On January 27, the girls varsity basketball team had a thrilling victory over Montville. The team worked hard and won on their home court 49-48. This game was also very special because it was Female Athlete Recognition Night. This night was made to recognize all of the women in sports in an effort to encourage more young girls to play sports.
All of the girls on every sports team were invited to attend the game. During halftime, Mr. Jacobsen, the girls JV basketball coach, called each team to the half court mark for a team picture. After each team had their picture taken there was a group photo of all the female athletes. Each team also got a shoutout about how their season went.
This event started about 3 years ago when Mrs. Kelly pushed for the event to be held during a basketball game. According to Mr. Jacobson, It’s very important that this school has this event because it’s significant to have these teams be recognized for their hard work and dedication. It represents how much individual time each girl is putting into their sport and how hard they work for their team on top of all of the school work and other things they have to do.
The WMC tennis team was one of the teams recognized during the ceremony. Emma Stephen, a 3rd singles player on the varsity tennis team is very glad she is a woman that plays a sport at this school. “It feels good, you know? I love showing up for my team, and the community with the girls is just so great. Also another great part is the friends everyone makes and just how close we all are” Stephen said.
Junior Bella DeZao, a first doubles tennis player on JV, also shared her thoughts on the night. She believes this ceremony is super important because women deserve to be recognized the same as boys. “Yeah, I do think it’s important because I think everybody should get the same amount of recognition for the hard work that they’re putting in” DeZao said.
With a great turnout from all teams, Female Athlete Recognition Night is a WMC tradition that is here to stay.
