In October, as Noah Hoereth braved the brisk air on Jackman Field, training intensity for his soccer team’s regional competition, his basketball teammates were training for their upcoming season in the fitness center without him.
While Juliana Walker powered through her final volleyball practice in early November before the team’s sectional semifinals, her basketball teammates gathered in a different gym, starting their first day of practice without her.
Both senior two-sport varsity athletes, Noah and Juliana have balanced the demands of overlapping seasons, while leading their fall teams as captains and navigating the college application process.
Both the boys and girls basketball teams have optional preseason activities. The boys team played in a fall league on Sundays then trained three times a week after school. The girls preseason began on Oct. 14, two weeks before the season, with one to two workouts per week.
To avoid more physical strain during the soccer season, Noah skipped the basketball fall league and could attend only one week of preseason, making sure to communicate his dual commitment to his basketball teammates.
“My team knows that I play two sports and that they’re both equally as important to me. We’ve already established that communication,” Noah said, “but sometimes, it can be a hard switch, just mentally and physically.”
Similarly, Juliana missed the entire basketball preseason and a few official practices due to overlap with her volleyball season.
“It’s more my job to be with my volleyball team because I’m also the captain,” Juliana said. “In some way I do feel like I’m missing out on getting prepared for the season. I don’t feel like I’m as prepared as some of the other girls might be going into the season.”
Noah and Juliana emphasized the importance of maintaining their fitness for basketball, acknowledging the different endurance demands of the sport and limited time to adjust, all while handling rigorous academics.
Varsity volleyball and eighth grade basketball coach Lisa Kirchhoff notes Juliana’s expertise on balancing her two sports in addition to her academics.
“Juliana is an incredibly capable student and athlete,” Ms. Kirchhoff said. “She has her priorities straight, so I did not see her miss a beat.”
Varsity soccer coach David Vadeboncoeur also understands the challenges of navigating two varsity sports, academics and college applications, and he commends Noah’s ability to manage it all.
“It’s a lot of responsibility to put on a teenager’s shoulders,” Mr. Vadeboncoeur said, “but I think that he’s handled it incredibly well with grace.”
However, Noah feels a bit regretful that he cannot regain the time he missed bonding with his basketball team before the season. He noticed a slight disconnect at his first preseason practice, which he feels could impact his likelihood to have a leadership role on the team.
“There were a lot of people that I’ve just never seen before, and that the other seniors on the team already know,” Noah said. “The team chooses the captain, and obviously I’m going to be able to get to know everyone just as much, but they already have more experience and playing time, and they just know the other seniors better than me at the moment.”
Juliana is also disappointed that she missed out on the initial bonding with the new ninth graders on her basketball team, but she is looking forward to getting to know them during the rest of the season.
Last year was Juliana’s first season on the basketball team. Teammate Nana K. Ofori-Mante recalled that Juliana was able to transition smoothly into the community and sport.
“She came in the team and she immediately got it,” Nana K., a sophomore, said. “She was getting rebounds and she was scoring layups like she was there the whole time. She’s an amazing person.”
Noah’s basketball teammate, senior Kayin Bradford, shares that the team openly supports Noah’s transition from soccer and celebrates his successes on the soccer field as well.
“It’s really impressive, in my opinion,” Kayin said. “It’s already hard doing just one workout for basketball, and doing a whole other sport — it’s just all on another level.”
Unlike in previous years of balancing their two sports, this year the early college application deadlines fell during Noah and Juliana’s transition period. To manage it all, Juliana focused on setting priorities.
“I really practice having good boundaries when it comes to my sports,” Juliana said. “So if I’m in volleyball, I can’t be thinking about college applications because then I wouldn’t be giving my all to my team and vice versa.”
Juliana and Noah navigated the challenges of switching between sports, leadership roles and college applications, gaining multitasking and balancing skills that will benefit them once they leave U-High.
