By Jessica Johnson

Many sports teams at Walled Lake Central work very well together when playing together and that’s by design. It’s the dynamic that each team builds up from by working in varying ways to create bonds outside of school and practices.

“The things we do outside of school bring us closer as a team when it’s time to compete,” said varsity cross country runner and sophomore Jeff Kochevar.

Sports teams all organize their own after school events, from having dinners at one another’s houses to participating in trust and team building activities.

“We always have team dinners. I love them because I get to spend time with my teammates and we can all become friends,” said JV poms captain and sophomore Kaitlyn Mather of what her JV squad does in order to form a close bond between all of the members on the team.  

Varsity wrestler and senior Ben Freeman said that their team also has dinner much like JV poms. “We always go out to eat, and this year we had a big Thanksgiving dinner,” Freeman explained. This helps both teams bond and become closer not only as fellow teammates, but as friends.

Varsity men’s soccer and varsity women’s ski takes their team bonding to another level. “We will do activities like paint-ball, and have volleyball games held for fun,” varsity soccer player and Sophomore Ellton Puma explained.

These types of bonding exercises build trust within a team on and off the field. Varsity Skier and Senior captain Grace Berryman said, “We as a ski team like to have pizza a parties while waxing our skis, and we also go up north to camp together. It helps create better teamwork, and you get to know the girls you will be competing with better.”

Each individual team creates ways on their own to come closer together to improve friendships and the overall team dynamic they will have together. The bonding they will do helps shape how their performance will be while playing or competing in their sports. Bonding as a whole is always healthy, especially for new teams looking for ways to become closer.