sports by carissa

I did/do three main sports throughout my life, and all of them mean different things to me. This will probably be boring for you to read but I just thought I'd analyze the difference between my relationships with the sports I do because I do not know what to write about.

My fall sport is tennis. I've been lightly playing my whole life, taking lessons as a kid as many Sparta children do, and it was a big part of my summer growing up. It's what I chose to do in high school as I was entering my freshman year, and at first I didn't like it. I didn't know any of the people there, and I was still 13 years old entering the pre-season. Quickly, however, I warmed up to it. The team was so small that JV was like a family. Many of us got along really well, and throughout the season it became clear that although I had just met these people, it would be an amazing group to have around me through high school. And it was true. We all are such different people and live such separate lives that we never get into drama or fights, and I love that I can always fall back on my JV tennis family. Next year, the seniors will be in college, and the juniors are either going to have to be on varsity or get cut from the team (they're still really good, but there are only 7 varsity spots). I know it won't be the same next year, but I think it'll be okay.

Swim was my winter sport. My parents pushed me into club swim since elementary school, and I hated it from the start. I'm mad at myself for not putting my foot down and starting a sport I really liked, because then I would be that much better at it now, in high school. I quit my club team and did only the high school swim team last year, but the high school team is a joke. Nobody cares about it except the few people who've done club before and get into college with it. People on the team were trying to get me to continue high school swimming, but I refused. I know it could take me to college, but I dread every practice, every meet, more than you can ever imagine. I don't even want to think about the hell it would be to swim in college. I just really wish I loved the sport, but I didn't from the start.

My spring sport is lacrosse. I only started last year, and I'll be the first to admit I'm not amazing at it, but I love it so much. I love how it feels to be on the field, and part of a friendly team. I think what I like most about lacrosse, that I don't experience in swim or tennis, is the feeling of scoring a goal and everybody cheering you on. Sure, it feels good to win a race or a match, but individual sports just don't provoke the same feeling as a team one does. My freshman year I was planning to do track as a spring sport, but I let Mrs. Brennan, my English teacher at the time, convince me to join lacrosse. It was the best decision I made last year. Even though I was a newcomer and certainly not up to speed with those that had been playing for their entire lives, so were a lot of the people joining. It's scary to learn and try a new sport, but with others in my same position by my side, I felt safer. Taking a draw or having possession of the ball, and knowing everybody is watching you, puts a pressure on me that forces me to do better. Be faster. Make better passes and shots. The pressure I felt from swim was, in contrast, a burden. If I did badly in a race, I would have to answer to my parents. However, in lacrosse, my parents aren't there watching and the whole team has your back if you make a mistake. You just pick your head up, and you do better.

picture link because it wouldn't upload