Freshman Brooke Munson is often found after school at the soccer field, fulfilling her duties as a defensive player on the JV girls soccer team. As one of nineteen underclassmen on the team, Brooke is tasked with up keeping the prestigious, successful reputation of the team. In order for the team to accomplish this, the majority of its week is kept busy with practices, games, weight lifting, and scrimmages.

“Playing JV soccer has made me very busy because it’s every day after school,” said Brooke, who is a first year member. “But I love soccer, so I really enjoy getting to play all the time with the team.”

The busy schedule is not only time-consuming for Brooke and her teammates, but it is all meant to benefit them in the long run.

“Practices are every day for two hours, which is very tiring, but the vibe of practice is a little more relaxed,” Brooke said. “But at the same time, we are all there to play and get better.”

While the practices can be a more laid-back way for the girls to sharpen their skills as soccer players, during the games they play, they are much more focused and ready to succeed.

“The energy of the games is very intense and serious [compared to the energy at practice],” Brooke said, “because everyone is there to do their best so we can do good as a team.”

While she is now reaping the benefits of being part of the team, it took her some time to find her footing. For the most part, this rough start can be credited to the try-out process.

“The tryouts this year were not very ideal; we were inside for two days in the gym, and [during] the other three of the days, we were outside playing in the snow,” Brooke said. “The conditions really were not good, and it may have gotten everyone sick. But we made the best of a bad situation.”

Brooke persevered through the challenges she was faced with and is now enjoying the presence of a close team in her life.

“I really enjoy how positive and caring everyone [on the team] is,” Brooke said.

The relationship between Brooke and her teammates is not the only strong one in her life. Brooke also enjoys fulfilling friendships with girls in her grade.

“I have some very close friendships with the people in my grade,” Brooke said. “All of my friends impact my life a lot in very positive ways, and I am very grateful for all of them.”

Brooke’s strong friend group has helped her during the transition from middle school to high school.

This transition, which can be challenging at first, proved to be a little bit different from what Brooke was anticipating high school to be.

“Going into freshman year, I expected not as much of a change going from middle school to high school,” Brooke said, “but now that I am in high school, it is much more difficult than I thought it would be.”

Over the course of her freshman year, Brooke has been faced with the problem of time management and has used this to help her learn how to overcome challenges.  

“One of the biggest surprises of this year has honestly been the amount of homework that I get every night,” Brooke said. “It has been a lot more than I ever expected going into high school, so this year I really had to adjust to that. This year I have learned how to manage my time with all the homework and sports every night.”

Though soccer can appear to be an impediment to Brooke’s schedule, she is glad that she is on the team. She is looking forward to how it will shape the rest of her high school career.

“I am really excited to continue playing soccer for the school,” Brooke said. “I am also very excited to have a full four years as a team to develop as a team and also to bond as a team.”

In terms of the incoming freshmen anticipating their chance at high school life next fall, Brooke highly recommends getting involved in a sport or another kind of activity in order to enrich one’s life.

“I would tell the new freshmen to get involved in a sport or some kind of group through the school,” Brooke said, “because it can be a lot of fun and can maybe give you the chance to meet people that you normally would not meet.”