The Midway is featuring athletes, selected at random, from school teams for informal interviews about their sports. Renn Henger is a ninth grader on the JV girls soccer team. Renn’s responses have been lightly edited for clarity, style and length. 

How long have you been doing soccer?

“I started when I was little, like probably around 7, and then I stopped right at COVID. I started after COVID again. I took a long break and I started up in seventh grade, and now I am here.”

What’s your favorite memory of playing soccer?

“I think my favorite this year was when we won our tournament and then we all went to Dairy Queen afterward and it was really sweet. I think a funny memory is that in seventh grade, it was practice and we were testing out who would be a good goalkeeper because we didn’t have one, and it was my turn to go and we were playing a scrimmage and I had to punt it. I didn’t know I was supposed to point my toe down so it would go forward, like toward people and not toward me. I didn’t and I put my toe up and it went behind me into my own net.”

What’s one thing in your gear bag you can’t live without and why?

“I always have a bunch of hair ties that I keep at the bottom of my bag because everybody always forgets their hair ties and I have, like, 50 at the bottom of my bag. Everyone just knows if they don’t have a hair tie just to go search in the bottom of my bag and just take one.”

Who is the one artist you have to listen to as you get ready for a game, and why?

“We play, I don’t know the name of the artist, he’s like rap, but the song is called ‘Pump It Up.’”

If you could design your own jersey for the Lab, what would it look like?

“It would be maroon, maybe like a phoenix on it. I think that would be kind of cool. Then, I wish we had our names on the back. Like, our numbers and our last names on the back, I wish that was happening. Otherwise I would probably keep it pretty similar.”

What are your pre game rituals or superstitions?

“I don’t like to eat before games. If I have a game after school,  I’ll eat lunch but then I won’t eat anything else.”

If you could meet one professional athlete, who would it be and why?

“[Lionel] Messi. He’s a legend, and I feel like it would be really cool to meet him.”

What is your favorite energy drink flavor?

“Red Bull. I would say either the ice vanilla bean or the normal zero sugar OG Red Bull.”

If you couldn’t play soccer, what sport would you play?

“I play field hockey, and I really wish that Lab had a field hockey team that I could join because I play field hockey for club.”