Everyone had different ways of making it through their high school career. Being on a team gives a student in high school something that they would not have had otherwise. For me, laying sports in high school has strongly influenced my high school experience. I feel that this experience has helped me learn something new, make more friends, stay active, developing social skills, and dealing with failure and success.

Over the summer, I decided that I wanted to try playing volleyball for the first time ever. I was really nervous because I didn’t know anyone else who was trying out. When I arrived at the first tryout, I didn’t even want to emerge from the car, but my mom forced me. I am so grateful that she did. Having never played volleyball before, I ended up making JV as a starting player. I learned so many things during the season dealing with the basis of the game, such as passing, hitting, setting, and I learned the rotations of how to move during the game. Later in the season, I even ended up being a swing player. A swing player is someone that plays on JV, but will sometimes play on varsity getting ready to eventually be on varsity one day. I am so grateful that I ended up trying something new. I have fallen in love with the sport and it has impacted my life in many ways.
A crucial way that playing sports has impacted my life is through friendships. Making friends is one of my favorite things about being on a team. I found friends with the same goals and interests as me. Having so many things in common, it was easy to become friends. Also, being at a school where practices didn’t start until four-thirty, we had time to bond as a team and as friends. Playing on both JV and varsity, I have made friendships with different people in all different grades. Being a freshman, if it wasn’t for volleyball, I would not have become friends with the juniors and seniors that I did. Being on a team, I have developed so many friendships that I would not have made otherwise.
Playing sports was a way that I stayed active. Playing sports keeps me active and healthier than I would have been otherwise. This year, I decided not to play a winter sport. That decision has impacted me in more negative ways than positive ways. Playing a fall sport, I was active every day after school, but now that the fall season is over, I find myself relaxing on the couch watching television rather than exercising or being active. Another way that sports have kept me active is that I am with my friends. I find it easier to be active with my teammates having a good time, instead of working out all by myself. Teammates push me to work harder and help me achieve my goals. Without them, exercising is so much harder because I don’t have someone there, pushing me to reach my goals.
High school sports have taught me how to deal with failure and success. In my volleyball season, we went undefeated, but when it came to the semifinals, we lost. This taught me not to be upset that we lost, but to just be happy that we even made it that far together. Just because we lost that game, it wasn’t the end of the world. There would be more games for us to win in the future, but at that time, we had to just be happy and congratulate the other team.
Playing high school sports has helped me develop social skills. Being around the same people every day for such a long time, I grew comfortable talking to them. Playing high school sports has greatly impacted my high school career. I have learned something new, made more friends, stayed active, and developing social skills.