“Sports are my life. They are one of the things in my life that makes me the happiest.” Many people can relate to this statement made by Mackenzie May, ‘17, who has played volleyball since she was 7or 8. Sports are where some of the best memories are made in high school, but they also teach participants a lot and offer great mental, physical and emotional benefits.

So, how can  shooting 3’s, running laps, or making a hole-in-one teach anything?  There are multiple advantages to participating in sports.

According to True Sport, a program promoting athletics, people who play sports have been proven to have higher grades, greater personal confidence and self-esteem, stronger peer relationships, better family attachment and more involvement  in volunteer work, than people who do not.

Twenty-nine out of thirty-five Wahlert students surveyed said that being in sports help them manage their time better and procrastinate less. Thirty-four out of thirty-five people surveyed agreed that they have made friends through sports. On top of that, thirty-three out of thirty-five said sports help them handle stress.

In addition, sports also teach people a lot about team building. “Being part of a team teaches you intangible aspects such as leadership, teamwork, friendship, cooperation, loyalty and enthusiasm. The team is family and plays such a vital role in our lives. Every player has each other’s back and builds them up instead of breaking them down,” says May.

Maddy Mond, ‘19, who has done gymnastics for 13 years, adds, “It holds you to higher standards that you have to keep up to not disappoint your team.”

For many,  being a part of team is one of the best parts of high school. As Wesley Diedrich, ‘19, who plays basketball and track, sums up, “Every person in a team is a little piece. You can’t solve a puzzle when you’re missing a piece; every piece counts, including you.”