Sports
Tuesday, May 26, 2020
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Spring sports canceled: What it means to seniors Elena Schmidt Staff Reporter
All spring sports were postponed as ’Stoga closed its doors on Friday, March 13. Following the Pennsylvania Secretary of Education’s announcement on April 9 closing PA schools for the remainder of the school year, PIAA canceled the remaining winter championships and the entire spring sports season. It is still uncertain whether the fall season will also be impacted. While athletes across the board were disappointed to hear that their games were cancelled and their group training and had ended, seniors were especially heartbroken to find out that their last season at ’Stoga was over. Senior Claire Overton has been playing softball since kindergarten and was looking forward to her last high school season. She had a successful season the year before, as the team made it to the state tournament for the first time in 12 years. “(I was) excited to continue and bring that excitement and momentum from last year to this year, with all the underclassmen that are filling all the positions,” Overton said. “I’m missing playing with all of them and seeing everybody and having all the senior activities but also the games.” However, she was glad to have played well in the last two softball scrimmages of the season. Overton is optimistic about the future and grateful to have more seasons
ahead of her at Emerson College. While she knows the importance of practice, she has been finding it more challenging to train by herself. “I think my motivation has fluctuated a little bit, being stuck at home. I’m less motivated to go out and do stuff, but I also need to stay in a good rhythm. I need to stay good and get all those fundamentals continued so when we do go back, I’m not behind everybody else,” Overton said. As Overton reflected on her high school and athletic career, she noted the value of appreciating aspects of daily life. “You don’t know when your last game is. Always play like it’s your last, because a global pandemic could occur and everything could be gone, (and) you never know when you’re going to get injured. You should always play to your best, (and) don’t take anything for granted.” Senior lacrosse player Michael Prestipino is also disappointed that his last year at ’Stoga was cut short, having looked forward to it for four years. He trains for lacrosse year-round, and misses practicing with his team. While he is eager to play on scholarship at the University of Virginia, there are days when Prestipino also lacks motivation to train, since his next official season is still a few months away. For now, Prestipino is making do with the limited options he has to train. “Now, pretty much everything’s closed — I was going to the track a lot but now even the
track got closed. So basically, the only stuff I can do is run around my neighborhood or lift weights in my basement, but I can’t go to the gym anymore or to any fields and run. The training has been limited but at least I’m still able to get some stuff in,” Prestipino said. Like Overton, Prestipino encourages others, especially underclassmen, to enjoy high school and its sports seasons while they last, knowing how quickly time goes by. “I guess you never know when your last practice is going to be, or your last day of school — like that random Thursday. Think about how lucky you are to have what you have before it’s gone,” Prestipino said. “Don’t get to your senior year and realize (that) everything’s done, like your last game, and all that. Just think of it beforehand, how lucky you are to be in this situation, (to have) more games.” While fall sports have not been cancelled, their current status is still in question. Richard Hawkins, a teacher and cross-country coach at ’Stoga, is trying to remain optimistic that the upcoming season will take place. Though he is planning for a normal season, he is taking potential obstacles of social distancing into account as well. “If there (are) limitations on gathering the number of kids, which it sounds like there might be, I might have to have several practices so the numbers are lower. I guess that’s the way I would think about it: staggering practices,” Hawkins said.
Elena Schmidt/THE SPOKE
Closed for the season: Caution tape blocks the entrance to the Conestoga track. The PIAA canceled all spring sports on April 9, making the track team one of many unable to compete this year. Hawkins agrees that gathering the motivation to train is more difficult when training individually. Hawkins acknowledges this, knowing that the season may be cancelled if dangerous conditions persist. “In cross country, there’s a lot of camaraderie among the teammates. They like working out to-
gether, stretching together — it’s a strong part of cross country. Without that, it’s going to affect (training) for sure,” Hawkins said. “You’re more driven to do the workouts if you’re there being supported by your peers and your teammates. Without that, it’s going to be a little bit harder on the athletes to be self-motivated.”
Hawkins sympathizes with student athletes, especially for seniors, and poses an important question toward those who were going to start a sport. “My message to the seniors: my heart goes out to you because I get to see all the blood, sweat and tears that you put in over your high school career, and you are
cheated out of your senior year. It’s very unfortunate and heartbreaking,” Hawkins said. “For the new runners that want to get into the sport, you get to test how self-motivated you can be. Can you do the training without a coach yelling at you or your teammates? You get to find out who you are. Can you be a self-disciplined athlete?”
