“I believe that you learn so much about yourself on the field/court/track/course, etc that you otherwise wouldn't learn that young. You learn what it takes to be successful. You learn how to lose well. You learn how to work hard for something you want. You learn how to be a competitor with others without being enemies. You learn to reach down and find that reserve of energy or effort and force it to come out so that you can push to the end and finish the race (game/match etc). You also learn that sometimes, you can do everything right, and still lose. These are invaluable life lessons best learned in lower-stakes situations like sports and I am so thankful that I had those experiences growing up to prepare me for the life that came after.” - Coach Margaret Woosnam
Coach Margaret is the athletics director at SGA and is always working hard for sports at SGA. She is the one who started the success that is our SGA Spartans athletics program, and she has lots of wisdom to share.
Winter sports have finally started! They vary from basketball to flag football, and the Spartans are doing great this year! So far with winter sports, the flag football team got to the state championship! Congratulations to all of our Spartans athletes.
I asked Coach Margaret a few questions, and here they are!
Q- Did you play a sport in high school, and if so, what was it?
A- “Yes. In high school, I played volleyball, tennis, and soccer.“
Q- What is the most underrated sport here that you wish would get more attention?
A- “Girls Flag Football! It is the fastest-growing sport in America and the first year our league has offered it. It will be a National Federation of High Schools-sanctioned sport next year, so it will likely become a collegiate-level sport very soon. Our team won the state championship game on Monday 11/18. We have super-talented athletes at SGA!”
Q- When someone is looking to try out for a sport at SGA, what are some things that that person should aspire to be like to get on the team and some things that people trying out should avoid?
A- “For most Varsity sports in a school program like ours, you need to have a decent amount of experience playing at a competitive level. If you started playing as a middle schooler, even through a local rec program, you are probably more prepared than a high schooler who is just getting into the sport. However, there are students who are just natural athletes. In general, you will have a hard time making a competitive Varsity team (or getting playing time) if you don't put a lot of time into the sport outside of your normal practices. This might mean time to train as an elementary or middle school student or it might mean going to lots of workouts and training on your own once you are in high school. The bottom line is that time invested in a sport is not something you can fake or fast-track.”
Q- How did you get so passionate about sports, and was your family a sporty family growing up?
A- “I grew up in a sports-loving family. My dad played basketball growing up and my brother played tennis and soccer. Every Saturday, college football was playing on TV - mostly the UNC Tarheels because that is my parents' alma mater. We also went to lots of Carolina football and men's basketball games when I was growing up. For me, sports were what we did when we weren't at church. I started playing soccer when I was 2 and played into college. My dad was my coach for most of my childhood and that relationship (dad/daughter plus coach/player) had a very positive impact on me growing up.”
Q- What are all of the winter sports available to SGA students available this year?
A- “Winter sports are: Boys Basketball, Equestrian (coed, though this year our team is all girls for some reason!), Cheer (middle school girls only and they are cheering for the middle school basketball games), and Bass Fishing (also coed, but only two boys fishing this year).”
Q- What is your favorite Bible verse?
A- “My favorite verse is Romans 8:1 "There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus." But I love the entire chapter (Romans 8) and memorized the whole chapter years ago because it means so much to me.”
So that’s the inside with coach Margaret! Without Coach Margaret, sports at SGA would not be possible.
And I believe that anyone in sports right now would agree with me that even though being in sports takes a lot of endurance, it is always worth it. It doesn't always have to be just to get a college scholarship (even though those are nice); it can just be for all of the benefits and growth it gives you, as Coach Margaret states in the beginning of this article. If you're on the fence about participating - give it a try!
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