“I remember whenever we won an away game the bus ride back we would be super hyped,” said senior Jack Raclaw. “I remember we would get food from 7/11 after a win and celebrate on the bus. Also the parties before the games were fun because you ate good food and bonded with the team.”
Most people at Saint Viator have said that playing sports is their favorite way to get involved. There are many different sports teams in Saint Viator. There are two main levels for all the sports at Saint Viator: junior varsity and varsity. Typically, varsity players get a majority of the spotlight, and the bonds formed from playing on a junior varsity (JV) team are too often ignored.
“My experience on JV was that I got to meet so many [more] people through the years because I was on JV and not varsity,” said Raclaw. “I met a lot of people from the higher classes and the lower classes. Most of the time you know only people from your class, but with sports, particularly on the JV level…you get to meet people that you won’t [normally] meet. For freshmen, you get to meet more people at the school before you enter high school.”
The growth opportunities on JV are also present as well.
“You get to be on a team…to see what winning and losing tastes like, and you get…the experience…to work hard to get to the varsity level. That’s why you have to do your best and improve. You get excited and want to work hard, get better, and become the best at [whatever] level,” said Raclaw.
“I didn’t anticipate being a part of the JV team my senior year,” said senior Loreto Chiovari. “I ended up taking this opportunity to hone in on my game and welcome new golfers to the program. Even though JV is still very competitive, I felt more comfortable in this less intense environment where I could stop constantly worrying about shooting a score and focus more on enjoying the game of golf while bonding with my teammates. Being a ‘leader’ on the JV team gave me the ability to meet new people and learn to work on a team consisting of students across our school which has served me well in my role as student council president to be able to work alongside the entire student body. Overall, I enjoyed my senior season and even though it didn’t pan out as I had anticipated, playing JV ended up being a blessing in disguise.”
“[Being on JV] allows for players in the developing stages of sports to learn key skills and understand their respective sport,” said senior Ryder Schuch. “Then, they can achieve varsity when they have enough experience and skills.”
This idea follows along with what most people think. Many JV warriors have said that they view their time on JV as more fun and relaxing. They get to play more and develop friendships with their teammates. The varsity level is more competitive than JV and results in less playing time and experience for some. For others, JV serves as a social activity that does not contain the stress associated with varsity competition. JV also develops people and gives players the right habit to grow.
Being on JV helps players develop skill and talent as well as being more educated about their sport. It can help players new to the sport gain experience which they wouldn’t otherwise gain at varsity. Other than just skills, JV also helps develop other aspects.
Junior Varsity is oftentimes treated with a level of disdain or disrespect from some athletes due to the status of limbo it places athletes between reaching the varsity level. From the general population, JV games are generally ignored or underattended. Perhaps it may be time to make a change; if JV athletes put in similar levels of work to varsity athletes, why should their activities be treated so much differently than varsity competition?
JV provides great opportunities for players to grow and develop character. On varsity players have less time for development. JV allows players to grow as human beings as well as athletes. Viator athletes may be in a rush to play varsity, but don’t overlook JV.