SPORT NEWS
State playoffsBY MARTHA BENNETT ON MAY 16, 2014
With the weight of final exams, graduation and summer planning creeping up on students, there is a whole other kind of pressure for the proud Rose teams who are starting to begin playoff season. Varsity women’s soccer, men’s lacrosse and baseball are all eligible this year to begin playing in state playoffs. Starting in early to mid May, three of Rose’s current season athletic teams plan to play their hardest in hopes of bringing back a trophy for the Rampants.
“We’ve all come a long way this year and we’re all really excited,” senior soccer player Abby Wojciechowski said. “This year has felt more cohesive with the team and I think that’s why we are [producing] wins this season.” Players from each of these teams have spoken about how this year has felt different from the previous. “I’ve had the feeling that we have just been worked harder by our coaches and it has felt really good to know that hard work pays off,” senior lacrosse player Collin Moore said. “We’ve taken the [sport] more seriously instead of looking at it as just a fun thing to do. We look more of what a varsity team should look like and made sure that our first year as varsity counted.” Leading up to playoffs, players have shared their predictions for the tournament as well as what it means to them to support the Rampants in competition. “It means a lot to get to this point,” junior baseball player Ben Tramontana said. “We’ve had a really good season even since our workouts and I think that by making the state playoffs it shows that working with your team is important. I think going to state playoffs will be good for the team and definitely have a good ending result.” For seniors especially, this is a period of reflection of their time given to their sport as well as their lasting impressions for what will become of the team they leave behind this upcoming year. “The juniors on the team are extremely talented so I’m jealous that I won’t be able to play with them next year,” Moore said. “I’m in the best shape I’ve ever been in so giving this up is going to be hard, but I know that we’ve worked through a lot to get to this and that playoffs will be tough, but rewarding.” With baseball having the incredible season it has, going far in playoffs would be the cherry on top to an exciting year. “I think it’s possible for us to go to the state championship,” Tramontana said. “I believe in this team and that we could go all the way.” For women’s soccer in particular, this season has been a complete turnaround from last season. “Last year, we weren’t even close to playoffs,” Wojciechowski said. “It’s a really big deal that we’ve been able to change how we play as a team so that we could have the opportunity to do this. I started soccer when I was really little,” Wojciechowski added. “I guess I just wanted to continue with it because you get to see yourself get better and better, and being able to work hard enough to get to [state playoffs] it makes me want to make this school proud.” When thinking about Rose's sports journey this year, the school has done pretty well. From football state playoffs, to placing first in states for men's swimming, Rose has certainly stood its ground for athletic excellence. Now with three outstanding teams competing at state playoffs, it supports the tradition that Rose produces great players, coaches and more importantly teams. HTML Comment Box is loading comments...
|