Senior days and nights have been finishing off the season for many sports. Golf, volleyball, cross country, tennis and water polo have all ended for the year with the senior athletes wishing the final game had lasted a little bit longer. Many students have been participating in their sport ever since they were little and are now facing the last few games in their high school career. With the exemption of a few students who are playing sports in college, these last games are possibly the last ones students will ever play.
“I’ve played since second grade and so many of my best friends have come from basketball and I think not being able to have those memories through basketball is gonna be kind of tough for me,” said basketball team captain Julia Oliveira-Killmon.
It is bittersweet finishing the season alongside some of your best friends who were made from playing a sport. Especially if you have been playing for a long time, you are not only leaving the friends you have made but also leaving the part of yourself that will always be attached to the sport.
“I’ll never feel that connection that I have with my friends, but at the same time, I am excited to move forward and go to the next chapter of my life,” said golfer Dani DeMera.
Along with the sentimental aspect of retiring from a sport comes a sense of excitement for what the future holds. Although it is known that the future will not consist of ever playing the sport again, it is something to look forward to as the senior class enters a new stage of their life. Even for sports that have not started yet, the emotions are already starting to flood in.
“It’s a chapter of my life that is ending, you know, I’m still going to be sad but I’m also going to be a little bit happy,” said softball player Katie Johnson.
The senior days and nights are always something to look forward to, but once it is over, a quick news flash comes. A realization will occur that you won’t ever have to put on those cleats again, never have to stay after school for practice again and never have to bring a second backpack to school again. Following that realization will come another one that reminds you that you will not get to do those things again. The moments you used to dread have now become something you miss doing.
“It’s just hard to walk away from it after playing for eight years,” said volleyball team captain Julia Breckenridge.
Saying goodbye to a sport that you can not play outside of high school is difficult. Luckily for golf players, they can participate in this sport for the rest of their lives. Unfortunately for sports such as lacrosse and water polo, it is hard to continue the activity without any teammates or resources. So seniors, while ending your final season, take in the last moments and embrace this end of an era.
