summer, I volunteered at the Summer Youth Track Series at Narragansett High School. Eager smiles painted the faces of the joyous young runners lining up in heats, ready to run as fast as they can in the 100 meter sprint, throw as far as they can in the turbo javelin, and jump as far as they can in the long jump.…
While in middle school every young girl’s dream was to be on the varsity cheer team. While the last week in September we started trying out. I swear that whole week I felt sick and could not eat anything unless I wanted it to come right back up! After school we went straight to practice until 5:30. The older cheerleaders took this to heart and got so mad at us when we started joking around.…
On Monday, my boyfriend had a flag football game. In my opinion he is one of the best guys on his flag football team, because he played football most if this life. We arrived a little late to his game, because we had a test in our Sexual Health class. The team was not doing that well before we got there and they were happy when they saw Jaylan came. Their opponent team did not seem all that good, but Jaylan’s team was just a little jumpy about the game.…
The sport of cross country running has been a part of my life since I started running in the 7th grade. And as I have grown older my love of the sport has only grown to the point where running is by far my biggest passion. So today I am writing to you with the hope of sharing this passion of cross country running with your school by becoming the Varsity Cross Country Coach of the Lakewood Vikings. I would be a good cross country coach because of my coaching experience, knowledge of training philosophies, and my personal success in the sport. I have been an assistant varsity track coach at Capac High School for the past two seasons, and a third upcoming, with my focus in distance events.…
Section 1: Dr. E. Angela Murphy (Exercise, Nutrition and Immunity) Dr. Murphy’s current research focuses on 1) understanding how exercise stress affects immune functions and 2) understanding whether the use of proper nutrition can ameliorate the immune suppression caused by exercise stress. The overall goal of Dr. Murphy’s lecture was for students to gain an understanding of how exercise stress affects immune function, the mechanisms for these effects, and the benefits of proper nutrition on immune function following exercise stress. During the presentation, Dr. Murphy discussed two studies focused on elucidating the effect of cells of the immune system, including macrophages and Interleukin-6 (IL-6), on susceptibility to viruses. One study…
A basketball team in Texas was down by two points with seconds left. After two steals and a half-court buzzer beater, they win the game. However there is more to high school sports than the intense playoff games. High school sports do more for students’ than give them a varsity letter. High school sports are beneficial to a students’ education in that they teach time management, develop social skills, and improve a students’ grades.…