I have participated in three seasons of Milton High School sports every year since ninth grade. In grade nine I played soccer in the fall, ran indoor track in the winter, and played lacrosse in the spring. In grade ten I played the same sports. This year I am currently running cross country and will continue on to run indoor track and play lacrosse. I also plan on participating in athletics during senior year. As you can see, I am very passionate about sports. More specifically, I am very passionate about Milton High School sports. However, over the past two years, I have become increasingly frustrated with the fact that our school’s athletic teams are frequently unsuccessful. I recognize that we have a number of significant accomplishments, but it seems as if we have had a much greater amount of failures. During my freshman year, my soccer team only won three games, my indoor track team only won two meets, and my lacrosse team only won three games. My sophomore year was even worse. My soccer team did not win a single game, my indoor track team only won two meets, and my lacrosse team won only two games. Our school’s inability to succeed evolves from a long list of problems including bad coaches, a lack of money, a lack of proper equipment, and a lack of field space. However, I feel as though our biggest disability is our lack of players.

Incoming freshmen always seem to loose a considerable portion of their population to private schools. Because of this, Milton High also looses a substantial amount of talented athletes. For example, I lost fifty percent of my eighth grade travel soccer team to private schools. Those who choose to attend private schools leave our town high school lacking the necessary, or preferable, number of players. In addition, our deficit exists because a large majority the incoming population is unexposed to, or unaware of, sports. When those students enter the high school they often become fascinated in joining sports, but lack the confidence to get involved. This leaves a large number of interested, potentially great athletes, undiscovered. Our shortage of players also stems from a general feeling that exists amongst many, which is, simply put: Milton High School sports are not good, are not competitive, and are not successful. This negative view discourages many from participating.

If I were in a position of power, I would propose the following as a solution to this problem. First, I would encourage Milton to begin more youth sports programs. This would allow more kids to become familiar with sports. In addition, I would get high school players and coaches to actively participate in the youth programs to promote the town’s high school athletics.