Freshman Abby Barnes may be new to the high school, but she definitely isn’t a stranger to the field or the court.
As a tri-sport athlete, she has been playing volleyball and basketball for seven years, softball for eight years, and participates in club and travel teams for both softball and volleyball.
Her sports seasons being back to back, or often even overlapping, Barnes doesn’t have much time for anything else. She likes it that way.
She explains that being an athlete comes with tradeoffs, but she wouldn’t give it up for anything.
“If you want to be the best, you have to work through the struggles,” Barnes said.
That exact “be the best” mentality is what got her to where she is today. Barnes began her freshman season on the JV basketball team, but she worked her way up to a starting position on the varsity squad by the end of the season.
“Playing on varsity was a great opportunity for me to become a stronger player,” Barnes said.
Barnes always strives to be the best and her teammates notice that in how she plays.
“I have noticed that [Barnes] always puts in the work to get better no matter what we’re doing. She always worked hard in games and practice and made sure that she was always improving,” Junior teammate Carly Underhill explained.
Being both one of her softball coaches and her father, Barnes says her dad is always her biggest supporter and motivator.
“Even the times when he pushes me overboard, I still appreciate him because he knows what my limits are,” Barnes said.
Her dad admires her attitude outside of sports and the positive energy that she continues to radiate even through this mess of a year.
“Nothing we have done other than support has made her a better athlete,student or person. The growth is she is that she takes ownership of everything she does,”Mr. Barnes said.
Barnes is very competitive and loves the feeling of winning, but that’s only a fraction of what athletics mean to her. She enjoys meeting new people and learning how she can be a better teammate and friend.
“I have received many trophies from winning things, but the true trophy is learning how to work with other people,” Barnes said.
