One pull to the left. One pull to the right. Shoot. Score. 2-0 to Convent of the Sacred Heart. I was overcome with happiness. This was one of the best moments in my field hockey history.
As the referee blew the whistle and signaled the goal, my teammates went wild, cheering and screaming. It was a perfect moment. Nothing else mattered. Not the math test I had the next day, or the college supplement essays that I had yet to write. The only thing on my mind was my teammates and the complete excitement we were experiencing together.
Sacred Heart’s varsity field hockey team had not won a game against Loomis Chaffee School since 2005. It was not a championship game. It wasn’t even a league game. But that didn’t matter. This game was special because of one thing: the true connection that I felt with my teammates.
During those 60 minutes, I forgot about the parents and siblings cheering on the sideline. I forgot about the world around me. No amount of stress or struggle was more important than my team.
We all were focused on a single task: to come together and play with all our heart. We transitioned the ball up the field, got low to stop Loomis’ drives, and sprinted back and forth with such passion that I felt like I could continue forever. Everything melted away and I was filled with a love for the game and for the people I was playing it with.
Being a part of a team is one of the most valuable opportunities anyone can have in high school. With so much attention directed toward individual success in school, team sports allow students to not only work together and develop skills, but also create an atmosphere where each player takes pride in the success of their peers.
There are even health benefits to playing on an athletic team. According to muhealth.org, “team sports are good for learning accountability, dedication, and leadership.”
But these words do not give justice to what it really means to be a part of a loving group of girls who work and sweat together for two hours a day, seven days a week. My four years of being a team player have far exceeded anything that I can put into words. But, I will make an attempt:
To me, being a part of a team whose members work hard for a common goal is one of the best experiences in the world. The Loomis game epitomized this team camaraderie as we came together and triumphed.
Winning the game was no easy feat. We tripped over field hockey sticks, and the ball hit us countless times, leaving bruises all over our legs. But in the intense moments of the game, my passion and love for my teammates alleviated any feelings of pain.
When I heard the ball hit the back of the goal for the second time, I have never jumped so high in my life. Sure, we did not do everything perfectly in the game. We messed up, and quite frankly, the other team had the ball in their half of the field for the majority of the time. But ultimately, it all came down to the few seconds where we had to get the ball into the goal.
One pull to the left. One pull to the right. Shoot. Score.
The best part of it was that I did not score the winning goal. It did not matter that I did not score it and that I hadn’t even touched the ball during that play. I was ecstatic because my love for the team was so much greater than my desire for individual success.
And when our team rejoiced in that goal, we knew that no team could ever destroy our Heart.
– Alice Millerchip, Co-Content Editor