The sounds of whistles blowing came from the track of Pioneer High School as baseball players could be seen warming up in the distance and a fresh batch of soccer players were starting their warmup run on Hollway Field. A few nervous parents and supportive friends watched on as their respective athletes waved them off with embarrassment, trying to lock in for the first day of tryouts.
Monday, March 11 kicked off the spring sports season. CHS has athletes taking part in all sports, but the spring season marks the highest level of participation with at least 35 CHS students trying out for teams this year.
All three high schools have been anticipating the current freshman class for years now with participation in sports, notably track and soccer, expected to be at record highs. The freshmen did not disappoint. Pao Eagle, a CHS junior and veteran Skyline (SHS) soccer player at the wing position, was overwhelmed by the amount of new faces all vying for a spot on the field.
We’ve been warming up in groups by grade level led by the varsity captains. There’s only four juniors and the freshman group is too many to count.
— Pao Eagle
Eagle enjoys the school season but misses her club teammates and the different pace of the club season.
“I’ve been playing with my club team and all of them actually play for Huron and I’m the only one that plays for Skyline,” Eagle said. “I haven’t played with this group in a while but it’s going good.”
CHS Freshman Sam Grand is beginning his first season on the Pioneer (PHS) track team, but with preseason, he has been with the team since late December. Track is one of the most
popular sports among Community students, attracting at least a dozen CHS students between the big three schools.
Although still early in his season, Grand already has plans for what he will race, sticking right in the middle shying away from distances too long or too short.
“I’m most likely going to do sprints or mid-sprints like the 400 or 800,” Grand said. “I’ve also run the 200 before so I’m not totally sure yet.”
Grand also represents an even smaller population of multi-sport athletes at Community as he also reps the colors of the PHS boys soccer team. He is one of four CHS athletes on the team.
Grand began his track season with PHS on March 21 at the SEC Indoor Invite, and Eagle began her season with the SHS girls soccer team at Northville on April 6.
