WRITTEN BY: DYLAN ANDERSON AND JACOB LOPEZ
Andrew Praw, current junior varsity coach for the boys' basketball team, has seen much improvement from the team and from himself as a coach. Coach Praw shares about the ongoing season, his goals, and his hopes. One of the questions we asked Coach Praw was, how many years has he been coaching and how is he enjoying it? He stated, “This is actually my second year coaching officially. I’ve coached like people individually and I’ve helped them grow, but I have not actually coached a team.” During Coach Praw’s first year of coaching, he coached the previous 21’/22’ JV boys’ basketball team with the previous Varsity Coach, Matthew McMillin. He also answered, “I’m really enjoying it, I love the energy the kids give me and I really enjoy the atmosphere of each and every single game.” Coach Praw loves the sport and loves the spirit of Basketball. While coaching, his players respect and reciprocate this same energy toward him and he loves the intensity behind every game he coaches. Even from regular non-league games to rivalry games, Coach Praw hypes up the team with his high energy and exciting spirit. Coach has high hopes and goals for his players and himself this season. Praw stated, “A lot of the kids have dreams and aspirations of playing at a high level of basketball, so I want to make our program a higher level for each and every single one of (them).” He hopes to be able to lead his players on a path to reaching their dreams of playing basketball at a high level by pushing them to get better through his coaching and leadership throughout the program. As the assistant varsity coach, Praw said, “I would try and help them reach their goal of winning the Division 4 Championship. That’s really big for me.” His goal is to win the CIF Championship for a second time to help his players get more recognized for their skills and talent. Winning the championship is also a positive experience for the seniors who are graduating this year. Coach Praw is hoping to make this season and the next one worth remembering. WRITTEN BY: YULIANA ALTAMIRANO AND LARA LEDESMA
The girl’s basketball season started in October, 2022 and is ending in February, 2023. Since the girls basketball season is coming to an end, we decided to interview a couple of seniors to ask them about their basketball experience here at VAAS. When the seniors were asked how long they’ve been playing for the basketball team, most of them started in Freshman year. As Stella Shebat said, “I have been playing basketball since I was 5 years old and have played on the team at VAAS since freshman year.” Elizabeth Medley added, “On the team I have been playing for 4 years now but in general since I was in elementary school.” Tala Ae also added, “I started playing freshman year too!” When asking the seniors what their favorite part of playing basketball was, there were a variety of responses. Elizabeth Medley's response was, “My favorite part of playing basketball is the life lessons I learn. I think basketball has strengthened my leadership skills and made me more confident.” Stella Shebat stated, “My favorite part of playing basketball is my teammates and the way the sport has brought us together over the years.” Tale Ae replied, “My favorite part is having fun. I love yelling with my friends about our mistakes. I love the grind and hustle in games and during practice.” There’s no doubt that we can have fun playing basketball while learning important life lessons. When we asked the seniors what’s been their proudest moment as a basketball player so far, Elizabeth Medley said, “I think my proudest moment as a basketball player has been being given the opportunity to be a captain and influence my teammates in a positive way.” Tala Ae added, “getting to encourage underclassmen and help with little things like shooting form or defensiveness. Then watching them apply that knowledge I helped with in gameplay . I love getting to watch people grow and expand.” Stella Shebat replied, “My proudest moment has been being given the opportunity to be the varsity captain my senior year alongside teammates that, like myself, have played on the team since freshman year. I have loved being someone my teammates can come to for guidance on and off the court.” The next question we asked was, what’s an unusual item that you carry in your gym bag? The responses we got all varied in answers. Tala Ae shared, “I used to carry a tennis ball for a while because I found one in the park of a school we played against and kept it.” Stella Shebat replied, “I usually end up with a ziploc bag of jewelry at the bottom of my bag.” And lastly, Elizabeth Medley responded, “I have our mascot in my bag aka Draig.” Draig is a toy that Elizabeth Medley received from a Mc Donald’s happy meal, last year. After receiving this toy Elizabeth started bringing Draig to every game and practice. The girls on the team all loved the toy “Draig” and gave it the role as the girls basketball mascot. Afterwards, we asked the seniors what has been their best memory with the team. Elizabeth Medley stated, “Any team gathering event has been really fun. It gives us the opportunity to get to know each other better.” In addition, Tala Ae said, “My best team memory is always on the bus getting to hang out and hype up the game. Then being energetic and excited on our way back to school.” Stella Shebat agreed with Tala and added, “My best memory with the team has been bus rides before each game. I have the best time crowded in the back with my teammates as we laugh and talk louder than we should on our way to our games.” To wrap up the interview, we asked the seniors what advice they would give to any incoming students who will try out for basketball next year. Stella Shebat shared, “I would say to enjoy each practice and game because before you know it you’ll be preparing for your own senior night and not allow initial confusion or anxieties prevent you from trying your hardest, even if you make mistakes.” Tala Ae responded, “Have fun. Don’t sweat it too much. Basketball is all about hustle and learning. So it’s okay to make mistakes because at the end of the day you did it with your team. You aren’t alone.” And lastly, Elizabeth Medley replied, “I’d say don’t be scared to put yourself out there. I was scared to try out at first but I think basketball helped me keep my grades up and meet some of my favorite people.” |
AuthorsDylan Anderson Archives
February 2023
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