A Look Behind the Scenes

What Happens at Practice During Winter Sports

Photo by Kate Bascom/Maclay Andalusian

While our fall sports have taken an end to their seasons, winter sports are now beginning to have practices and their first games. Our few winter sports—basketball,  competition cheer, soccer and weightlifting—have taken over the courts and fields.

Everyone is always excited and counting down the minutes until the first game or competition to watch, cheering on each sport as they compete to the best of their abilities. But how do these teams really prepare for the big day?

Girls and boys basketball have been practicing for their first games of the season. The teams practice in the Webster gym, conditioning and practicing plays to prepare for every game they have. 

“We make sure to focus on the little things like layups, rebounding, defense, etc.,” senior girls basketball captain Lauren Guyer said. “We want to get better every time we step on the court.”

For the first year since 2022, Maclay cheerleading brought back their competition team for the 2025 season. The team has been practicing every Tuesday and Thursday, perfecting their routine for their competitions coming up in January.

“Usually we start with individual stretching,” sophomore cheerleader Sophie Fasig said. “Then we warm up our stunts, then we move on to practicing the routine that we need to perform.”

The Maclay soccer teams have been practicing since their tryouts which occurred in the middle of October. These teams practice on the fields everyday, practicing techniques that can be used in games. They also watch films of their last games in order to learn from their mistakes.

“We spend about 30 minutes warming up to make sure we don't tear any muscles or get injured,” junior co-captain Neely Oberste said. “Then normally we’ll do some drills and those are normally focused on whatever we need for our next game. Then we end practice with a cooldown.”

Girls weightlifting has already competed in numerous meets since starting in October. Every Tuesday and Thursday mornings, the girls meet in the weightroom to have a team lift; as well as going into the weightroom on their own times to have additional practice.

“At every practice, we practice the movements we are going to be doing in the meets,” junior Josey Becker said. “We also do other additional movements to gain strength to be able to show progress throughout the season.”

Every winter sport has been putting all their efforts into preparing for the season during practices. You never know what goes on behind the scenes of your favorite team and how they prepare for every game or competition.