Sports are an important part of a good portion of student’s lives at any high school, and can have both a positive and negative impact on these individual’s academic and athletic careers. Student athletes use sports to develop important traits and characteristics that they use for the rest of their life, but they also face the challenges that come with a decreased amount of free time outside of school to do work and have a social life.

Student athletes put in their time and effort into their respective sports, and the results almost always show in the end, whether it is with their achievements, or the important life experiences they pick up along the way. Junior Maddy Poulin talked about how lacrosse has helped her adapt to situations where she usually may not be comfortable. Poulin said, “Lacrosse has taught me that having people around you that you never realized you had anything in common with can really change how you look at the world. I’ve met a lot of people that I never would have looked at twice, had they not done lacrosse with me.” Senior Nick Garside also talked about how football has helped him many life lessons in his four years playing, saying, “

On the other hand, sports are a big time commitment, and can affect students’ academic performance, and sometimes their social lives outside of school and sports, as well. Garside said, “Sports can be extremely time consuming. I spend up to twenty hours a week with football practices and games, and it affects how much time I have for school work.” While it truly is a win-lose situation in some cases, sports will leave a lasting impression on any participant’s life, and they won’t forget what they learned in their time with the sport.