Freshman Gillian Krauthamer
Going into the summer, sophomore Gillian Krauthamer planned to dedicate time to training for the upcoming tennis season at tennis camp. During her training, Krauthamer began experiencing arm pain, causing her to switch sports and plan to join the cross country team instead of the varsity girls tennis team this fall. She had participated on the varsity girls tennis team for the past three years.
“[Choosing to be on the cross country team instead of tennis team] was such a hard decision for me that I had to debate all summer,” Krauthamer said. “I’m not quitting tennis indefinitely and I hope to get back to it, but physically it wasn’t going to be good for me.”
Krauthamer had already participated on the winter and spring track teams in past years, giving herself a familiarity with the sport. To train for the upcoming cross country season, Krauthamer followed head track and field coach Jason Belinkie’s summer training schedule, but also adjusted it to be more flexible so she could enjoy her summer in other ways. She mostly ran everyday, varying distances and times, but also took breaks to let her body rest.
“I knew I had to keep running to keep my endurance up,” Krauthamer said. “So I ran, one, because I like running but also, two, because I knew if I stopped running it would be harder to build my endurance back up.”
Junior Rachel Fagin
Junior Rachel Fagin plays volleyball year-round. She plays on the CESJDS team during the fall season and a club team in winter and spring. However, she used the summer as a break from playing competitively.
Fagin plays different positions on her two teams. For her club team, she plays back row where she focuses on serving, receiving and defense. For the JDS team, she plays outside and right side hitter. To prepare for these positions, Fagin used the summer to focus on all mechanics.
Fagin mainly did her volleyball training with equipment she has in her house that focuses on the skills she wants to improve, leaving her time to spend her summer in other ways.
“I work a lot on just having fun before school tryouts,” Fagin said. “For me high school tryouts are a lot less of a stressor compared to club tryouts and so I try to just relax and enjoy myself more.”
Junior Dylan Kobrin
After rediscovering his love for soccer during his sophomore season, junior Dylan Kobrin is motivated to continue playing and improving his skills coming into his junior season.
In the beginning of high school, Kobrin chose to focus more on personal fitness, despite his experience playing on club soccer teams in the past. However, as preparation for the upcoming soccer season Kobrin revolved his workouts specifically around soccer training.
“To get ready for the season I like to focus on a lot of cardio because soccer is a big running sport,” Kobrin said. “I try to do a lot with the ball, replicating the game and just staying in shape.”
Kobrin mainly trained for soccer in casual ways, whether it be individually through cardio training, working out with friends or in group pick up games.
“I’ve just gotten a lot more into soccer since I joined the JDS team,” Kobrin said. “I look forward to continuing to play competitively this fall.”
