Lick-Wilmerding successfully reached 50% capacity on campus in mid-February. With this accomplishment came the official start of in-person athletics, specifically cross country and women’s tennis.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the start of LWHS sports had been pushed back multiple times in accordance with local health and safety regulations. Sports are now being played in three shortened seasons this semester; they are sorted based on their relative COVID-19 risk.
The official cross country season started in February, “but we’ve been practicing basically all summer,” said Milo Chung ’21, a cross country captain. The team had begun captain-run practices last June, a couple of weeks after school ended. One small group practiced at Ruth Asawa San Francisco School of the Arts and another at Kezar Stadium. On weekends, both groups took various runs through Golden Gate Park. These voluntary practices were held three times a week for around an hour and a half. As the season progressed, the practices became a daily occurrence.
With many runners on campus, the groups are now split up into cohorts, one at the Polo Fields and one at Balboa Park. Each runner is tested once a week, whether or not they are attending on-campus classes, and keeps their mask on for the majority of practice. Regardless of the restrictions, runners are happy to be back participating in official athletics. “I think it’s been pretty exciting. A lot of runners have been putting in the work throughout the year and we hadn’t been able to race or practice, so it’s been nice,” said Chung.
Chung is a Senior and has been running cross country at LWHS since he was a Frosh. Thus, he has participated in three normal cross country seasons while at LWHS. “I’d say an average practice last year would be around 40 to 50 kids,” Chung said. “They would go to the track at City College, and we’d run a warm-up all bunched together.” These workouts would contain lots of high-fives and close breathing. “This year is kind of the opposite. There are fewer people per practice, it’s much more spread out, and everyone’s wearing masks.”
Photo by Tri Nguyen
Nonetheless, this year’s team has been able to achieve their goal of having a semi-normal season. Their first meet, on Wednesday, February 25, was against Drew School. “Even if it’s not super serious and there might not be the opportunity to go to States, we are still able to race and maybe get a [personal record],” he said. Their second meet, on March 3, was against Urban on March 3, and their third race against Head Royce on the home course in Golden Gate Park. Their final race was last Friday against University.
One disadvantage this season, Chung said, is that if there’s someone you love to run with but they’re in a different cohort, you can’t run with them. He noted that races are much more split up, with only two teams per race. Also, this year, because of COVID, NCS and States won’t happen. However, the runners have been able to use this time to build a steady base and connect with each other, he said.
In addition to cross country, the women’s tennis team has been playing for the last month. According to Daisy Maunupau ’21, one of the team captains, their practices started in February and were around an hour and a half a couple of times a week. Tennis practices are held at City College. The mandated safety precautions remain in place — athletes must remain six feet apart and wear a mask.
“It’s really strange, because as a Senior I’ve gone through years having a normal season, so having to do my last year in this format is strange,” Maunupau said. Although she feels lucky that tennis is a socially distanced sport, she says the dynamic is still very different from her past experiences.
Last year, a typical practice would start around 3:45 or 4:00 and end at 5:45. The agenda would include a brief introduction and comments about any upcoming matches; then warm-ups began. City College is divided into three separate groups of courts, so Varsity and Junior Varsity could split up into two separate practices. There were three coaches who would rotate around while drills and matches occurred. This year, players keep their masks on the entire time, which limits the amount of conditioning they can do, and they sanitize their hands frequently. Because of transportation for the players who have been off-campus, practice tends to start much later.
Photo by Tri Nguyen
The team dynamic has changed a bit as well. “You have the sophomores on one hand, who in 2019-2020 experienced half of a normal year and half of a remote year. There’s kind of an unbalanced mix between people who have solid relationships with their peers and people who haven’t solidified their friendships,” said Maunupau. “The girls on varsity are almost all upperclassmen, so we’re kind of like the most fit, or accustomed to the social aspect of tennis.”
Their first match was on February 27 at City College, with several others packed into the short season. No spectators are allowed, but this doesn’t stop the players from doing their best.
“I guess a benefit would be having more time to make bonds between the players. That’s a huge thing in tennis because even though it’s an individual sport, it can get lonely on the court, so you want to have friendships with other people on the team,” Maunupau said.
The Varsity and Junior Varsity teams have been working hard to build skills and keep practices as normal as possible for the players.
“I think with COVID, it’s very easy to stay negative. We captains and the other returning girls are making it more positive and are trying to make the best out of the situation, and it’s going pretty well so far,” Maunupau said.
