By Staff
Soccer season is right around the corner and the Varsity Girls Soccer Team needs your support! Each season the girls soccer team excels and puts up a strong performance, but despite their hard work and dedication to the sport, members of the team claim to feel unsupported by their fellow classmates. So let’s change that and show them our panther pride!
The following interview held with a Benicia High Alumni and former Varsity Girls Soccer Team member gives us an inside look on what we, as students, can do to back these girls this season!
Q:How long were you involved on the team?
I’ve played soccer my entire life and was involved on the Girls Soccer Team all 4 years of High School. I played JV my freshmen year and was on varsity my sophomore, junior, and senior year.
Q: After a big win, would you get congratulated by your peers the following day?
Unfortunately, no. I can recall having classes with other student athletes who had just taken a win the previous night and watching as they got congratulated by my classmates and teachers, but the same wouldn’t go for us girls. Teachers rarely said anything, and neither did my classmates. But it wasn’t their fault, they just didn’t know about our victory since it wasn’t really talked about.
Q: How do you think the school should advertise for the team?
The school should do more announcements about the games across the loudspeaker. There should also be fliers around the school promoting the games, and of course, promotion on social media since that’s what we rely on most to get information out.
Q: What is an example of a time where the team was not shown credit?
My sophomore year, the girls varsity team had made the playoffs. The same year, a boys sport team made the playoffs as well. In school, everyone was talking about how well the boys had done and were congratulating them for making it so far. When I had mentioned the girls team doing the same, everyone was surprised, having heard the news for the first time.
After gaining an inside perspective, I’m sure we can all agree that the girls team deserves to be heard and seen. This former players’ recount of continuously being undermined highlights the importance of promoting girls sports just as much as boys. That’s where we come in and make just that happen! This upcoming season, support the girls soccer team by attending their games, posting about them on social media, and giving a pat on the back to the athletes when you see them in the hall!
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