Winter Sports Kickoff!

As the fall season winds to an end, the next wave of sports comes around. Winter sports are here, and it’s time to start getting excited for them! Our winter sports include: swimming, indoor track and field, wrestling, basketball, bocce and cheer. These sports are favorites in the TJ community, and so many athletes are ready for a great winter season.

Swimming and diving is a sport that some would be surprised to know that TJ has. Because there is only one high school pool in the county, each high school swim team has to take turns using Walkersville’s pool. Nevertheless, TJ has an amazing team that works incredibly hard with the resources they have. There are no tryouts for swim, and practice is held about 3 times a week. Jessie Wirtz, senior, says, “I love swim because I love the people that are involved and it has given me the ability to connect with others.”

Unified Bocce is a fun, interactive winter sport that is a hit at TJ. Bocce is an Italian sport where you try to throw balls to get near your target, the pallina,  and your opponent does the same. Whoever gets the most balls closest to the pallina wins the frame. Points are awarded, and the next frame starts. In bocce you play until 16 points, and whoever gets 16 points first is the winner. Coach Maligara coaches bocce, and this sport is a great way to meet new people.

Cheer is another winter sport that is filled with excitement and teamsmanship. Practice is most days in the gym, and Coach Andrews is the cheer coach. It has a fun atmosphere that allows for anyone to get good at cheering. The cheer team during the winter cheers for basketball, and it is open to boys and girls.

Wrestling at TJ is coached by Coach Holste and is held in the wrestling room, which is in the back of the gym between the main gym and the aux gym. Practice is 5 days a week, from 2:30 to 5. Coach Holste says, “Everyone makes the team, but they need to meet certain expectations such as going to practices regularly, and being a true team player.” There are 14 different weight classes for wrestling, and if you are in one of them you are considered Varsity. Wrestling is a co-ed sport, and there are both matches that are only for girls, and that are co-ed, along with matches only for boys. It is an exciting sport that makes sure that you get out as much as you put in.

Indoor track and field is an iconic winter sport that brings the love of running to a whole new level when running indoors. Practice is everyday on the track or in the gym, and there are no tryouts to get into the team. Savannah Owens, a senior, has been doing Indoor Track since her sophomore year and loves it. “The team aspect is my favorite thing about indoor track. I love the people so much. I also love competing at meets and the competition. You are pushing yourself to do better every week.” 

Basketball is a popular sport that TJ loves to both watch and to play. Coach Airing is the coach for girls Varsity basketball and says that they hold tryouts for two to three days before a team is selected. Practice for basketball is held in the main gym, and usually practice is 6 days a week. Games are never on a set day, every week it changes, and depending on the number of students trying out, there can be both a Varsity and a Junior Varsity.