As the first semester comes to an end, so do the first two quarters of Oxford’s junior high intramural sports. Intramurals are a quarterly series of sports that offer students the opportunity to participate and learn, no matter their starting skill level. The program emphasizes team-building, growth, and fosters a love for sports which students can take into high school and beyond.
“Junior High sports is not necessarily about the win-losses. It’s about learning the sport, improving your skills, and deciding if this is something you’d like to go into high school [with],” junior high athletic director Ms. Heath said, “Watching the excitement of the students as they play in those games, seeing their progress, [and] just the team spirit and the camaraderie that you see amongst the teams as they play [is] fun and exciting to watch.”
The first quarter of sports introduced girls volleyball, boys tennis, and co-ed flag football to junior high students.
“A day at practice is routine, beginning with dynamic stretching, learning new skills [and] plays, and a scrimmage to finish most of the time. Laughter and jokes are usually mixed in,” said 8th grade flag football athlete Oluwafikayomi “Felix” Enny-Ajayi.
Along with learning skills in practice, intramurals also offered athletes the opportunity to exercise their abilities in real games, where students got to express their competitive spirit, whilst gaining confidence through team camaraderie and spirit.
“Intramurals helped me branch out and be more confident, especially last year when I was new and didn’t know very many people. Everyone that I played with was so supportive, and it was very uplifting to be cheered on.” said 8th grade volleyball athlete Nina Huh.
Junior High concluded the first quarter season making memories both off and on the field with a rally celebration on Oct 2, before the quarter one finals on Oct. 9.
“Intramural sports are overall great because it’s not super stressful,” said 8th grader Alexa Mendez, “Being able to play with friends made it really amazing,”
The second quarter carried this spirit, introducing boys basketball, girls tennis, and girls soccer to athletes.
“I joined soccer because I wanted to spend time improving my skills and sharing the joy of the game with my friends…One of the best lessons I learned from intramurals was to try new things, when you try new things you could either succeed or you could fail, learn, and try again,” said 8th grader Miles Diaz.
For the upcoming semester, Junior High athletes can look forward to the third quarter of intramurals, including cross-country, girls basketball, and boys soccer. In quarter four, athletes will enjoy boys volleyball, girls soccer, and track and field.
For now, the last games of quarter two will be on Dec. 17. Make sure to come out and support the JH Patriots as they take on the Lexington Lions at Lexington and finish their season off strong.
“Come out and cheer, and don’t forget to try out new sports. Even if you’ve never played it, this is the time to just go out and try,” Ms. Heath said.
