For Fair Grove High School athletes competing in track, golf, baseball, softball, and girls soccer, January doesn’t just bring the second semester of school, it also marks the start of spring sports pre-season.
Fair Grove High School has many sports that go on during the year, and springtime is no different. For athletes who are not currently competing in an in-season school sport, attendance is highly encouraged. This allows coaches to see the condition and fitness of the team before the season starts, and in some cases, helps coaches make decisions on who wants to put in the work and dedication needed to make a team better and help them win.
Baseball Head Coach William Reed shared that during the off-season they are working on hitting as much as they can, as it is one of the hardest aspects of the sport, and they want to have as much of an advantage going into the regular season as possible.
Senior Jakoeby Mcdannald has played baseball at Fair Grove for all of his high school career. Mcdannald stated, “…Baseball is about repetition, so the earlier you start and the more reps you get, the better you will be when the season comes.”
Softball senior Shayla Haddock is currently recovering from a shoulder injury, so she is focusing on getting back healthy in time for the season. Haddock stated that something she can do with the team is focus on their leadership mentality, so that they will be prepared for the mental challenges that this game brings. Last year Haddock broke the batting average record, and the on-base percentage record, and she hopes once she has recovered she will continue to get better and break those once more.
Track is split into two categories: throwers and jumpers/sprinters. In pre-season these groups practice separately. The track team is practicing to keep their title of District Champions. Senior track runner Adrick Wilson said, “In seasons prior, [pre-season] has helped me a lot to prepare for the season and help me and the team have a lot more success in the season.” He added, “Each day more and more kids are showing up and working out with the team.”
Senior Lexi Defreece has played Girls Soccer throughout high school, and hopes that this season will just be fun and the best year they’ve had. Defreece stated that she has been working a lot on her ball control skills and endurance, which are a major part of soccer. Defreece shared, “I just wanted to say that I am very excited about the upcoming season. I love seeing all the new players and the old players coming out during the off-season.” She finished, “I am excited to see what this year brings for us!”
