For us senior athletes, the last game of the season will be a game that you we remember for years to come. It marks the end of “defending your turf”, playing in front of huge crowds filled with friends and families, but most of all, it makes you realize you’re one step closer to graduation.

The last game is where you look around at your team and realize that now; it’s all in their hands. The juniors, who have been by your side throughout almost everything, will become the “head honchos”. You wish them luck and with tear filled eyes, give them huge hugs while secretly wishing you we’re still that junior preparing for next season. The sophomores and freshman have been the ones who quietly looked up to you as their senior role model, and all you can hope as you share hugs with them, is that you did the best you could to be that model for them. Senior Varsity Basketball player John Cascio’s advice for returning players is “work hard, and don’t waste time.”

People can go on and on as to what they’re going to miss most about playing a high school sport, or what is going to make it the hardest to leave. As for me, I can combine all those reasons into one thing; my team, is my family, and I’m going to miss my family more than anything. Senior Varsity Soccer player, Kayla Gioielli says she’s going to “miss spending time with a different group of people” other than her core group of friends.

Your team is a mash up of people so completely different from one another brought together by the same love and passion for the sport you’re playing, and I think that’s amazing. My parents always joke that during soccer season I spend more time with my team, than I do with my own family. Even though it sounds bad, it’s true. Practices followed by pasta parties followed by games, the occasional meet up at the diner, traveling to watch the boys’ soccer games together all with this one group of girls. But I wouldn’t trade it for the world.

So seniors, as your final games start to roll around remember: it’s okay to cry, it’s okay to have some regrets and its okay to wish you did better or done things differently.

However, it’s not okay to let that day be clouded by sadness, you may be leaving a huge part of yourself behind, but don’t worry, it’s in good hands. Life will go on after high school, and besides, you can always come back and visit.