The freshmen girl’s basketball team claimed 17, victories and suffered one loss. They picked up big wins over teams such as Rockwood Summit, Parkway North and Wentzville.
“This team was a perfect example of what I’ve learned about Parkway West,” head coach Peggy Schane said. “They deserve recognition for their outstanding season and the dedication they showed.”
The original goals of the season were to play as a team and grow as a program.
“We also wanted to build upon the skills we already had,” freshmen Tia Reed said.
For other teammates, like freshman Layne Bierk, they felt that their season got off to a bumpy start.
“The season had been pretty successful, but the beginning of the year was more difficult because I wasn’t very skilled,” Bierk said. “[But] through six practices a week I finally got a lot better.”
Starting the season with 11 players, losing one to a transfer to Parkway Central and two suffering injuries, the team still weathered the season.
“At the end of January, at one of our basketball games, I tore my ACL, so I didn’t get to end off the season playing in any games,” freshman Madison Foelsch said. “But I enjoyed watching my team finish off the season with wins.”
The team blew out many teams including rival Parkway Central 50-4.
“Whenever we played Central, we always did really good as a team, because we had to slow down and work on practicing our plays,” freshmen Emily Lofgren said.
During the final game, the team secured a win over Marquette High School with a score of 29-25.
“Since it was our last game, we were scared to play because [Marquette] was a good team, and we were down players due to injuries,” freshman Kaitlin Mendonsa. “But the game turned out really good for us and it was really fun way to finish off the season.”
Their final win put them in first place in the Parkway-Rockwood Tournament to close out the season.
“The greatest success was at the finals of the tournament,” Schane said. “It was a great game and came down to making two free throws, by Caroline Briscoe, to seal it so, the story ends and what they worked for all season in practice, paid off.”
![Holding the disc, senior Nathan Thompson waits for an opportunity to pass to senior Timmy Fry. Parkway United’s ultimate frisbee team is made up of students from each of the four Parkway schools. “The one thing I really like about ultimate [frisbee] is the community because it’s so different from any other sport I've been a part of. [My] national teammates are people who we play against in the regular season, so we see each other all the time. It's always fun hanging out with [them],” Thompson said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/C96A6823-1200x800.jpg)
![Senior Josie Grunzinger watches the football game intently from the sidelines on Oct. 18. Grunzinger stood out to the crowd as the only girl on the football team, encouraging other girls who want to play football to take a chance and go for a sport outside of their comfort zone. “If you think you could [play football] and you want to do it, just try it, because all it takes is to actually try it out,” Grunzinger said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Untitled-design-1200x675.png)
![With her arms held high, junior Jenna Rickelman throws the ball across the pool during a girls water polo practice. With hours of practice after school and over the summer, Rickelman saw many improvements in her water polo skills. “When I look at [my] stats, I'm so much better than I was last year,” Rickelman said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Untitled-design-2-.png)
![Putting on his helmet, catcher and senior Tommy Eschbach prepares to get in his primary stance. Despite losing 6-1 against Eureka on April 16, Eschbach didn’t let the tough loss affect his playing or mental health. “It's [so] easy to get caught up in the sport and what you're doing that [after] one bad game or a stretch of games it is hard to remind yourself that your worth as a person isn't directly related to your performance on the field,” Eschbach said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/DSC_0415-1-1-1200x800.jpg)
![Sports organizations have changed lives on and off the field, improving athletes’ muscle strength, reducing their risk of diseases and building energetic work capacity worldwide. However, many student-athletes struggle to balance schoolwork and athletic commitments, hoping to seek more understanding and support from their teachers and coaches. “To lessen mental strain student-athletes [face] and create a healthier, more comfortable lifestyle, there shouldn’t be any homework. I'm already [at school] for eight hours and [homework] creates a bigger load for student-athletes in AP or honors classes,” track and field sprinter and sophomore Lucy Penton said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/DSC_0095-1-e1713883278514-1200x847.jpg)
![At the Spring Pep Rally on March 8, boys varsity water poloist and junior Jack Brau stands with the boys water polo team. The group, hoping to include everyone — whether boy or girl, varsity or JV — cheered on the girls water polo team during the sports team runouts. “Even though we all play separate games and have different practices, we like to see ourselves as one big group who represent one water polo [team],” Brau said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/DSC_8810-1-1200x800.jpg)
![Looking for an open teammate, freshman Patrick May passes the ball across the court at the Nov. 28 game against Parkway Central. May started in the game against the Colts. ”Growing up, [my parents] always gave me a basketball, [and] we had a basketball hoop outside. I grew up playing [all the time], playing on the [driveway] and shooting hoops with my dad.” May said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/image2-1-1200x801.jpg)
