Fresh on the Field

Freshmen share their experience on varsity teams

Surya Sethi, Ananya Tak

As freshmen made their way up the bleachers on Sept. 30 to watch their frst Homecoming football game, one player on the feld stood out from the rest. Caden An ’26, the only freshman on the varsity team, warmed up on the feld, surrounded by athletes older than him.

Only a handful of Stevenson freshmen are selected to participate at the varsity level each athletic season. In order to qualify, they are expected to balance both developed physical skills and a strong mentality.

Due to these high expectations, many freshmen fnd it difcult to adjust to being the youngest player on the team. However, An fnds that the supportive nature of the team helps foster mentorship between the older and younger players.

“Even if I mess up in practice, they’re always supportive,” An said. “After a loss, they ask, ‘what can we do better?’ They’re never negative; they never hang their heads.”

Similarly, Nisha Musunuri ’25, who played on the varsity girls’ basketball team as a freshman, adds that the mentorship she received from older players as a freshman has developed into genuine bonds with her teammates. As the season progressed, she found that the shared experiences connected the team.

“We’ve gotten a lot closer,” Musunuri said. “I feel like last year everyone was in their own little circles, but now everyone’s more unifed. Competing at the state level brought us all together.”

Musunuri expands that the upperclassmen on her team would often check in with her after games and practices to ofer encouragement. While Musunuri has only experienced playing on the varsity basketball team, An notes the diferences between the freshman and varsity football teams as a kicker on both.

“The team dynamic is diferent because the freshmen players are younger and less mature,” An said. “I think being on a team with older players and being on both teams is a good balance.” “When you get to the varsity level, you can’t let [the pressure] get to you because there’s no time for that. When you’re playing on the court, you have to be conFfIdent.”

Nisha Musunuri ’25

Photo courtesy of Elan Gurevich ’24

An observes that the diference in team dynamic is also created through diferent levels of maturity and unique mentalities between teams. When she frst began playing on varsity, Musunuri had to work on building her confdence as a player to prevent a negative mindset from getting in the way of her performance. Ashley Graham, the varsity girls’ basketball coach, considers mental strength to be one of the most important factors in determining whether or not a player is ft to be on varsity.

“You have to see, talk and get to know [the players] throughout summer basketball and preseason to see if they have that mental fortitude,” Graham said. “We don’t just look at the physical skills, but if mentally they can handle a varsity sport.”

Graham believes that with the different, and often higher, expectations put on varsity athletes, they must be able to balance pressure from coaches, teammates, parents and spectators on the court. In An’s experience as the sole kicker on the team, he feels there is more responsibility put on him as a player to meet his and his team’s expectations.

“Because I am a freshman on the team, people think I’m some superstar,” An said. “So I have to show up, especially in my position because it’s just me.”