GCD Competency - Wellness

Varsity Softball 2020 :)

For the past 3 years, I have been playing softball and badminton in the school team. This has helped me grow/develop in my physical and social abilities within the school. I played both badminton and softball up until year 10. This is because I turned 16 that year and could not play Under 15 sports anymore. Junior Varsity and Varsity softball were both in season 3 of the third trimester of school. The training days and matches were mostly on the same days so I decided to continue pursuing softball as my main sport. I play pitcher; this is quite an important role within the sport as it is the main position in the middle of the field.

I have been playing softball for 3 years now and I feel it has helped me learn a lot more about myself and my physical needs, along with collaborating with others and improving in the sport itself. In school, we have PE class, where we are given the opportunity to learn about and partake in physical activity. However, taking part in extracurricular sports teams has always been a part of my life since elementary. I had been doing gymnastics when I was younger, continued onto badminton and now I love to play softball. I had been in the Junior Varsity team for 2 years now and this year I finally made varsity. I have bonded with my teammates really well and always had the best times during the season. We have always been a very strong team and made sure to play to the best of our ability for the school and to have fun. I enjoy this very much and am very disappointed to have had the season be canceled this year due to the pandemic coronavirus. This year, I would go to training 3 times a week, each for 2 hours, and enjoy every bit of it, even if it was early in the morning before school. This sport is a great way to take my mind off the stressful school work. During the school year, I always look forward to the last season to try out, play softball, and make new friends in the team/from other schools.

These are some photos of the junior varsity team last year.

I never got to take team photos with the varsity team this year due to the coronavirus :(

Many times, I was also able to help others improve in the sport. The position I play in softball in Pitcher. Pitchers are usually the most important position in the game as they are the main focus when the opposing team is batting. During PE this year, we had a softball unit in which I was able to help others do their best as well. I love this sport very much and am very thankful to have made the team for the past few years. I really hope to be able to play again as it is a fun stress relieving activity and something I look forward to during the season.

This year in the varsity team, I was positioned as the starting pitcher. This came as a very big shock to me as I was not even sure I was going to make the team and was given one of the most important roles during play. Even though I was only able to play one friendly match against the Junior Varsity boys, I was able to demonstrate my skill during gameplay and enjoyed it very much to strike many of them out!

I think that this experience has provided me with new global perspectives very much. This is because it has given me the opportunity to experience playing with different people, and even though I wasn't able to go to seasac due to the virus, I was able to see the training techniques, the intensity of each practice, and how the team works together to bond with each other along with coaches and players whom we would have been playing against, from the other teams. As I have developed my skills within this sport over the years, I have learned that playing as a team, no matter which sport you’re in, is one of the most important activities. Although I wasn't able to take part in competitions overseas or against different teams, I was able to bond with a group of people in ways that I have never done before. In this sport, every position relies on one another, and as a pitcher, I had to look every opponent in the eyes while pitching towards them. This gave me a sense of confidence and trust between all the players and made me realize that being a part of a team feels like being a part of a family.

Overall, softball has made a huge impact on me in terms of my physical fitness and mental stimulation/health. By playing this sport, it has not only allowed me to meet new people but also given me strength within my body when going up against stress within school life. It gives me a break from all the hard school work that I have to face on a daily basis. As a global citizen, I hope to be playing this sport again in the upcoming year, making new bonds/friendships and being able to travel overseas to play for seasac!