Media Day Interviews 2020

Jocelyn, Mollie, and I attended the Athletic Department’s Media Days to get 1st person perspectives on what this fall season has been like and how Blair’s athletes are adjusting to some drastic changes. Despite the tough realities of playing a sport during a pandemic, Blair athletes have stayed positive and motivated. They have retained the magic of what it means to be a team and what it means to lead despite everything.
Read on to get the perspectives of individual players from the tennis, field hockey, and football teams.
 

TENNIS

  • “Although I miss being traveling on the busses before games, this year has shown me how amazing my team is because we have stuck together and created amazing memories even with harsher situations. I love the relationships we have and it’s so nice to have friends in different grades.”- Ellie Hyder ’23
  • “I love tennis practice because its a time for me to zone out of real life, [and] focus on myself and the game”- Kat Smith ’22

FIELD HOCKEY

  • “I miss the ability to have team bonding moments around food and games.” – Zora Bissel ’21
  • “I love being looked at as a leader” – Allie Kutler ’21
  • Forward Maddie Miller ’24 says her favorite thing about her team is how close they are. She loves when “we are on the field playing [our] hardest.” She misses being able to have showcases and notes that “it’s really hard to get to know people as individual field hockey players because [we] can’t do anything we’re accustomed to.” The team still has that “community feeling,” though. “Everyone pushes people to be their best without stepping on each other.”
  • Attack and center midfielder Emma Vander Veen ’21 notes that “so far it’s been hard to be able to push ourselves completely because not having games has been a little unmotivat[ing], but we try as a team to push each other more now.” Despite all the changes, the team has “created a really close little family [that’s] really reliant on each other.” She says that “even though the other seniors [and I] won’t be here [next year], the future of Blair field hockey will be [bright].”
  • Midfielder Jess Pasquali misses “the competition” and “being able to be really aggressive.” Even though they have to wear masks this year, the “energy of the team can really boost you up if you’re low.”
  • “We’re playing a sport we love with our friends, which is why I love practice so much.”- Ali Frazier ’21

FOOTBALL

Quarterback John Hadden misses “the game-day mentality and the locker rooms before games.” Hadden notes that “it’s been hard to get to know everyone” this year since they “got a late start on building ohana” without the 3-a-day practices they would usually have during  preseason, which didn’t happen this year because of the pandemic. His favorite part about the team is the “ability to forgive when someone messes up.”  

“I play linebacker and quarterback. I miss the pre-corona games and preseason and… we don’t have a season and it’s hard to do a lot of team bonding because were not allowed to be within 6 feet [of each other] …What makes this all worth it is the friendships that I’ve built with everyone. Even…when we can’t play games, I get to see my amazing teammates” – Hunter Sloane ’21

Safety Joe Ramos ’21 notes that not being able to play games is “tough,” but he still loves “the ohana” and being on the team.

Wide receiver and defensive back Keith Delaney misses “hitting other people” and notes that “Corona has taken [away] playing games.” He still loves the “the community aspect” of the team– “the ohana.”  

Copyright Sophia Papadopoulo 2020

Sophia Papadopoulo

Sophia Papadopoulo '22 has been at Oracle since her freshman year at Blair Academy and is a writer and editor. She works and manages different aspects of the Oracle and focuses on lifestyle articles centered around her interests and the Blair community. She is from Bermuda and is very happy to be returning for 2020-2021.