With gyms closed, how are people staying active at home? Gavin Merschel Staff Reporter
Junior Isaiah Willis used to go to the gym with the football team every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday after school. Now, with that option no longer available, Willis and most other athletes are trying to exercise with their limited resources. “I am trying to keep the fitness; the work ethic is still in me. I usually wake up pretty early and do some workouts in the morning, usually some cardio or speed and agility type stuff in the morning when I’m most active and have the most energy,” Willis said. “I walk around the block or run around the block with my family, get active, just get some air.” Before the COVID-19 outbreak, Conestoga students had access to various forms of exer-
cise such as playing a sport, going to a gym such as the YMCA or Lifetime, or going on runs with a friend. Due to social distancing, most of these options are currently unavailable. For many athletes training to perform at their peak, the stayat-home orders have left their daily routines empty. To fill this void, teams such as the football, lacrosse, baseball, crew and track teams, have been sending out workouts to their players to give them a stable routine. Willis uses the football team’s workouts as a guideline. “I go by their plan every day they post something. I do what they do, but I do a little extra that me and my dad do as well,” Willis said. Along with workouts, some teams have posted challenges and fun events on social media for their athletes to complete to encourage connection between teammates. The girls’ lacrosse team has been posting a series
of workouts, stick tricks and other drills to benefit not only current players but also anybody interested in lacrosse. Girls’ lacrosse senior Anne Nikolic reflects on the experience. “Since we found our season has been canceled, we have been trying to stay positive,” Nikolic said. “On our Instagram, our team has been posting many fun workouts, stick tricks and lacrosse series. We wanted not just ourselves but everyone in the community to stay connected by continuing to play lacrosse. It is such a special sport to many people, and there are so many activities anyone can do in quarantine.” Students such as junior Nick Arbes, who go to the gym for personal gain, have also been affected by the outbreak. Arbes was dedicated to maintaining fitness to the top of his ability before quarantine, but now his plans have taken a detour.
“Before quarantine, it was a lot of heavy lifting. I was able to go to the gym. I had a routine. I was keeping my body fat levels super low. I was eating really clean,” Arbes said. “But then by the first couple weeks of quarantine, it was tough because the gyms were closed, and I kind of let it go a little bit. I was not eating super clean. But then after a week went by, I hopped back on the train.” Though the incentives for staying in shape right now may be gone, maintaining fitness during this time also serves to keep all athletes connected emotionally to their sports and ready to come back in full-swing as soon the social distancing orders are lifted. “Our season might be over, but our team is still continuing to go through this together and staying connected as much as we can,” Nikolic said.
Ananya Kulkarni/THE SPOKE
Shut down: The Upper Main Line YMCA closes to the public because of the county-wide stay at home order. Prior to the closure of the YMCA, many student athletes used this and other local health facilities to stay in shape.
Personal training: EEPE goes online Akshita Joshi
Assistant Sports Editor Extended experience physical education (EEPE) is an alternative for students to meet their physical education requirements, requiring each student to fulfill a minimum of 30 supervised hours of physical activity each semester. Students typically complete their requirements at fitness centers such as the YMCA and Lifetime Fitness Center. However, due to the statewide closures of nonessential businesses like gyms and fitness centers, EEPE was revised to make sure that students would be able to meet these requirements at home. Each student must complete a specific number of activities within the categories of physical, non-physical and mental health depending on the number of hours needed to reach the 30 hour mark. Students who need 0-10 hours must complete two physical activities, one non-physical activity and one
Akshita Joshi Staff Reporter
Courtesy Kaitlyn Casciato
Being flexible: Sophomore Kaitlyn Casciato cools down with some yoga after her EEPE workout. The extended experience program was revised following Conestoga’s closure on March 13 to accomodate stay-at-home orders. mental health activity. Those who need 11-20 more hours must do four physical activities, two non-physical activ-
ities and one mental health activity. Students who need 21-30 hours must complete two times the requirements of their 11-20 hours peers in each of the three categories. Assistant principal Dr. Patrick Boyle runs extended experience and made the decision to add mental health activities to EEPE, which usually only requires physical health activities. He added this aspect to encourage students to take care of their mental health while they were trapped at home. “We tried to create a pro-
gram that allowed students to have a full experience of physical health, motivational health, and mental health in a short period of time,” Boyle said. The physical health category includes activities from DAREBEE, a fitness challenge website chosen by the school. Activities on DAREBEE include body circuits and no-sugar challenges. Sophomore Kaitlyn Casciato, who originally chose EEPE due to the choices of physical activity available to her at the YMCA, loves how she can also choose
her workouts on DAREBEE. “I think it’s a great way to get students to get up and exercise while staying home. I also like being able to do it alone because I can go at my own pace and choose my own workouts depending on my mood,” Casciato said. The non-physical health activities ask students to submit written reflections about videos on leadership lessons in sports, inspirational quotes and advice from athletes. The mental health portion of the requirement focuses on gratitude. Students can choose to write a letter to someone special, write about friends and family members that they are grateful to, or write a “quarantine reflection” that describes activities they have been doing to keep in “optimal shape.” While students like Casciato like the new requirements, others like sophomore Katherine Zhang feel that the new requirements don’t fit the course. “There is a lot more than what we would normally do because now I feel as though we have to do so much more than simple exercises, and there’s even writing involved, which I think is a bit much for EEPE,” Zhang said. All students must turn in their EEPE verification forms by May 15. Extended experience will return to its original requirements next school year as fitness centers begin to reopen in the coming months.