Story and photos by Katie Baker
Sophomore Molly Harmon made varsity swim last year and this year. She has been swimming since she was 4 years old and is very driven in what she wants to accomplish this season.
“Starting varsity as a freshman was very fun and exciting, I had really high expectation for myself and I knew that all my hard work had paid off!” said Harmon. She hopes to keep working hard and continue to get better has the season continues.
When freshman make varsity some people might not agree with the coaches if they are an upperclassmen. So they might think they have to prove themselves.
Freshman Mason Grays shares that he felt this way. “I felt like I had to prove myself every week. Every week I had to prove to opposing teams that I belonged at the Varsity level of competition” said Gray.
Gray was on varsity cross country and trying out for track in the spring.
Sometimes the younger classmen get chores they have to do in order to hold their spots on the team. Many have to carry stuff. Gray shared that he had to carry bags and water bugs but it helped him have a great first year.
Making new friends is a great part of being on a team in general. Freshman Brooke Camacho has made many friends being on varsity cheer.
“It was fun being a freshman on varsity because I loved being with the upperclassmen,” said Camacho.
Making new friends and doing a sport that people love can make the underclassmen feel very welcome. Talking with Harman, Gray and Camacho they all said that the upperclassmen were all very welcoming and nice.
All of them also shared that the upperclassmen really made their freshman year better than expected.
Being an underclassman in a varsity sport might be scary but with very nice upperclassman it really can make a difference in their experience.
