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Hayden Bachman runs a fast break in the Berkshire League quarterfinal against Northwestern Feb. 24.
Riley Klein
The following week, Oliver Wolcott left housy after another loss with the girls team beating them 100-17. This was a historic accomplishment becoming the second time in school history a basketball team hit triple digits, the first being the boys back in 1977. With only 8 girls on the bench, the team was left with three subs and limited ways to dial back their momentum.
Other notable accomplishments include seniors Anthony Foley and Maddy Johnson making the Berkshire League second team and senior Olivia Brooks making Berkshire League first team. Maddy Johnson was also named CT Insider’s Athlete of the week on March 10. Athletic Director Anne McNeil said this year the girl’s team “got a lot more recognition outside our league.”
Captain Maddy Johnson said the team’s unnoteworthy record is due to the group’s overall inconsistency. “Our playing level varies,” she said. “One game we can go out there and pretty much do everything but then the next game it looks like it’s the beginning of the season all over again.”
Although the boys team had a less successful season the integration of new head coach Bobby Chatfield has been a transition likely to cause future success. “Bobby has been a really good jumping off point for the coming years,” MacNeil said. Although the team is losing eight seniors, there is hope that the promising underclassmen can improve with the consistency of a strong coach.
Wes Allyn dunks it to start the game against Gilbert on senior night Thursday, Feb. 26. Riley Klein
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Housatonic Valley Regional High School’s varsity swim team hosted a meet against Shepaug Valley High School on Wednesday, Jan. 21. Shepaug’s team was notably larger, putting forth four relay teams to Housatonic’s one relay team.
Riley Klein
Part of the difference in involvement comes down to location and the nature of the sports themselves. “It’s much easier to walk into the gym than it is to walk onto a ski course,” athletic director Anne MacNeil said. Basketball is a team oriented sport played in the school gym, making attendance easy. New traditions like rival night and themed games also increase excitement. MacNeil explained that when the ice hockey team used to compete at Hotchkiss, the games were widely attended. Many winter sports are also more individual based, making it harder to build hype around one race or run than a team competition.
Beyond the challenge of drawing spectators, the teams themselves are also limited in size. Housatonic’s small enrollment contributes to smaller rosters, especially in nontraditional sports. Cost and access also make some winter sports harder for students to become involved with. “You have to be introduced to skiing. You have to be introduced to hockey,” MacNeil said. “If you look at what it takes to play those sports, there’s a money factor involved.”
For the swim team, the difference in team culture is notable. Senior Katie Crane played basketball her freshman year before fully committing to the swim team. “When I played basketball, we weren’t just showing up for our team, we were showing up for the student section too,” she said. “For swim, what fueled our energy was just the team itself.”
Riley Klein
Swim meets rarely draw big crowds, but some competitors said that reduced the pressure. “I love swim because there isn’t that competitiveness and pressure,” Crane said. “I just showed up and I would race, but I was racing for myself.” Swimmers said their teammates and coaches were supportive, even if a big audience wasn’t there to cheer them on.
The lack of visibility can also be frustrating. “It definitely feels like I put up big performances without it getting noticed because I made Berkshire League first team and no one knows,” freshman Phoebe Conklin said. “For basketball and soccer, it’s this huge deal when you make first team.”
The ski team faces similar struggles. “It’s actually a fun spectator sport,” said junior Danny Lesch. Because races are largely individual, standout performances don’t always translate into team wins, even though the team has many accomplished athletes. Lesch said the individual athletes then get less recognition despite high levels of personal success. “What a lot of people don’t realize is that probably the most successful students we have at their sport have been our best skiers,” Lesch said.
dWinter Cheney sports three gold medals after a victorious performance in the Berkshire Hills Ski League championships Wednesday, Feb. 18.
Despite the recognition gap between basketball and other winter sports, athletes and community members have recently made larger efforts to improve visibility. “That’s always been an area that I have struggled to do better in,” MacNeil said. “In the last two years, I’ve really focused on our Instagram account and trying to spotlight people.” While trying her best to equally represent each sport, MacNeil also relies on athletes themselves to send photos and stats. “I can’t be everywhere at once,” she said.
Looking ahead, the future of other sports at Housatonic may depend on overcoming challenges tied to the school’s small enrollment. “I just had to cancel girls’ lacrosse,” MacNeil said. Increasing visibility and community support can help keep teams active and competitive. Greater recognition can help spark student interest, increasing participation and reminding the community that success exists across sports with less publicity. For members of the ski team, even small efforts can help make a difference. “What we hope for is one of the races next year, we get a crowd, get people to come, just one race,” Lesch said.
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