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Story by: Ben Lloyd. The 2021-2022 winter sports season has started at Alfred Almond. This means all swimming, skiing, basketball, and wrestling teams have started playing, except for two; the boys varsity and modified basketball teams. Many reasons can explain why this happened.
Alfred Almond always has a good turn out for their basketball teams, except this year. Only a few signed up for the boys’ teams this year, so nobody could tell if there was going to be a team or not until the season officially started. It was more apparent as time went on that there wouldn't be any boys basketball team, aside from the JV team. When talking to Ty Kenney, senior, who had been signed up, he said not having a team this year is ¨really frustrating,¨ and that the team is ¨upset¨ about it. He said he was upset about this because ¨the coaches knew ahead of time that we wouldn't have enough people.¨ This was disappointing to him because he would’ve tried to get more people to join the team but didn't know that there were only a few signed up. This year is Ty’s senior year and he can’t play a sport they’ve been looking forward to. He didn't get to play the school sport he's been doing all of his life. However, Ty did find somewhere to play basketball, in an out of school league.
Boys JV has a basketball team this year but it was hard to get. The team had to pull up Nolan Palmer 7th grader, who was supposed to be on the modified team. That's why the modified doesn't have a team this year, but the player still gets a season on the JV team.
The head coach for the varsity team, Mr. Marlatt, still decided to coach this year but since there isn’t a varsity team, he was left with coaching JV. They have a total of 10 games scheduled so far and there are 8 kids on the team.
In all, it looks like boys basketball is losing its numbers this year. Next year might bring back the team’s numbers, hopefully enough for a varsity team.
Run Dylan, Run!
Running in a cross country race, Dylan Cannon is shown leading a pack of runners. Cannon has mentioned that even if a race goes poorly, he still finds enjoyment in attending by meeting new people and enjoying the other aspects of the trip (like the hotels, food, etc.).
Photo by Debra Cannon
Job Well Done
In the middle, cross country runner Dylan Cannon is cherishing his completed race with his family. The award he received is also held in the middle.
Photo by Debra Cannon
Go Eagles!
On the left, Claire Volk is seen running in a cross country meet next to teammates. Claire has stated before that when she’s running, it feels endless, but then the race is over just like that.
Photo provided by Claire Volk
Cross Country Champ!
Cross Country Champ!
The year is 2020, and was the summer before Claire Volk, a senior, started cross country. She would run 4 miles outside to train each day until August, regardless of the heat. She had to prepare to compete with hundreds of other runners, along with daunting 3 mile courses that had multiple challenges. The courses could have thick mud on the ground that make it harder to run, slippery ice that reduces traction, transitions from a wide course to a thin one, etc. Despite these difficulties, Volk knew she had a chance to be one of the best, and equally excited as nervous for the season ahead...
Alfred-Almond Central School doesn’t have a cross country team. This means 2 students from Alfred Almond run in varsity cross country thanks to joining with other schools. These 2 people are Dylan Cannon, junior, and Volk. Since cross country is a fall activity, Volk and Cannon have been doing races since September, along with practicing before the seasons.
Regardless of both of these people being long distance runners, they have a lot of differences in their experiences and mindsets about cross country.
Volk has a competitive view for cross country, because while she still has fun and enjoys the season, she wants to do as well as she can. She will run a minimum of 1 mile everyday during the summer after her first season, and would plan out a strategy after seeing the course. She would try to get into a good position in the race before the track narrows, or try to stick with a specific girl to keep her focused. Cannon, while equally competitive and eager to do well, is also less serious. He likes to prioritize having fun over doing as well as possible. Compared to Volk’s minimum goal of 1 mile a day for summer training, Cannon’s would be more diverse. Sometimes he’d run a mile (and would do so 4 times a week), but also would do biking, stretches, and hip/leg workouts to build strength and endurance. While Volk would mostly be nervous before a race, Cannon would have more fun and not be as nervous.
The dynamic of these 2 runners is great, and they’re both incredible athletes in their own regards. They’ve accomplished a lot in cross country, and have bright futures as athletes. Best of luck to them in future races!
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