They huddled together, hearts racing as the pressure built. The noise of the crowd was thunderous, but the team managed to drown out the chaos around them. They had one thing on their minds. Victory.
“One… Two… Three… FAMILY!”
The huddle split. Game on.
A family is defined as a primary social group, parents and their children. But there are many other classifications of a family that the dictionary cannot portray. Many members of the girls’ varsity soccer team consider their teammates family.
“A family is made up of people who fight, argue, and get mad, but they know in the end that they are there for each other,” junior Ellen Orr said. “If we were to lose a game and I was upset and angry, I would still want to ride the bus home with my teammates because we all love each other and we stick together.”
Being on a team allows members to learn to communicate and get along better with others.
“You have to talk to everybody,” sophomore Makenzie Sangalli said.” If you don’t communicate with your team, you’re going to be working by yourself instead of with everyone.”
Trust is also an integral part of being on a team.
“You have to trust your teammates to be able to play with them,” sophomore Hannah Patterson said. “You have to trust your coach too, that he knows what he’s talking about.”
The sense of family also makes it hard to see players leave at the end of the year.
“Last year on senior night, I really felt like part of a family,” senior Kayla Cigainero said. “I knew it would be hard, but it was a lot more emotional than I expected. Everyone was crying because nobody wanted to let the seniors go. We looked up to them. They were our leaders.”
Like all families, they have their rough patches.
“It was hard adapting to the new coach,” Sangalli said. “There was more running and everyone was getting sick. The worst part was that the seniors from last year were gone, so we didn’t have the encouragement that we had before.”
In high school, most everyone wants to be accepted. Being on a team fulfull this need.
“If I hadn’t of been on the soccer team last year, I wouldn’t of met a lot of the people that are my best friends now,” Sangalli said. “It made being in high school much easier.”
Win or lose, at the end of the day, they are still a family.
“Last year, it was the winning tournament against the Hallsville team and we were in the finals, a sudden death, tied 5 to 5,” junior Hannah Patterson said. “All of our shooters had gone and he asked someone to step up, so I did it. I missed and I felt really bad. So I lost the game.”
Despite the loss, Patterson said the team was supportive.
“It was the first time that we had gone really far in a tournament, but they were very comforting. They made me feel like it wasn’t my fault; everyone was really sweet. Nobody blamed me.”
They huddle again, this time with fewer distractions. Even if they didn’t get their victory, they still know that they have camaraderie to get through and have faith in their teammates that they will do better the next game.
“One… Two… Three… FAMILY!”
