With balls flying past me and elbows crashing on my face, I quickly learned that high school basketball was a whole different beast than middle school. Overmatched in size, larger and more experienced players thwarted my attempts to score and easily outsmarted my once suffocating defense. I sat in the locker room, just one practice in, worn out mentally and physically. At that moment, I pondered the unthinkable - Is basketball no longer my sport? That was unimaginable, as I had loved playing basketball since kindergarten. The one thing I knew for sure was that I was a basketball player. Over the next couple of weeks, however, my attempts to gain ground in practice ended in failure.
As I slumped toward the locker room after a grueling pre-season practice, Coach Perez requested I come to his office. Much to my surprise, he did not focus on my shortcomings but talked about the player he thought I
…show more content…
Along with two other varsity players, I organized offseason workouts, lifts and scrimmages for the team. Missing five of six seniors at our Fall tournament, I stepped up and lead the team to a second place finish. Slowly the team came together came together and won district. Although the year ended with a heart breaking loss in the playoffs, I became the leader of the team and earned all-district honors.
My senior year I will be the sole varsity team captain. I have set a personal goal of making first team all-district and our team reaching the Final Four. While humbled by the leadership given to me, I am looking forward to the opportunity of being the sole leader. My journey to this has taught me that perseverance and hard work pay off no matter how difficult things I face become. In the classroom or on the court, I can overcome. I began high school wanting to be the best on the court. Now, at the beginning of my senior year, I am that person, on and off the