There are many things to dislike about winter: snow, shorter days, ice, dirty cars. However, there is one thing that many students look forward to–winter sports. The season was filled with many memories and athletic goals. With the first week of March underway, and as the cold weather departs, so do winter sports, and in roll spring sports. To many, it is a bittersweet ending to a enjoyable season.

The girls’ gymnastics team this year created many memories along with performing their very best. The team is composed of both North and South High athletes and most of the time, the girls forget about their differences. Laughs were shared, and personal bests were set. Whether it was a floor routine or the bars, the girls’ worked their absolute best. Senior Lauren Buckley shared her thoughts on her achievements,

“Going into gymnastics as a Senior, I was worried. I didn’t know how I would perform. But right after the first practice, I knew this was the right choice. The coaches were so nice and my teammates were amazing. I am very happy with my decision to join the team.”

The wrestling team this year had occasion setbacks with cancellations of tournaments. Weather would often prevent them from attending or hosting, but the boys handled these challenges with ease and worked extra hard during practice. Sweat, tears, and often blood was put into practice to get the outcome the boys wished for. In the end, many were happy with the result.

The boys’ basketball had an eventful season. The boys had a 10-13 record and lost to Fond Du Lac in the regional semi-final game on Friday night. For the Seniors, this is the end of the road. But for the rest of the team, many are already starting preparation for next year. Junior Jacob Case elaborated on what he has already began,

“I’ve been lifting and been doing a program to increase my jumping for long jump and high jump in track and to dunk in basketball next year. Also, I have been working on flexibility to increase my speed for the upcoming football season and track season.”

Many athletes use their skills in other sports they participate in to help their other passions.

The girls’ basketball team had many setbacks. The team struggled to win their games and went on to win only one. With these dim statistics, the girls still had an amazing team dynamic and made many memories throughout the season. Win or lose, they gave it their all and many life lasting memories along the way. Sophomore Emily Bridges shared her favorite memory from the season,

“My favorite memory was definitely bus rides. Our team as a whole got along so well and always knew how to have fun both before and after games even after we lost. We didn’t have the best record, but we had a lot of fun this season.”

Both the cheer and dance teams had great seasons. Cheer won second at state and won Appleton North and East Troy. Dance finished their season with a third place win at state. Both teams put many hours of hard work into practice and worked to improve both their routines. Senior Chyenne Lloyd summed up her season,

“We all worked hard this year. We put countless hours of practice in knowing that we’d benefit each other in the long run.  The thing that I will miss the most is being on the mats at a competition and smiling at my team before the music starts, knowing we’re about to hit the routine that we worked so hard on.”

Finally, the boys’ swim team finished their season a couple of weeks ago and overall did very well. Many boys achieved personal bests and Junior Brock Kovacic went on to compete in state diving. This is a very big accomplishment for Kovacic as it is his first year diving. The boys hope to improve next year and the many years to come.

With the end of winter sports, the beginning of spring sports comes. Many winter athletes clean out their lockers, and move on with the rest of the school year. As the snow and ice melt away, the memories the winter sport athletes created never will.