On the evening of May 7, eager rising freshmen crowded the gym to attend Miramonte’s annual sports fair. Lasting from 5:00 to 8:00 p.m., the fair — featuring student-led sports stands and tacos — culminated with a Q&A about various Miramonte sports.
Incoming high schoolers discovered an array of booths filled with information about each sport, with student representatives aiding in the process. On top of this, booths were decorated with balloons, treats, sports merchandise, trophies, and NCS flags to entice newcomers. Meanwhile, student representatives wore sports gear to show off their sports spirit.
Girls’ golf captain and sophomore Emma Wang helped set up their golf booth with a couple of other golfers and helped man the booth along with their coach. “We had a decorated poster and candy, and students were welcome to come ask our coach about some of the details golf includes,” Wang said.
At these stands, incoming students could ask coaches and students running the booths for information regarding each sport. “We hope students learn that we have a really positive and inviting team culture. We’re trying to focus on people who want to work hard and get better,” track & field and cross-country coach Andrew Lewis said.
Many incoming freshmen previously played a sport they planned to check out at this fair; however, a wide range of booths still captured the eyes of prospective student-athletes, intriguing them into possibly exploring a new sport. “The girls’ flag football booth inspired me to consider joining that team,” incoming freshman Stella Huynh said.
Miramonte sports play a large role in fostering school culture by aiding inclusion and mental health efforts, while sports help overall academic performance, confidence, mood, and more. Thus, the sports fair can help students feel connected in school spirit. Incoming freshman Teddy Morse, who hopes to run track and cross-country, is one of many who hope for college opportunities through sports. “Sports can also be the reason you get into big colleges and high school helps lead up to that,” Morse said.
Miramonte hopes to improve the fair every year. On top of this, the fair is specifically designed to help students ease their transition into high school athletics. “Students can also get a taste of the potential time management issues, being a student-athlete, and not be surprised with both the sport and academic demands,” Sports Director Sean Hennessy said.
The sports fair is also important as it displays all sports and what they offer, including teaching new students about past histories of each sport with wins and losses, what practices look like, and other helpful information that can also come along with emails sent to the email address students can put down on the paper at each booth. “The sport definitely helps incoming freshmen get introduced to new opportunities and see what sport they might excel in,” junior and water polo captain Audrina Kang said.
The sports fair — and sports as a whole — can connect the Miramonte community to middle schools like O.I.S. This helps students transfer into high school more easily, as they can already have a way to feel like part of the community. “Coming to this fair helped me meet the coaches and see who else will be playing the sport,” incoming freshman Chelsea Dao said. “Now I know who to expect when I join volleyball next year.”
