Big Things Coming

By Savanna Choi

The last volleyball net descended, cleats gave way to high-top sneakers, and the balls were finally allowed to touch the ground again. The echoes of cheers and claps that filled the gym just a few weeks ago faded away with the sounds of dribbling on the hardwood floor and concentrated breaths. The new season surfaced among high school students in the form of basketball players. 

You heard it right: it's basketball season. 

Players who eagerly counted the days to this moment gathered in the gym last Thursday and Friday to kick off the season. Dozens of students, freshmen and seniors alike, exchanged glances filled with purpose and anticipation. As the whistle blew and tryouts began, the once-nervous expressions on their teenage faces transformed into the determined looks of professional athletes. 

Caitlyn Chan (11), a returning Varsity Girls Basketball player, shared her experience, saying, "I was so nervous before tryouts, but being back on the court with these familiar faces and playing the sport we all love made it all worthwhile." 

Meanwhile, Wei Ee Goh (12), a returning Varsity Boys Basketball player, admitted, "[I] wasn't nervous before the tryouts, but the tryouts were harder than I thought—it was hard to perform as good as [I] wanted to," emphasizing once again the competitiveness and significance of making the basketball team in Dalat. 

Among all the talented players who tried out for our basketball teams, the 23-24 Varsity and JV Basketball teams met for their first practice this week. The courts once again buzzed with the enthusiasm of our basketball players eager to perform to their full potential for the upcoming season. However, as good as we are at it, sports in Dalat aren't all about the scores; it's also about the teammates the players get to know and grow together along the way. 

Both Alexia Nyul (12), a returning senior on the Varsity Girls' team, and Lora Choi (9), a new freshman on the JV Girls' team, expressed that they're "excited about the amazing group of girls [they] have the opportunity to bond and work with this season" as much as playing basketball itself. 

As we begin this thrilling basketball season, we're reminded that the path ahead leads in only one direction: onward and upward. With the season set to conclude in February after the highly-anticipated ACSC tournament and the Island Shootout just three weeks away, our student athletes—as much athletes as they are students—are gearing up to start the season as strong as ever. 

You can hear it in every dribble, every pass, and every shot. 

Big things are coming.