The Life of a Student Athlete: When freshmen are called on to play varsity in high school

By LYDIA PLAHN/The Herald — At most large Oregon 5A and 6A schools, sports teams often have one or two junior varsity teams and sometimes a team composed entirely of freshmen. These teams are a place for young players to gain experience so as juniors and seniors they may have the skills needed to play varsity.

Larger schools usually have a full varsity team and a bench made entirely of upperclassman. Granted, there are exceptions when talented younger players come through, but this holds true.

At Lowell, a 2A school, small turnouts and no JV teams can create a need for freshmen to start on varsity teams. While playing varsity as a freshman can be challenging, it can help prepare younger players to be leaders and to play competitively at a high level.

As a freshman I played varsity. It was challenging but really rewarding. Having an older sister, I have been a member of teams with older girls since I was 5 playing “tot’s” soccer.

When I asked my sister, Lucy, a senior athlete, her thoughts, she said, “Playing varsity as a freshman is super intimidating, and it’s a lot to expect of 14- or 15-year-olds to go out and compete at a higher level than they have ever played even for talented ones.”

Playing varsity, however, allows players to never have to make the jump from a JV player to a varsity player. Athletes who plays varsity right off the bat are given four years to be challenged and are pushed to achieve their goals.

I was reminded of how much fun it is to play competitively and how rewarding it is to play against competitive teams when I talked to Amerika Baszler, who started as a freshman for the volleyball team. “It was really fun,” she said. “It was an amazing experience.”

When I asked Annabelle Pickett, another starting freshman for the volleyball team, she had nothing but positive things to say. “I had a blast hanging out with my friends,” she said.

Jumping in your first year of high school and being expected to play a varsity sport has become a normal occurrence at Lowell and at many other small schools. While this situation may not be ideal and can be testing, it teaches players how to play competitively from the very beginning and can prepare them for their careers as juniors and seniors.

Lydia Plahn, a sophomore at Lowell High School, writes about her experiences while participating as a member of the volleyball, softball and basketball teams.