Article by Jenna Jochum
Winter sports are coming to a halt rather quickly with some seasons ending on a high note and others who wish they had one more game, match, or race to compete. All the athletes and seniors have something to be proud of from this season. With many wrestlers medaling at state, to both swim teams finishing in the top 15 and 10 at state, and the boys' basketball team on their way to compete at the state tournament, these accomplishments only show the resilience that NHS athletes have and compete with at all times. Norfolk High athletes know how to compete with effort, class, and heart; which is something one does not see very often.
Many of Norfolk High's athletes participate in two or three sports throughout the school year, which seems to make the school year go by much faster and can take a toll on the amount of homework one takes home every night. But, part of being an athlete means that the individual puts his or her student life in front of one's athletic life; that way one can always participate in practice and in games. Spring sports are around the corner and ready to begin its 2016 season. Boys' and girls' soccer, boys' and girls' track and field, boys' golf, girls' tennis, and baseball are trying to continue where they left off last season.
In particular, the Girls' Tennis Coach Kelly Krueger is hoping to get his team going in the right direction and see some improvement from start to finish. Coach Krueger is looking for some key players to lead this team and get some wins over highly-ranked tennis players. "I would say the biggest area of improvement I hope to see over the season is consistency. I have some players with abilities that can make them very successful, but we were so inconsistent last year that we ultimately would lose matches that I felt we either had in our grasp, let slip away or simply didn't show up for. This must change if we are to have any realm of success. I would also like to see us be more supportive to our teammates. Tennis is primarily an individual sport, but we are still a team. I expect my players to support all of their teammates from top-to-bottom on our ladder, not just their friends or their varsity, JV or reserves groups," Krueger said.
Norfolk girls' soccer coach, John Erwin, is looking to capitalize with his group of seniors and team to make improvement from start to finish. With some big goals in mind for the season ahead, he and his team are ready to take on the task and represent Norfolk High in a positive way. "We have a great group of seniors that are tremendous leaders. They work very hard and are always encouraging others to do their best. We will have six seniors starting for us this season. We want to put a competitive team on the field every game. We want to always play harder than our opponents. Control what we can control. Don't worry as much about wins and losses as playing to the best of our abilities. Finally, we want to improve and have fun. Winning makes for fun and I think we have the team that can accomplish all of these things," Erwin said.
The boys on the NHS soccer team are looking for a different ending to the season this season. With a strong, core group looking to come back and compete this season, Coach, Kyle Mather, thinks that this group could go a long ways. "We are hoping to improve in all areas, but especially on playing great team defense. Our seniors have done an excellent job of leading both vocally and by example. It is their final year so they are extremely motivated to do well this year. Our players' goals include defending our conference championship and making it to the state tournament. As a coach, my goal is for our team to improve every day and learn from our past experiences to make us better, and to grow together as a team over the season," Mather said.
This year's spring sports are hoping to put Norfolk on the map and get some athletes in position for scholarships this year or for the years to follow. Norfolk High is a one of kind school that has tremendous athletes, with an even more tremendous supporting student body and community. The parents of these athletes are always in attendance for their son/daughter and for the team even if the drive is to North Platte, Kearney, or even Scottsbluff. People will always see maroon and white in the stands.
For more great articles like this, check out the March 2016 Panther Newspaper!
